Photo by iStockphoto.com /Maksim Tkachenko

March 29, 2020

Dear Sierra Club Members, Volunteers and Friends,

In accordance with the Sierra Club policy due to the spread of the Coronavirus/COVID-19 all

NJ Chapter Outings are cancelled indefinitely.

Based on National’s decision that there's just

 no evidence to support easing restrictions or letting up our safety precautions.

Wishing everyone good health and well-being through these extraordinary times.   We look forward to seeing you on future Outings when we can resume offering them.

We encourage you to enjoy the local outdoors on your own: this should be a perfect time for individuals to get into the woods with clippers for trail maintenance, ears tuned for evening frog symphonies, eyes right for spring buds. 

Please check that your local park is open before going there, and please maintain a 6-foot distance from everyone as recommended by the CDC.    

Stay well,

Ellen Blumenkrantz

Outings Chair

Sierra Club New Jersey Chapter

As we all begin to deal with a global pandemic, I want to let you know how the Sierra Club is adapting and responding, so we can keep doing the important work of protecting our natural environment and fighting for a just, clean energy future.

First, we’re prioritizing the health of our volunteers, activists, staff, and entire community. The COVID-19 pandemic is a social and economic justice issue, as well as a health crisis. Protecting our community is our number one priority, and we recognize that we have a social responsibility to be good actors in keeping others safe, too.

Here are some specific steps we’re taking: 

• We are requiring all nonessential staff and volunteers to work from home between now and April 12th;

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• We are suspending all Sierra Club planned events of any size for the next month, including all volunteer and staff in-person meetings; and,

• We are drawing down Outings across the organization, and more specific guidance and planning will be issued next week. 

While we may not be able to meet up in public, we are continuing to build a strong community of changemakers online. Please keep following us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram for your daily dose of inspiration, reliable information, and activism. You can also join our Resist Facebook group to connect with other activists creating a community of positive social interaction focused on protecting the environment. You can also subscribe to our Daily Ray of Hope for uplifting and inspirational pictures and quotes.

I also want to acknowledge that this crisis is impacting all of us in different ways. Many of us are  processing feelings of fear, isolation, confusion, anger, and sadness around this pandemic, and how it is being handled by a reckless administration that puts vulnerable communities last. In the past few weeks, I’ve been angered by accounts of racism and harm experienced by those identifying as Asian, Asian-American, and Pacific Islander. I encourage you to put yourself in other people’s shoes and engage with sensitivity and care.

This crisis shows how deeply we depend on one another to act for a greater common good. While social distancing may be necessary at this time, it is also increasingly necessary for us to come together to work through this crisis. While some will try to use this time to demagogue and sow distrust and fear, we need to overcome that by creating real community and trust and listening to experts and science. 

In this frightening, uncertain moment, we must take care of ourselves and our beloved communities -- so we are able to keep up the fight for the places and people we care about most deeply.