Building healthy communities powered with 100% clean, renewable energy
Clean energy is here. But actions taken to fix our increasingly expensive and unsustainable energy system are nowhere near proportional to the urgency to act. It’s time for leaders across the U.S. to commit to 100% clean and renewable energy for all.
What was the challenge?
The Sierra Club had incredible success closing individual dirty energy plants. It was time to own the bold vision of reaching 100% clean and renewable energy in the U.S. To accelerate a just transition, a new narrative needed to engage people across political and geographic divides to demand change in their communities and take concrete steps.
What did we do?
MG’s analysis found that existing messaging about clean energy was rooted in the polarizing issue of climate change. But robust research and engagement with diverse stakeholders uncovered that most people were already in support of a shift to 100% clean and renewable energy—not because of global warming but because they wanted clean air, clean water and clean land for future generations. They just weren’t sure what to do about it. Grounded in core values of health, family, legacy, practicality and equity, MG and the Sierra Club created a campaign strategy that built on the club’s local organizing strength to persuade key institutions to commit to 100% clean and renewable energy. Layered on a broader effort to shift the narrative to demand clean energy as the new norm, the campaign strategy emphasized partnership to ensure an equitable transition. MG supported the Sierra Club in branding and launching this new campaign: Ready For 100.
What happened?
Launching Ready For 100 has birthed a more diverse movement to advance a future of clean energy for both personal and environmental health. By the end of 2019, hundreds of cities; 13 counties; seven states; plus Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico; have pledged to use 100% clean and renewable energy community-wide. And over 94 million Americans (roughly 30% of the population) live in a Ready For 100 community. The campaign’s momentum will create a thriving, clean energy economy with fossil-fuels’ frontline communities at its center and will create a 100% clean, renewable energy future for all.
From our client:
“Metropolitan Group was an invaluable partner and guide as we developed the messaging and strategy for the Ready For 100 campaign. Their approach was really rooted in understanding people’s values across geographic and political lines, tapping into the power of Sierra Club’s grassroots strength, and supporting our emphasis on a just transition to clean energy—for all. I’d work with them again in a heartbeat!”
—Jodie Van Horn, former director, Ready For 100 Campaign, Sierra Club
