by Rachel Martin

In few places does “green” meet “blue” like it does in Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh is a city that prides itself on its strong and vibrant labor history, and, more and more, on its status as an emerging green leader.
Pittsburgh is the site of the founding conventions of the America
Federation of Labor (AFL) and the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO), and of some of America’s biggest labor battles. It is also one of the top cities for green building activity, and has emerged as a national model for brownfield development. So what better place to launch an alliance that brings together two of the best things Pittsburgh has to offer - our strong labor base and our green consciousness.

The Pennsylvania Blue-Green Alliance is part of a national strategic
alliance between the Sierra Club, the largest grassroots-based environmental organization in the U.S., and the United Steelworkers, the
largest industrial union in North America.

The Blue-Green Alliance is founded on the principle that we can have good
jobs and a clean environment, that safe workplaces mean healthy
neighborhoods, and that in a carbon-constrained world, for jobs to be
economically sustainable they must be environmentally sustainable. In
sum, the Blue-Green Alliance is working for good jobs, a clean
environment, and a safer world.

The potential for this Alliance in our state is huge. In Pennsylvania,
the USW and Sierra Club have a combined membership of nearly 100,000 -
more than 70,000 Steelworkers and over 20,000 Sierra Club members. These
individuals are connected to more than 135,000 family members - extending
the reach of the USW and Sierra Club within Pennsylvania to more than a
quarter million.

The primary goals of the PA Blue-Green Alliance are to:

• Spur the development of green jobs by pushing for implementation of
  Energy Solutions Plans by Pennsylvania cities and counties signed on to
  the US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement and the Cool Counties Climate Stabilization Declaration
• Create an informed network of key leaders, activists and members from
  Pennsylvania’s labor and environmental movements to guarantee maximum
  coordination and effectiveness in conveying our shared vision to the public and to administrative decision-makers.
• Build a leadership team across the state that can develop and implement
  local, regional and statewide policy campaigns on clean energy and jobs, clean cars and green chemistry.
• Involve the public through traditional grassroots organizing and
  education activities, using print materials, earned and paid media coverage, and engaging events

We’re planning a series of Blue-Green Alliance events for the fall. If
you’re interested in getting involved in this historic alliance, let us
know! Just give us a call at 412-802-6161 or send us an e-mail at
hillary.bright@sierraclub.org

For more information on the Blue-Green Alliance, visit
www.bluegreenalliance.org