Clean Air, Clean Lungs, Clean Buses Campaign

Tribal leaders and Native organizations from the United States and Canada are standing together today pleased that President Barack Obama is acknowledging his pledge to listen to the voices of this countries' original people, by rejecting the Transcanada Keystone XL pipeline.  

"This is one battle won for our Mother Earth," said Clayton Thomas-Muller, campaign coordinator with Clean Air ally Indigenous Environmental Network (IEN) Canadian Indigenous Tar Sands Campaign.

Indigenous leaders returning from Durban, South Africa condemn the fiasco of the United Nations climate change talks and demand a moratorium on a forest carbon offset scheme called REDD+ which they say threatens the future of humanity and Indigenous Peoples' very survival. During the UN climate negotiations, a Global Alliance of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities against REDD+ and for Life was formed to bring attention to the lack of full recognition of Indigenous rights being problematic in the texts of the UN climate negotiations.

The BRU, Communities for a Better Environment, East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice, and Physicians for Social Responsibility-Los Angeles have sent this letter to Mayor Villaraigosa and the Board of Directors of MTA calling for swift action on climate change. We demand restoration and expansion of bus service and a halt to the multi-billion dollar expansion of the I-710 freeway as two immediate actions that would benefit the health and well-being of LA's low income communities of color while reducing LA's carbon footprint.

Joining forces with Communities for a Better Environment, East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice, and Physicians for Social Responsibility-LA, the BRU marched to demand the Mayor and the MTA "Expanding the bus system, not the 710 freeway. Meanwhile, BRU organizer Francisca Porchas is representing Grassroots Global Justice Alliance and Transit Riders for Public Transportation in Durban, building our connections with the international climate justice movement.  

Mother Earth Achieves a Victory Today with Obama Administration Decision to Delay the Keystone XL Pipeline Decision. Read the statement from Clean Air allies The Indigenous Environmental Network in the latest victory against Big Oil!

With our recent victory securing the Wilshire Bus Only Lanes, we've made it a priority to continue building an organized constituency of
low-income bus riders who have the knowledge and commitment to intervene in public health and environmental policies that connect with mass transit.