Arctic Update; Big win against Arctic drilling!

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A Note From Jared Leto & From Sigourney Weaver:

For the next few minutes, I'd like to share something with you that is playing out right now in the Arctic.

Climate change is all too real for the residents of Newtok, Alaska. As the Arctic ice melts, the entire village could be swept away by a rising sea. This stark reality, and the striking beauty of the Arctic, has been captured in a new virtual reality film.


From where you sit right now, you can experience the Arctic. New technology makes it possible for you to spin the camera around to experience the vast Arctic landscape, to explore a giant ice cave in a melting glacier, and visit the indigenous communities threatened by a rising sea.

If you're inspired by what you see, pass this on to your friends and family members. While you're at it, post a photo of yourself on social media using the hashtag #ActInParis.

As world leaders prepare for U.N. climate negotiations in December, we must be visible and vocal with our calls for climate action.

Don, thanks for using your voice to call for climate action.

Stop at nothing.

Jared Leto 

"Join me and protect our coasts from Big Oil." 
- Sigourney Weaver

Do you trust Big Oil with the future of our coasts?

I don't. The Obama Administration is considering a perilous five-year plan that leaves the door wide open to more hazardous oil drilling in the fragile, wildlife-filled waters of the Arctic and along our cherished Atlantic coast, from Virginia down to Georgia.

This dangerous proposal is a giveaway to the oil and gas industry at a particularly pivotal moment for our planet's future. Shell Oil recently called it quits on its Arctic drilling scheme. And last week, the Obama Administration cut the risk of Big Oil returning soon, but left in place its long-term proposal for more drilling.
Take action
Tell President Obama not to sacrifice our Arctic and Atlantic coasts to more reckless offshore drilling.
Now we must escalate pressure on President Obama to permanently protect us from the ravages of offshore drilling -- by taking the Arctic and the Atlantic off the table for good.

If you agree, add your name to mine and urge President Obama to protect our coasts and climate, not Big Oil profits.

It's undeniable: More drilling threatens our climate, our environment and our communities while putting us at risk of more devastating oil spills. Just imagine a spill on the same scale as the Deepwater Horizon tragedy in the Gulf -- but off the coast of Virginia Beach or Savannah, Georgia.

Let me put it this way: After the Exxon Valdez and Deepwater Horizon disasters, only 8 percent of the oil was ever cleaned up.

We need to learn from these predictable catastrophes and begin making energy choices that move us away from the dirty fossil fuels that are destroying our climate, wrecking our beaches and killing our coastal wildlife.

Please join me in making your voice heard at the White House right now -- and help protect our country's cherished coastal waters from Big Oil.

Thanks for doing your part,

Sigourney Weaver
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The Department of Interior announced they are cancelling all offshore drilling leases in our Arctic Ocean for the next two years. Also, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management denied Shell and Statoil's requests for an extension of their current Arctic leases.1
This is your victory. Every person who sent a letter, made a phone call, attended a rally in support of protecting the Arctic, and even took to the water to join other kayaktivists protesting Shell's plan to drill owns this win.

Now, President Obama has the opportunity to further his climate legacy and keep more dirty fuels in the ground. Another round of leases has been proposed in the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans for 2017 to 2022. We know drilling is dirty, dangerous, and must not be allowed to go forward. Let's raise our voices together and tell President Obama to cancel the proposed leases for both coasts.

Send your letter today! Thank President Obama for taking steps to protect the Arctic Ocean, and tell him to put an end to the next cycle of proposed leases in the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans.

The "Shell No" movement has shown that people power can and will continue to overcome Big Oil. Let's celebrate this victory and make sure our oceans continue to be protected from an industry with an unforgivable track record.

Take a moment to thank President Obama for making the right call and encourage him to keep Big Oil out of our Arctic and Atlantic Oceans forever!
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The Obama administration took big steps today to protect the the U.S Arctic Ocean!
The Interior Department announced it is cancelling its planned 2016 and 2017 lease sales in the Arctic’s Chukchi and Beaufort seas. That means dangerous drilling is less likely, and we're closer to protecting beluga whales, ringed seals and other marine animals.

The government also denied requests from Shell and Statoil for extensions to their existing Arctic drilling leases, further limiting the chance of additional attempts to drill.

Click here to learn more about these important breaking developments >>

Shell’s recent withdrawal from the Arctic highlights once again that oil companies simply are not prepared to drill. Today’s news is an important step toward preventing an oil spill disaster in the remote and wild Arctic, but we’ve not won yet.

Oceana has campaigned for years to protect the Arctic from dangerous offshore drilling, and we’ll continue to fight for this precious ecosystem. The fight isn’t over yet – the Arctic Ocean is still included in the government’s long-term leasing plans.


Will you support our proven campaign to protect the Arctic Ocean by making a donation today >>

The Department of Interior announced they are cancelling all offshore drilling leases in our Arctic Ocean for the next two years. Also, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management denied Shell and Statoil's requests for an extension of their current Arctic leases.1
HUGE NEWS! The Obama administration just announced it is canceling auctions for new oil and gas drilling in the Arctic waters off the coast of Alaska for 2016 and 2017.
This is your victory. Every person who sent a letter, made a phone call, attended a rally in support of protecting the Arctic, and even took to the water to join other kayaktivists protesting Shell's plan to drill owns this win.

Now, President Obama has the opportunity to further his climate legacy and keep more dirty fuels in the ground. Another round of leases has been proposed in the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans for 2017 to 2022. We know drilling is dirty, dangerous, and must not be allowed to go forward. Let's raise our voices together and tell President Obama to cancel the proposed leases for both coasts.

Send your letter today! Thank President Obama for taking steps to protect the Arctic Ocean, and tell him to put an end to the next cycle of proposed leases in the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans.

The "Shell No" movement has shown that people power can and will continue to overcome Big Oil. Let's celebrate this victory and make sure our oceans continue to be protected from an industry with an unforgivable track record.

Take a moment to thank President Obama for making the right call and encourage him to keep Big Oil out of our Arctic and Atlantic Oceans forever!

Bill McKibben: Climate Activists Celebrate Obama's Arctic Drilling Freeze & Harper's Canadian Defeat.
In a victory for environmentalists, President Obama has ended the possibility of oil drilling in the Arctic for the rest of his tenure. The Obama administration has canceled plans to sell new drilling leases and refused to extend leases that were previously sold. The move comes after Shell halted its $7 billion bid to drill for oil in the Arctic amid a series of setbacks and tireless activist opposition. Activists are also celebrating the election outcome in Canada, where voters unseated three-term Prime Minister Stephen Harper, a major backer of carbon-intensive oil extraction and a foe of global climate regulation. We get reaction from Bill McKibben, head of 350.org, one of the nation’s leading climate activist groups.

Huge Victory for the Arctic -- Two Oil, Gas Lease Sales Cancelled
Polar bearsIn an exciting victory for the climate and the Arctic, the Obama administration announced on Friday that it's cancelling two oil and gas lease sales off Alaska that were scheduled for 2016 and 2017. The announcement came just weeks after Shell halted its offshore drilling operations in the area.

Earlier this year the administration announced five-year plans to open up the Atlantic Ocean to drilling and offer more lease sales in Arctic waters off Alaska. An oil spill in the Arctic would be impossible to clean up and would push wildlife in the region -- much of which is already in trouble from global warming -- closer to extinction. Opposition to offshore Arctic drilling by the Center for Biological Diversity and other groups and activists around the country has been vocal and visible.

"Arctic drilling never made sense," said the Center's Miyoko Sakashita. "We're happy to see Shell walk away and now to have these two lease sales cancelled. It can't stop here, though: It's time to take the next step and pledge to keep oil in the ground and transition quickly to energy sources that are safer, smarter and better for all of us."

Read more in U.S. News & World Report.