INDIANA (April 15, 2021) – Today, Indiana U.S. Representative Trey Hollingsworth (R-IN9) joined Audubon Great Lakes to discuss conservation and climate solutions in the 117th Congress that are good for the economy, birds and people.
Audubon members from across the Hoosier state streamed into the virtual event, “Conservation and Climate in the new Congress: A Conversation with Congressman Trey Hollingsworth of the Indiana Congressional Delegation.” During the event Hollingsworth answered questions from participants, shared his priorities for 2021, and addressed his work to advance common-sense bipartisan conservation and climate solutions that will create a cleaner future for all Hoosiers and Indiana wildlife.
Audubon’s science shows that two-thirds of North American bird species are at risk of extinction due to climate change, making climate change the greatest threat to birds like Indiana’s Wood Thrush, which will lose the vast majority of its breeding range in Indiana if we reach 3 degrees C of warming by 2050.
“We applaud Rep. Hollingsworth’s commitment to engage on bipartisan solutions that will create a cleaner future for all Hoosiers, said Marnie Urso, Senior Policy Director for Audubon Great Lakes, a regional office of the National Audubon Society. “Indiana’s birds and wildlife are more vulnerable than ever to rising temperatures and climate-related events like heat waves, drought, heavy rain, and false springs. It’s going to take all of us coming together to slow down climate change at the pace needed to mitigate its most devastating impacts.”
Given the urgent threat climate change poses to birds and people, Audubon supports common-sense, bipartisan solutions that reduce carbon pollution at the speed and scale necessary to protect birds and the places they need.
"Hoosiers don’t have to choose between better economic outcomes and a clean environment –we can have both,” said Congressman Hollingsworth. “I always enjoy engaging with Hoosiers on issues that matter most to them, and I look forward to continued engagement with Audubon and its members on tailored, common-sense, bipartisan solutions that will boost our economy for the benefit of American families, while ensuring a cleaner environment for future generations.”
Last year, Rep. Hollingsworth joined a bipartisan group of colleagues who supported the Growing Climate Solutions Act, which would help the agriculture and forestry industries naturally remove carbon from the atmosphere to create a cleaner future for wildlife and people. The same year, Rep. Hollingsworth voted to pass the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) Act into law, which allows Congress to increase the GLRI program’s funding to ensure the continued improvement of our water quality and the protection of native wildlife all while creating jobs and benefiting the economy.
Audubon members and supporters can learn more about Audubon’s climate initiative in Indiana and take steps to help birds in a changing climate by visiting https://act.audubon.org/a/indiana-climate-movement.
About Audubon Great Lakes
Audubon Great Lakes is a regional office of Audubon, learn more at gl.audubon.org and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
The National Audubon Society protects birds and the places they need, today and tomorrow. Audubon works throughout the Americas using science, advocacy, education, and on-the-ground conservation. State programs, nature centers, chapters, and partners give Audubon an unparalleled wingspan that reaches millions of people each year to inform, inspire, and unite diverse communities in conservation action. A nonprofit conservation organization since 1905, Audubon believes in a world in which people and wildlife thrive.
Media Contact: Emily Osborne, emily.osborne@audubon.org, 414-841-5273