Temple University Green Amendment Talk and Discussion

Temple University’s Department of Planning and Community Development will be welcoming Maya van Rossum, the Delaware Riverkeeper, and author of The Green Amendment: Securing Our Right to a Healthy Environment, for a public lecture and book signing. Come out, meet Maya and join us for an exciting conversation on environmental constitutionalism!

When:
Tuesday, March 13, 2018, 5:00-7:00pm
Where:
Temple University
Architecture Building Room 104
2001 N 13th St
Philadelphia, PA 19122

This event is open to the public.

About the book:
In the decades long fight for a cleaner environment, we’ve been fighting a losing battle. The sad truth is, our laws are designed to accommodate pollution rather than prevent it. People feel powerless when it comes to preserving the quality of their water, air, public parks, and special natural spaces.The solution, argues Delaware Riverkeeper Maya K. van Rossum in a pathbreaking book, is to bypass the laws and turn to the ultimate authority: our state and federal constitutions. In 2013, van Rossum and her team won a watershed legal victory that not only protected Pennsylvania communities from ruthless frackers, but affirmed the constitutional right of people in the state to a clean and healthy environment. Following this victory, van Rossum inaugurated the Green Amendment movement, dedicated to empowering every American community to mobilize for constitutional change. In The Green Amendment, van Rossum lays out an inspiring new agenda for environmental advocacy, one that will finally empower people. We all have the right to pure water, clean air, and a healthy environment. It’s time to claim that right—for our own sake and that of future generations. The Green Amendment includes a powerful foreword authored by Mark Ruffalo, which supports the visionary constitutional path advocated for in the book.

About the Author:
Maya K. van Rossum is the Delaware Riverkeeper and leader for the Delaware Riverkeeper Network. The Delaware Riverkeeper Network works throughout the four states of the Delaware River watershed (NY, NJ, PA & DE) and at the national level using advocacy, science and litigation She has led DRN for over 23 years. During van Rossum’s leadership, the organization, and van Rossum herself, were the lead plaintiffs that brought forth the legal arguments that inspired the PA Supreme Court to breathe life into PA’s long ignored environmental rights amendment. van Rossum is currently advancing The Green Amendment movement, seeking to inspire and secure constitutional protection for environmental rights across the nation.