Sustainability Now! | Julia Finch | Sierra Club Kentucky Chapter | 5-15-23

On this week’s Sustainability Now!, your host, Justin Mog, sits down in the studio with Julia Finch, the new Director of the Sierra Club's Kentucky Chapter (https://www.sierraclub.org/kentucky) as of January 2023. Tune in and get to know Julia and her fascinating background, having pursued a Ph.D. in medieval art history, and other advocacy & community building work she’s done in arts and creative spaces. We also discuss the Sierra Club's core values nationally, and break down the structure of Sierra Club Kentucky and its six existing local groups (Great Rivers, Pennyrile, Mammoth Cave, Greater Louisville, Bluegrass, and Northern Kentucky) and three groups planned for future in Eastern Kentucky (Troublesome Creek, Red River, and Highlands)

Listen in to hear how the national Sierra Club is undergoing a major reorganization (https://www.eenews.net/articles/sierra-club-announces-layoffs-restructuring/), and as we discuss the issues Sierra Club is watching and supporting across the state:
• River Metals Recycling pollution in Newport, KY https://linknky.com/news/2023/04/04/newport-residents-may-soon-get-to-share-their-experiences-with-river-metals-recycling-in-court/
• Century Aluminum Sebree plant on Green River in Robards, KY https://www.penncapital-star.com/energy-environment/american-aluminum-plants-are-bigger-polluters-than-some-abroad-why/
• Bernheim Forest / LGE Pipeline issue in Greater Louisville area https://www.wdrb.com/in-depth/lg-e-can-take-bernheim-forest-land-for-bullitt-county-gas-pipeline-judge-rules/article_2668cd72-a321-11ed-bebb-c7083eb47f40.html
• A proposal for $500 million federal prison in flood-ravaged Letcher County https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/29/opinion/kentucky-prison-flood.html
• Tree-planting efforts in and around the Bowling Green area https://www.wbko.com/2023/03/26/retree-bg-distributes-trees-tornado-victims/
• Opportunities for funding within the IRA/IIJA and Sierra Club's Community Advocates program https://www.sierraclub.org/community-advocates-program#:~:text=The%20Sierra%20Club%20is%20launching,by%20climate%20and%20environmental%20injustice.
• Sierra Club Kentucky's Healthy Food, Healthy Earth campaign https://www.sierraclub.org/kentucky/healthy-food-healthy-earth
• Judah Schept's book is called “Coal, Cages, Crisis: The Rise of the Prison Economy in Central Appalachia” and he teaches at EKU. https://nyupress.org/9781479858972/coal-cages-crisis/"

As always, our feature is followed by your community action calendar for the week, so get your calendars out and get ready to take action for sustainability NOW!

Sustainability Now! is hosted by Dr. Justin Mog and airs on Forward Radio, 106.5fm, WFMP-LP Louisville, every Monday at 6pm and repeats Tuesdays at 12am and 10am. Find us at http://forwardradio.org

The music in this podcast is courtesy of the local band Appalatin and is used by permission. Explore their delightful music at http://appalatin.com