2022 National Affairs & Legislation Conference
Sarah Dimling and Diana Stromberg
The annual 2022 NAL Conference “Advocacy in Action” took place March 1 - 3 and was once again held virtually due to the pandemic. While it was disappointing for attendees and presenters to not be able to meet in person, it was open to all GCA members and over 1,200 attendees participated from across the nation. Karen Gilhuly, NAL Chair for GCA, led the conference and she was joined by Cayce McAlister, Conservation chair for GCA. Both Chairs did an excellent job leading the many GCA volunteers and staff who worked hard to bring this incredible online conference to fruition.
A special thanks goes to Jane Ellison who graciously assumed the role as Conservation and Advocacy Rep for Zone X when the former Zone Rep was unable to serve in this capacity. Even though Jane is still recovering from a broken kneecap, she did not miss a beat representing our zone with her vast knowledge of conservation and environmental advocacy. There were at least ten SLGC members in attendance and our collective takeaway was that the conference was extremely educational, the choice of speakers was outstanding, and the topics were relevant for every participant. Here is a list of the topics covered during the various conference sessions:
🌿Climate Change/Rivers/Forests
🌿Billboards & Utility Wires/Plastic Pollution/Removing Dams
🌿Oceans/Marine Sanctuaries/Wetlands/Coasts
🌿Regenerative Agriculture/Native Plants/Seed Saving
All members of SLGC are encouraged to view the presentations that are of the most interest to them. The speaker videos are available on the GCA website for you to enjoy. The videos are easy to navigate and can be found as follows:
🌎Go to GCA landing page and login
🌎Select Conferences & Workshops
🌎Select Advocacy Workshop & NAL Conference
🌎Scroll down to select the session(s) of your choice
There is also a Read/Watch/Listen/Learn section that includes links to legislative priorities and the GCA’s position papers as well as providing links to books, videos and blogs recommended for further research on these crucial issues. The legislative priorities reflect the GCA’s values outlined in the various position papers and are largely bipartisan. If passed, they can significantly help reduce carbon emissions that are the root cause of climate change.