On March 19, 2009, for the second year in a row, environmental activists converged on Topeka to demonstrate and lobby legislators to opposed the Sunflower coal plants and to support comprehensive energy legislation for Kansas that included conservation, energy efficiency, and renewable energy. This action became known as Clean Energy Day 2.

Participants gathered on the lawn southwest of the Capitol Building to hear 15 speeches from a diverse group of Kansans. Groups represented at the rally included United Auto Workers, Blue Green Alliance, Kansas Farmers Union, League of Women Voters, True Blue Women, Kansas Rural Center, American Lung Association, Kansas Natural Resource Council, Sierra Club, Kansas Interfaith Power & Light, Sustainable Sanctuary Coalition of Greater KC, Climate & Energy Project, Great Plains Alliance for Clean Energy, and Building a Sustainable Earth Community.

A group on the southwest lawn of the capitol including SSC members Vivian Gibbens, Susan Pavlakis, Margaret Thomas, and Barbara Chaplin

A group on the southwest lawn of the capitol including SSC members Vivian Gibbens, Jerry Rees, and Barbara Chaplin

Susan Pavlakis and students from Shawnee Misson East High School displaying their signs

Margaret Thomas with her sign

Margaret Thomas and Savanah Duby with their signs - Savanah was the chair of the Environmental Club at SME High School

SSC member Diane Kuhn addressing the rally on behalf of the League of Women Voters

Vivian Gibbens and Barbara Chaplin listening to the speakers

On March 11, 2008, an estimated 250 citizens from across Kansas converged on the State Capitol Building in Topeka to demonstrate and lobby legislators for a comprehensive energy policy for Kansas that included conservation, energy efficiency, and renewable energy. Organized by the Sierra Club and the Great Plains Alliance for Clean Energy, this action became known as Clean Energy Day.

In the early afternoon, participants gathered at South Wing of the first floor of the Capitol Building for a rally. In addition to organizers, the group was addressed by Lieutenant Gov. Mark Parkinson and Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, who vowed to veto the current legislation that favored the Sunflower coal-fired generating units and ignored clean energy alternatives.

Activists gathering across the street from the south side of the Capitol Building - SSC members present are Barbara Chaplin, Karen McAdams, Margaret Thomas, and Jerry Rees

SSC members Barbara Chaplin, Jerry Rees, Carol Meyer, and Rita Norton relaxing on the lawn during the lunch break

SSC members Jim Horlacher, Carol Meyer, Barbara Chaplin, Rita Norton, Jerry Rees, and Curt Straub during the lunch break

This photo shows Chuck Gillam in November 2006 speaking against the two coal-fired generating units proposed by Sunflower Electric Power Cooperative near Holcomb, KS.

It depicts a turning point in the life of SSC.  Three members – Chuck, Rita Norton, and Jerry Rees – attended the final Holcomb hearing and were part of an overflow crowd that demanded (and got) a second session so that all could be heard.  That evening SSC’s name became known as an ally in the campaign against the Sunflower coal plants.

As described in Chapter 7 of Ted Nance’s book, Climate Hope: On the Front Lines of the Fight Against Coal, the involvement of the Sierra Club, True Blue Women, the Sustainable Sanctuary Coalition, the Kansas Natural Resources Council, the University of Kansas Environs, and Concerned Citizens of Platte County helped galvanized opposition to the coal plants.  After the fateful hearings at KU (and KCCC), citizens began writing letters and speaking out.  In March 2008 and 2009, they converged on Topeka to demonstrate and lobby legislators for a comprehensive energy policy for Kansas that included conservation, energy efficiency, and renewable energy.

SSC was very involved.  Its advocacy during this time is arguably its most valuable contribution to the cause of educating the public about honoring God’s Creation by stopping climate change.