350PDX is made up of a handful of staff, a dedicated Board of Directors, and over 100 volunteers. Our campaigns focus on 3 areas: climate justice policy, forest defense, and fossil fuel resistance.
So much of the work that 350PDX does—and the successes we achieve—revolves around and depends upon community. Together, we organize and host monthly Action Nights, advocate at City Hall and at the capitol, facilitate forums for city officials to engage with constituents, lead tours of the Critical Energy Infrastructure Hub & Portland Harbor, create impactful art/media that educates and inspires, and march with our awe-inspiring, larger-than-life puppets at several events each year–including Portland’s Mardi Gras on Mississippi Ave!
We do much of our work through coalition and partnership with local, regional, and national groups, and aim for all our work to be by and for the community.
Our staff operate within a Staff Collective, non-hierarchical model. This means we have no executive director, and we use a process of collective decision-making and collaboration.
Our Values
Centering the Frontlines – Frontline communities are those that experience the climate crisis “first and worst.” The causes and impacts of the climate crisis are usually experienced by people with marginalized identities. The lived experiences of these individuals and communities hold the expertise to create solutions. Historically, the mainstream environmental movement, including 350PDX, has fallen short in its efforts to center the leadership of frontline communities. We commit to upholding this as a critical value in our campaigns and operations.
Radical Transparency – 350PDX strives to act in ways that make it easy for others to understand and engage in our work, and create collaborative and honest partnerships.
Accountability – We hold each other and our processes accountable to our mission, vision, and values.
Rest – We will need one another for the long haul, so we take care of ourselves and those around us. In a capitalist society where our self-worth is defined by our capacity to put productivity above all else, taking rest is a radical act that allows us space to heal, imagine and invent.
Anti-Racism – Racism and oppression uphold the extractive economy that is causing the climate crisis. We recognize that anti-racism work is a lifelong journey; we take this to be core to climate justice.
Creativity & Adaptability – Amidst periods of intensity, change, or urgency, we creatively adapt while remaining grounded in our values, always striving to choose the most sustainable and equitable path forward.
Our Goals
Stop the bad
Fossil fuel infrastructure is halted with/through a Just Transition lens
Build the good
Local and state governments support a Just Transition
Build the movement
Grassroots activism is widespread, accessible & cool
Broaden the movement
The climate justice movement is advanced in strong coalition with social justice groups & trade unions/labor
Climate justice education
Hearts & minds educated on just transition & racial justice
Healthy, welcoming organization
An inclusive, transparent, & compassionate organization
Our Vision
We envision a future where international agreements and public policies keep most of the known fossil fuels reserves in the ground; where, by mid-century, emissions from the burning of fossil fuels have reached zero, allowing natural processes in soils and forests to absorb excess carbon from our atmosphere, bringing it steadily down to levels safe for our children, grandchildren and all life on earth.
We envision a future in which marginalized and underserved communities no longer disproportionately suffer the effects of climate change; and where sustaining life and the needs of communities take precedence over corporate profits, leading to a healthy world for all.
Why 350?
350.org was founded in 2008 by author Bill McKibben and a group of university friends who aimed to build a global climate movement.
350PDX is a local group affiliated with 350.org (in other words, we’re friends), but we are a completely separate organization in that we make all of our own decisions, set our own campaign priorities, and do all of our own fundraising. We were founded in 2013.
The number 350 comes from the scientific safe upper limit of how many parts per million of carbon dioxide should be in the atmosphere (in other words, for every million particles of the oxygen, nitrogen, water vapor, etc. that make up air, a maximum of 350 particles should be carbon dioxide). Before the industrial revolution that number was roughly 270. We are currently at around 415, meaning we are overstepping this important planetary boundary and need to stop emitting greenhouse gases and bring that number back down to 350 or below as fast as possible.
350PDX is a non-discriminatory organization that seeks to support and empower all those working within a diverse and inclusive climate justice movement. We actively strive to create a space of equity and trust for all who wish to contribute to our goals and welcome those who can teach us how to do this better. Any concerns about misconduct are received and dealt with seriously.
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