The New Penn student organization is trying to build political support to fight climate change

Citizens' Climate Lobby, recently launched as a new student organization at Penn University, aims to establish itself as a powerful force in the fight against climate change at Penn University and throughout Philadelphia.

CCL, a global nonprofit organization with more than 500 chapters, is working to build support in Congress for a bipartisan solution to climate change. Penn's chapter is led by college students Clara Parker and Emily Roberts, who hope to create meaningful change through federal policy advocacy.

Parker told The Daily Pennsylvanian that her involvement with CCL began in high school when she attended a lobbying call with her state senator — an experience that ignited her passion for climate action.

“This experience showed me the impact legislative advocacy can have on combating climate change,” Parker said.

She said her passion has only grown since then, leading her to a summer internship with the CCL division in Portland, Maine. Her positive experiences later inspired Roberts to get involved.

One of CCL's climate solutions is its carbon fee and dividend policy. This policy involves taxing fossil fuel producing companies for the carbon they emit, with the proceeds paid out as monthly checks to American households.

“This policy is the most effective way to reduce carbon emissions by 50% by 2030 and ensure a sustainable and livable world for current and future generations,” Parker said.

Penn's CCL department is pushing for both local and national action. Her immediate goals include engaging young people in climate advocacy and lobbying the Philadelphia City Council and the Penn administration for stronger sustainability action.

“Our goal is to influence not just individual policies, but broad policies that make real differences,” Parker said.

Longer term, Parker told the DP, the club plans to lobby Pennsylvania congressmen and travel to Washington to advocate for carbon fee and dividend policies. This is based on their belief that environmental policy is essential to solving the climate crisis. They describe their primary focus as an organization as “at the federal level, pushing politicians to take large-scale action.”

Parker said Penn's CCL department has already begun working on several initiatives this semester, such as working with the broader CCL department in Philadelphia to engage environmental voters and raise awareness of upcoming elections.