Support the Passage of I-1631

WHEREAS, our forests, waters, wetlands, grasslands, and other natural landscapes are the foundation of all life, and they are our most affordable, effective, and proven tools for carbon sequestration and climate change resiliency; and

WHEREAS, climate change is a present and urgent threat to these ecosystems, the wildlife that inhabit them, and the human communities who rely on both for their survival; and

WHEREAS, an aggressive, comprehensive, innovative, and socially equitable climate change policy, I-1631, has been introduced as an initiative to the people of Washington State, and will be enacted into law if it receives a majority of votes in the November 6, 2018 elections; and

WHEREAS, I-1631 was formulated after an exhaustive six-month-long consultation process open to all Washington Tribes, which took the form of dozens of meetings, negotiations, conference calls, summits, and briefings, assisted by extensive electronic communications in and between Tribes, their leaders, staff, and consultants; and WHEREAS, I-1631 was co-written by Tribal leaders and experts, and has been introduced publicly with key Washington Tribal leaders in a co-leadership role; and

WHEREAS, Tribal co-management is embodied at every level of the decision-making structure created by the initiative, with Tribal co-chairs serving on important committees; and WHEREAS, I-1631 includes the most robust, detailed, and serious Tribal sovereignty and consultation platform ever proposed for State law, requiring “free, prior, and informed consent” for I-1631 funded projects that impact Tribal lands or sovereignty for all Tribes that have consultation rights in Washington State, including those headquartered in neighboring states; and

WHEREAS, I-1631 provides for the relocation of coastal Tribes at risk of sea level rise, and for autonomous wildfire prevention, suppression, and recovery; and

WHEREAS, I-1631 invests more in the rehabilitation of rural economies and the conservation and stewardship of farms, fisheries, and tree farms than any other policy ever considered in state; and

WHEREAS, the passage of I-1631 would be both a major leap forward towards a sustainable future for Washington State and true political equality and sovereignty for Washington’s Tribes and their citizens; now

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that ATNI formally supports the passage of I-1631 this November; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that ATNI fully supports the continued co-management of the fight against climate change by Tribal leaders, the continued empowerment of their voices in the upcoming campaign, and the fight for the political equality of all peoples.