If you're interested in showing up to the L.A. event, check out the Facebook event page. After Los Angeles, Tickell and his team are heading to New Orleans, LA (in a vegetable-oil-fueled van, of course) to hold a screening of FUEL and talk to the people who have been hurt the most by our dependence on fossil fuels—the victims of the BP gulf oil spill. It's guaranteed to be a historic event, with politicians, green NGOs, and celebrities teaming up to change the world.

So show your support for the clean energy movement and head over to Jackson Square in New Orleans on June 29th!

For more news about green movements, check out our Political Action and Environment categories.

Local and organic food-growers need your help!

Bill S. 510 is an overhaul of the food safety system that will hurt small-scale organic producers. The bill would require a $500 registration fee for all farms, regardless of size, and would require complicated monitoring of crops. If this bill passed, it would seriously burden small local and organic farms, which is probably why big food businesses like The American Frozen Food Institute, General Mills, and Kraft Foods support S. 510.

Food safety is an important issue, and Congress should definitely do something about it. But why put extra burdens on small growers when the major recent health scandals — E. Coli, melamine, and salmonella, just to name a few — were linked to industrial farming practices? This is surely an issue on which all citizens can agree — whether they be small-government conservatives or liberal, eco-friendly foodies.

Defenders of Wildlife, Farm Aid, and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, among others, have announced their opposition to S. 510. Please join them and help stop it. This bill is scheduled to come before the US Senate for a vote in the next few weeks, so please, visit Credo Action to learn more and contact your Senator and tell them that you support organic and local farms.

Markey went further: "I call upon the federal government to ban the use of triclosan in consumer soaps and hand-washes, products intended for use by children, and products intended to come into contact with food. In addition, I will soon introduce legislation to speed up the government's efforts to evaluate and regulate other substances that may pose similar public health concerns." Rep. Markey has shown a lot of courage in standing up to big chemical companies.

If you want to get ahead of the pack and ditch this dangerous chemical before the government bans it, check out our 5 Easy Green Cleaning Tips that Use Vinegar. If you want to learn about other household chemicals that you might want to avoid, read our article on the connection between Cosmetics and Breast Cancer.

The former vice president’s work cites research from top international scientists, accompanied by photographs, charts and illustrations that document the reality of global warming—and it offers a chilling wakeup call. Gore argues that global warming is not just about science and politics; it’s a moral issue that requires us to take action.

Predictably, Gore is already being attacked by conservative anti-environmental groups that embrace junk science, many of which are funded by the oil and energy industries (no shock there). The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) has released two 60-second TV ads that bemoan “global warming alarmism.” Per Washington Post staff writer Jeffrey H. Birnbaum, the group, “which widely publicizes its belief that the earth is not warming cataclysmically because of the burning of coal and oil, says Exxon Mobil Corp. is a ‘major donor’ largely as a result of its effort to push that position.” (Oh, puke…)

Haven’t you had enough of politicians who place lobbyists’ dollars above American lives and the welfare of the planet? It’s time to invoke that famous line from one of my favorite movies, Network: “I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take this anymore.” Filmed 30 years ago, it was eerily prescient, and I urge you to read protagonist Howard Beale’s complete tirade about unemployment, polluted air and food that’s “unfit to eat.”

Call your elected officials’ offices, ask to speak to their legislative aides, and voice your displeasure with the way our country is going. It’s time to take back the streets (and parks, beaches and atmosphere). In an election year, they need to know we’re paying attention…and we’re mad as hell.