The mission of the Ohio Environmental Council is to secure healthy air, land, and water for all who call Ohio home.
A clean, beautiful Ohio where diverse people, innovation, and all of our natural treasures thrive.
Our organization has grown stronger in numerous ways since we launched our 2016-2021 Strategic Plan and the world around us has also changed. We have updated our plan to account for our growth and adapt to changing needs and environmental priorities. Click here to read 2019-2022 Strategic Plan.
Scientists increasingly predicted a warming climate caused by the burning of fossil fuels within a few short years of the Ohio Environmental Council’s founding in 1969. In the ensuing decades, evidence of the impending impacts of climate change caused alarm and concern for many. It is now clear that climate change threatens public health on multiple fronts, harms industries that Ohioans rely on to feed our families, and alters the landscapes that make our state special and unique.
We can no longer afford to kick this can down the road. Unfortunately, if Ohio fails to reduce its carbon emissions, it is almost impossible for the United States to meet carbon reduction goals to stem the tide. We must place climate action at the center of our combined efforts, use all our available tools while growing new capacities, and fight on all fronts to mitigate root causes and threatened impacts. Our success hinges on the OEC being just one part of a larger, much more diverse, active, and inclusive movement putting pressure on decision makers to take bold action at all levels of government.
The threats of climate impacts are not theoretical or far-off possibilities. Ohio is experiencing impacts today, and over the next 50 years these impacts will cause even bigger stressors and challenges for our most vulnerable and marginalized neighbors. We cannot succeed in our mission to ensure clean air, land, and water for all who call Ohio home without addressing climate change.
Learn more about OEC’s Work on Climate Change.