President Obama Denies Permit for Keystone XL Pipeline

Today marks a tremendous victory for environmentalists and all Americans as President Obama officially announced his denial of the permit to build the Keystone XL pipeline. (Click here to read the President's official statement.) The Overbrook Foundation is proud to be among those committed to preventing the construction of a pipeline which presented such a great threat to our environment and national interests. Most importantly, activists like Overbrook grantee 350.org should be proud of this accomplishment after they worked tirelessly to convince and mobilize so many Americans to take part in a committed movement fighting this pipeline. As one 350.org blogger wrote today, "Make no mistake, for all of us who have been protesting the project, this is a major victory. As late as October, a poll of 300 ‘energy insiders’ in Washington by the National Journal found that 97% thought the pipeline permit would be granted. We tipped the balance in a major way.” This statement and the coverage of the pipeline over the past few months reminds us that this win is particularly important in light of the uphill battle against the oil industry’s deep pockets and strong political influence. Energized by this victory, many in the environmental community have thanked Obama for sticking up for the American people and look to continue activism to promote better environmental practices and fight climate change in 2012.

If you want more information on the trajectory of this movement and commentary from Bill McKibben, please watch 350.org's video on the fight against Keystone XL. While it was made a couple of months ago, the video continues to be an important reminder of this environmental victory. We are very happy to share this news with our readers and congratulate our grantees on a job well done!

Updates on the Keystone XL Pipeline

To continue our coverage of the Keystone XL pipeline, we want to share some new developments:

1) This past Sunday, thousands of Americans gathered outside of the White House to protest the Keystone XL pipeline and to demand that President Obama halt the plans for its construction. Overbrook supported groups such as 350.org and the NRDC successfully organized this mass protest to show the President and the country that many Americans do not want this project to go forward. With the hard work of these leaders and organizations, Washington and the American public can see the emergence of a strong group that opposes this plan and want to hold President Obama accountable for his campaign promises to protect the environment. Learn more and see footage from the protest from the Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/thousands-protest-at-white-house-over-oil-pipeline/2011/11/07/gIQAnAjCvM_video.html

2) Major news outlets have also reported the launch of a state department inquiry that will investigate potentially unethical relationships between policymakers and governmental agencies and those promoting the pipeline. Environmental groups and more than a dozen congress members have called for this investigation before the President makes his final decision on the Keystone XL project. For more information, The New York Times writes http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/08/science/earth/inquiry-into-keystone-xl-pipeline-permit-process.html?hp