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01 January 2005
Volume 2, Issue 1

In This Issue...

Grassroots News

Tsunami Relief - DisasterAid.org

The devastation caused by the tsunamis in Asia has reached
crisis proportions. Families of victims and survivors are in
desperate need. Our new site DisasterAid.org
(http://www.washingtonvc.com/domains) covers this and other disasters
that have occurred recently as well as the processes that
are needed to assist the victims of these tragedies.

You can help others by making a financial donation.  Your
support will help our Asian brothers and sisters with
blankets, food, water, clothes, medicine, and other
necessary supplies. All donations to Grassroots.org in
December and January will go towards tsunami relief. To
contribute, go to http://www.grassroots.org/do/Donate.

Sites

Today, Grassroots.org is home to 33 sites dealing with
specific societal issues:

New Sites This Month:
DisasterAid.org - http://www.washingtonvc.com/domains
NonprofitManagement.org - http://www.domainmarket.com/
SexualAbuse.org - http://www.sexualabuse.org

Each of our sites includes an overview of the topic with
links to related web sites, articles and other resources.
Each site also includes a discussion forum for people to ask
and answer questions and to present their views.

In the coming months we will be adding more new sites on
various topics and revising some of the existing sites. New
site announcements will be made in future newsletters and
all sites are available from the Grassroots.org home
page: http://www.grassroots.org.

Featured Site: SuicidePrevention.org

This month's featured site, located at
http://www.suicideprevention.org, provides you
with information on how to help yourself or someone else who
is contemplating suicide.  Also included is background
information on the common causes of suicide as well as cues
and behaviors to look for in someone who is potentially
suicidal.

Citizen Action Letter

Citizen action letters are a tremendous way to speak out and
let your voice be heard.  In Grassroots News we are
now including citizen action letters which you can
personalize and send to your government representatives. If
you forward this newsletter to your friends and colleagues
and have them submit the action letter to their own
representatives, the effect will be even greater!

To locate your representatives, go to the section titled
"Write Elected Officials" at /congressorg/home/

The action letter below addresses the need for action to
prevent global warming.

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Dear (Elected Representative),

2070.

4. Arctic precipitation has increased by about 80%.
5. The depth of the permafrost layer that is thawing is
increasing
6. Glaciers are melting. The Greenland Ice Sheet itself has
melted by about 16% from 1979 to 2002. In 2002, the melting
broke all previous records.
7. Sea-ice cover in the summer has declined by 15 to 20% in
the past 30 years.
8. Global and arctic sea level has risen 10 to 20 cm, while
it is expected to rise another ½ meter by the end of the
century.
9. Ocean salinity and density is declining as more
freshwater is being added to our oceans.

The evidence is too overwhelming to ignore. The effects of
global warming are damaging:

Warmer temperatures will bring new health hazards.
- Arctic vegetation zones will shift, leading to
disturbances such as insect outbreaks.
- Forest fires are likely to increase.
- The marine habitat for polar bears, ice seals and seabirds
will shrink, possibly pushing them to extinction.
- Land habitat and food sources for land animals will
change, stressing animals such as caribou and reindeer. New
species of animals moving in will likely bring new diseases
to the area.
- Rising sea levels will cause coastal erosion flooding.
Areas just above sea level such as Bangladesh, Manila,
Florida, Louisiana, Bangkok and Calcutta will become
submerged.
- Greenhouse gases will worsen the ozone layer hole. This
will expose inhabitants to a greater risk of skin cancer,
cataracts and immune system disorders.
- As marine and land animals move or become extinct, food
security will become a greater concern.
- Accident rates due to environmental changes such as sea
ice thinning will increase.
- There will be impacts on sanitation infrastructure due to
thawing permafrost.
- Transportation on land will be interrupted because of
thawing ground, affecting oil and gas extraction and
forestry operations.
- Building structures will become damaged due to permafrost
thawing.

These damaging effects, can be directly attributed to the
emissions that our automobiles produce. We can also link
them to our continued dependency on other fossil fuels. The
gasoline and oil that drive our transportation and the use
of coal and natural gas will continue to worsen global
warming. This is damaging evidence that we can no longer
ignore. The Arctic catastrophe is developing as we speak.

Our elected representatives need to give priority to global
warming in spite of the tenacious lobbying exerted by those
who have interest in energy policy. In 2001, the EPA put
forward a proposal that would have delivered as much
pollution clean-up as the Clean Air Act by the end of the
decade. But lobbied by the nation’s largest polluters, the
current administration watered the proposal down and instead
is proposing a timeframe of 20 years and allows power
plants to emit 42 million tons more pollution than the
original EPA proposal.

Please support legislation that exercises more control
over tax incentives and rebate giveaways that companies
within the energy sector fully exploit.  Through rebates,
many of these companies are enjoying record profits.

Ask that our administration reconsider the ratification of
the Kyoto Protocol. Last month, Russia finally ratified this
important treaty, agreeing to controls that will
substantially reduce and slow down global warming. Why
hasn't the US ratified the treaty?

Please support Senators Lieberman and McCain in helping them
acquire more votes for the Climate Stewardship Act. Although
not equivalent to the Kyoto Treaty, it calls for the US to
level off global warming pollution to year 2000 levels by
2010.

I ask that you carefully look at the damaging evidence and
the effects that global warming is having on our planet and
lives. It is a reality in the making, not a myth. Our
government needs to aggressively take actions to rectify, if
not control this reality.

Sincerely yours,

(your name)

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Discussion Forums

Exercise your freedom of speech !!!

You can access all of the Grassroots.org discussion forums
at http://www.grassroots.org/jive3

We encourage you to visit the forums, register, and
participate. Let your voice be heard !

Featured Client Site: GNIF.org

This month we want to introduce you to another one of our
web hosting client sites.

Global Neuroscience Initiative Foundation (GNIF) is a
nonprofit organization that was created for the
betterment of neurological and mental health patient
welfare.  This is done with the development of novel free
and open-access Therapeutic Recreational Centers throughout
the world for afflicted individuals.  Their web site is
located at http://www.gnif.org.

Free Services for Nonprofit Organizations

If you work at a nonprofit organization or know somebody
else who does, that organization may qualify for free web
hosting and legal consulting services through
Grassroots.org:
http://www.grassroots.org/do/Tools (free web hosting and
Internet services)
http://www.grassroots.org/do/Legal (free legal consulting)

Donations

Grassroots.org now accepts your tax-deductible donations to
help support the services we offer.  Go to
http://www.grassroots.org/do/Donate.
Note: All donations to Grassroots.org in December and
January will go towards tsunami relief.

Your Feedback

Drop us a line and let us know what you want to see in
future issues. E-Mail your comments to
newsletter@grassroots.org.

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About Grassroots.org

Grassroots.org is a nonprofit organization that is looking
to change the world slowly but surely via the Internet at
local, national, and international levels. This is done is
through the development of sites dedicated to specific
issues and by offering free services to other nonprofit
organizations.

Grassroots News
Copyright, 2005
Grassroots.org - A Heart at the Center of the Internet
http://www.grassroots.org

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