How Citizens Keep Environmental Progress Alive in Between Elections with Bentley Johnson, Ep. 103

Federal policy might seem distant from the forests, rivers, and wildlife we care about but, as Bentley Johnson of the Michigan League of Conservation Voters explains, its impact reaches straight into our daily lives.

From an executive order that resulted in higher(!) energy prices to bipartisan efforts that ensure the water coming from your tap is clean, Bentley reveals how political decisions ripple through ecosystems, economies, and communities alike.

He also reminds us that our power doesn’t end at the ballot box. Between elections, we can still shape the laws that protect clean air, renewable energy, and wild spaces- by showing up, speaking out, and holding leaders accountable.

If you’ve ever wondered how what happens in Washington affects us directly, this episode will connect those dots and help you see what you can be doing in between elections that can make a difference.

This is another episode of the Emerging Wildlife Conservation Leaders program Series! 

Highlights

• The real-world consequences of rolling back clean-energy and conservation laws.
• Bipartisan success stories- from PFAS cleanup to Great Lakes restoration- that prove cooperation is still possible.
• Why framing issues around health, cost, and community helps bridge divides.

What YOU Can Do

• Vote in every election, especially local ones. City and state leaders decide on wildlife corridors, pollution standards, and habitat funding. **CHECK TO SEE IF YOUR AREA IS HOLDING ELECTIONS THIS NOVEMBER 4TH.
• Check your representatives’ environmental records. Visit your state’s League of Conservation Voters or lcv.org/scorecard.
• Speak up between elections. Attend town halls, share your story, and comment on proposed environmental rule changes.
• Join or support local conservation and restoration projects. The federal picture changes, but local action keeps progress alive.
• Share success stories. Remind others that clean-energy projects, restored wetlands, and wildlife protections are working. Hope is contagious.

Resources

• Michigan LCV's Take Action page.
• MLCV's Action Hub
• Michigan LCV's Scorecard 
• Because Michigan LCV's scorecard is focused on Michigan, you may be interested in the national LCV's congressional scorecard where anyone in the country can look up their Members of Congress.
• We also talked about the greenhouse gas emissions reporting rollback. Here is a link to take action on that (it's a national effort but this link is unique for Michigan LCV so that if people use it to make a comment, they can get credit).
• Emerging Wildlife Conservation Leaders (EWCL) pro

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Transcript

Crystal: Hey friends, if you're here, I'm going to assume that you're interested in environmental stories, and in that case, I wanna recommend that you go check out the Healthy Seas podcast. I host that show for a fantastic marine conservation organization called Healthy Seas. The guests are all about making waves around the world to protect our oceans.

Go dive in and take a listen.

I am Crystal DiMiceli and welcome to the Forces for Nature Show. Do you find yourself overwhelmed with all the doom and gloom you hear of these days? Do you feel like you as just one person, can't really make a difference? Forces for nature cuts through that negativity. In each episode, I interview someone who is working to make the world more sustainable and humane.

Join me in learning from them and get empowered to take action so that you YouTube can become a force for nature.

When we turn on the tap, flip on the lights, or take a deep breath of fresh air, most of us don’t think about Washington, D.C. But whether the water is safe to drink or the air is clean enough to breathe often depends on decisions made in federal offices thousands of miles away.

This week, we’re looking at what happens when those protections are strengthened… or rolled back.

My guest is Bentley Johnson, the Federal Government Affairs Director at the Michigan League of Conservation Voters, or Michigan LCV for short.

The Michigan LCV is part of a nationwide network of conservation voters working to protect air, land, water, and democracy by educating voters, electing environmental champions, and, importantly, holding those officials accountable once they’re in office.

Bentley’s role is to bridge the gap between federal decision-making and life on the ground in Michigan, to make sure that what happens in Congress translates into real benefits for communities, and to sound the alarm when they don’t.

In our conversation, Bentley explains how a single executive order can keep an outdated coal plant running, why bipartisan cooperation still exists in surprising places, and how citizens can stay engaged and hold power accountable, especially in between elections.

Because when federal policy hits home, the stakes couldn’t be more personal.

[00:00:00] Crystal: Hi Bentley. Thank you so much for joining me on Forces for Nature. It's so great to have you.

[00:00:04] Bentley: Thanks Crystal. It's really a pleasure to be here.

[00:00:07] Crystal: So you are the federal Government Affairs Director at the Michigan League of Conservation Voters. What does that look like in practice? Like what issues does the MLCV focus on?

[00:00:19] Bentley: Yeah, the Michigan League of Conservation Voters. Started over 25 years ago as really just a two person shop in a basement. It really lived [00:00:30] in a, a drawer as as sort of a paper organization and would do endorsements of candidates and that and that sort of thing. But over that time, our organization has grown to a staff of 30 plus people offices across the state, and we are part of the League of Conservation Voters.

Affiliate network across the country. we're one of many, LCV state affiliates, and together with the national LCV, [00:01:00] we call ourselves the Conservation Voters Movement or the CVM and What we're really dedicated to is protecting our air, land, water, public health, and democracy.

By by doing a few things, educating voters, electing environmental champions to office, and then holding those elected officials accountable once selected. And we have a whole theory of change that we call our cycle of accountability. And so that kind of is what, [00:01:30] separates us or is our special sauce, if you will, as compared to other sort of environmental or democracy based advocacy organizations.

And then as far as, um.My specific role on federal government affairs. We are a state based organization, so it's kind of like, why do you have a federal government affairs team when you have a national LCV that you know you're partnering with and that sort of thing. But we recognize that these [00:02:00] issues that we all care about, whether it's, you know, protecting our air, land, water, wildlife habitat, they don't stop at any one level of government, you know, so huge.

Federal policies have major impact at the state level and vice versa. So whether it's, you know, helping pass good policies at the federal level that can work together with our state level policies, or fighting against rollbacks and needing to play defense against, you know, really [00:02:30] what we're seeing as an onslaught.

We have to have relationships with our federal decision makers. We have to be mobilizing people across the state of Michigan. and really that cycle of accountability is, is how we do that, you know, year over year. So we we're endorsing. environmental champions. We're helping to elect them in in different ways.

happy to talk about that. We mobilize, on good or bad policies, good or bad ideas, [00:03:00] mobilizing voters to take action. We educate those elected officials, but also the public and the media on environmental issues. And then maybe most importantly, or just. So key to our work is holding our elected officials accountable, and making sure they follow through on what they, they promised they said they were gonna do on the campaign trail.

[00:03:20] Crystal: Yeah, absolutely. And jumping off that specifically. Regarding your connection to the federal government, your role involves [00:03:30] bridging Washington with Michigan and making those connections of what the federal decisions will really look like on the ground for your waters and your air, and your forests and your community Policy shift or budget cut and, and walk us through how that reverberated in Michigan or a specific community.

[00:03:51] Bentley: Yeah, sure. So at the beginning of the year, you know, elections have consequences. As, as we know, the Trump administration and President Trump [00:04:00] issued a lot of executive orders, on a wide range of things.

One of those executive orders or a series of executive orders related to energy. And they declared this energy emergency that in our view and in our analysis doesn't exist actually. the executive order, bottom line, prioritized fossil fuels and really, undercuts clean energy and renewable energy.

And so in [00:04:30] practice, what is that executive order doing in places like Michigan? Well, the, one of the first things that we've seen here, and one of the most consequential things is a old, outdated coal plant in West Michigan. This is right along Lake Michigan. There's a coal-fired power plant, one of the biggest greenhouse gas emitters in the state.

One of the biggest air pollution emitters in the state was scheduled to close at the end of May. It was outdated, expensive to [00:05:00] operate and harmful to the environment, harmful to our air health. you know, pollutes our waters but in a last minute move under this. Energy Emergency Executive order.

The Trump administration stepped in and ordered a 90 day extension, and ignoring the whole closure plan that the utility had put together and had actually already replaced. All of the energy that this, this coal plant was producing with other sources. [00:05:30] That's wild. So, um, and then the 90 days came up another extension.

So we're currently in that second extension. Meanwhile, the costs of, Reversing course and keeping it open through the first five weeks was $30 million. And that's not just the price that, the utility has to, has to pay. That's passed along to rate payers. And so we're, at the end of this next 90 days, the price tag is expected to [00:06:00] exceed a hundred million dollars. And so we're talking major, major money and it's really unnecessary. And also, by the way, harmful to our, our health and environment. So that's just, one tangible example of, how this executive order and this policy.

However, what we're seeing is people understand that. coal is outdated and that we have better options and they're also fed up with our energy bills. Our energy bills are already way too [00:06:30] high. And so this is the sort of thing that I believe people in Michigan voted on in the last election costs, of things like our bills, and it's not helping lower our bills.

In fact, it's sending 'em sky high.

[00:06:43] Crystal: is it being communicated to people that, sorry, these rates are going up because we have to keep this open because of the executive order. Are people putting two and two together, or No?

[00:06:55] Bentley: I think we're really focused on connecting the dots for people.

I think we [00:07:00] are seeing people. understand that this is a total reversal that, they were aware that Michigan has been closing coal plants. This is, there's only one other coal plant after this that, has yet to, sort of be decommissioned. And so we're on this transition and the, and the markets have moved past coal.

It's really an outdated technology. And so. They are seeing that, but you know, at the same time, crystal, it's really [00:07:30] hard to cut through right now, as I'm sure you can appreciate. And so that's where I think the, the on the ground organizing the work, the communications work and the media and, and social media and traditional media and all different ways is so important to illustrate to people because people are seeing their electric bills go up. Nationwide, electric bills are rising twice as fast as inflation, and we know that inflation is rising fast. and so there [00:08:00] is this narrative battle out there about the reasons for that. And you have some people, and some groups that are intentionally trying to portray things like clean energy and renewable energy as the reason those are, those are going up when really it's the status quo and actions like this really actually cuts.

To clean energy funding and incentives that that take away, our tools to, keep energy bills low and, drive them lower to meet our demand.

[00:08:29] Crystal: [00:08:30] that's so discouraging to hear, but administrations change. they could potentially change every four years, is environmental progress reliant on who's in office or is it more steady than the media leads us to believe?

[00:08:45] Bentley: I think it's, it's both kind of, it, it's, um, no question about it that.

Issues like climate change. The, the, the, the issue of energy that we were just talking about that is experiencing huge [00:09:00] setbacks with the current administration. There's just no, no way around it. The big beautiful budget bill, the, the Republicans budget bill that they passed into law, really.

Undercuts major investments in clean renewable energy, which is the cheapest and fastest way to meet our energy demand. Not to mention, pulls back and cancels a lot of on the ground projects that were intended to, reduced pollution locally, improve [00:09:30] housing. Create more resilience, to extreme weather, and, do restoration projects.

So there's no question that, the federal government really matters and leadership of the federal government really matters. the thing about that is, though. things like clean energy, things like policies that will improve our health and protect the environment have real momentum.

And things like clean energy are a winner. it's [00:10:00] just a better, technology. We we are looking at. Potentially massive amounts of electricity needed from the grid. With the way big tech companies are looking to invest in things like artificial intelligence and big fossil fuel projects to get more Electricity onto the grid take a lot of time, or really capital intensive. Renewable sources like wind and solar are the fastest to get online. And the cheapest. And so we're seeing this energy cost debate emerge as a [00:10:30] major issue on the minds of voters in Michigan and across the country. And the economics are just on the side of clean energy and not on the side of, Fossil fuels. And this Campbell coal plant is a perfect. Example, it's expensive to restart and keep online, and they've had to scramble to get you know, train loads of coal in there. and not to mention all the, external costs to our health, and, um, to healthcare. so the free market is playing a huge role.

and we [00:11:00] know those solutions bring a huge amount of benefits, but the free market is looking at costs and clean energy is winner there. And then nations around the planet are stepping up to make decisions that build on this momentum. You know, United States is not just completely in a silo and many nations are moving aggressively and seeing the benefits.

So that's gonna have its own momentum. And then I would just say. At times with the lack of federal leadership, where the rubber [00:11:30] meets the road is at state and local government level, and so it becomes more important. But that's really where, you know, yes, they'll have less tools and investments and that's a huge gap that we need to make up because of the federal budget cuts that we're seeing.

But. Those were where the projects were going to happen anyway, and those were where the efforts were going to happen anyway. So working with lawmakers to hold the line, continue to make progress on environmental priorities, protect our water, protect our forests, our [00:12:00] our habitat. do things like we've, done here where the state government has set a goal to protect and conserve at least 30% of our land and water by 2030.

that really adds up if you're talking about multiple states across the country. doing that together, I.

[00:12:15] Crystal: this is making me think of how I've also been hearing about Republican lawmakers who in their own states, they're being affected by these cuts to solar , and wind and, and whatnot.

\ , But they want it because of the economic [00:12:30] reasons and they're being impacted and they're kind of like, well, what's, what's going on? So, yeah, hopefully that. Allows for a shift in the, the higher levels later on.

The environment has become , a partisan issue, but I'm encouraged by organizations like Nature's Nonpartisan, , which was founded by a conservative. What has your experience been like with right-wing candidates who stereotypically don't vote in [00:13:00] favor of the environment? Do you have an example of a time when a politician surprised you with their vote?

[00:13:06] Bentley: Absolutely. I mean, first of all, these issues have not always been partisan. We've had really strong Republican or conservative, lawmakers at all levels really stand up for. Important laws. You know, a lot of our bedrock conservation, environmental wildlife laws had some, some, some of their strongest [00:13:30] supporters were Republicans or conservatives.

even by nature, I think conservative. it's like conserving what we have and being efficient and also,preserving a way of life that is important here in the United States. where we really value the outdoors, we value wildlife, and everyone values health.

Unfortunately, I think a lot of factors have led to that hyper-partisanship, and it's not just on environmental issues. We see it across the board. However, here in [00:14:00] Michigan we do see politicians of all, of all stripes across the political spectrum because of course, lawmakers From each party, even within a party, are very different and they look at issues a different way.

But here in Michigan, water is a great place to start from. If you talking about wanting to build a non-partisan or bipartisan, block of support. Water literally shapes us with, our two peninsulas here. It's part of our DNA [00:14:30] And then we've also had some really tragic.

Examples of when we don't value water, what can happen with things like the Flint water crisis, which we're still recovering from. We're still replacing the infrastructure. We're still trying to get, needed compensation and help for the people affected by that. In Flint.

[00:14:50] Crystal: That's right. That's in Michigan.

[00:14:51] Bentley: Yeah, exactly. And so about that for

[00:14:52] Crystal: a second,

[00:14:53] Bentley: we have been early to try to identify. Extent of another risk to our drinking water, [00:15:00] which is toxic. PFAS chemicals, these are the forever chemicals that are in non-stick or, you know, Teflon products. But they're in all sorts of products.

We're, we're finding they're making their way into our water, our food, so many other places. Well, here in Michigan we had, Some important local advocates really encourage our members of Congress to, to tackle PAS, and as a result, we've had things like the creation of the bipartisan congressional PFAS task force, which a [00:15:30] former congressman from Michigan, Dan Kilty, really deserves credit with kind of taking that idea from the advocates and making a reality and, and even though Dan Kilby has now left the house, it's being carried forward.

And so we still see. Congresswoman Debbie Dingle and Congresswoman Krista McDonald Rivet as co-chairs, but they're doing that together with, Republican co-chairs and a, and a membership that is truly bipartisan. And there have been great bills and laws enacted [00:16:00] and efforts around tackling PFAS, and we've seen, we've seen that, up north with one of our.

places that has, was ground zero for PFAS, contamination from the military at a, former Air Force base called the Wurtsmith Air Force Base. And we see whether it's a Biden administration or a Trump administration, there are problems with the cleanup there. And we've had. Republicans and Democrats really get engaged with the local [00:16:30] advocates and the impacted citizens to say we need strong cleanup.

And it sets a precedent across the country and uh,and then just the Great Lakes, you know, people love the Great Lakes and you see that reflected in programs like the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, which has huge bipartisan support in Michigan and across the Great Lakes. Region. And just one interesting story about that, where, where it's that that support has showed [00:17:00] up in a big way is during the first Trump term, president Trump came out with his first budget and zeroed out some of those accounts.

really eliminated proposed to eliminate the funding for things like the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative and other programs. And that was a. Crisis moment for advocates here and saying, no way, that is unacceptable. No way are we gonna have that. And it was a collective effort. But part of that [00:17:30] was several Republican members.

Got in the presidential limo with the president, picking him up on the airport on the way to a rally to West Michigan. And this was one of the top issues that they , talked to him about, and he went on to then take credit for restoring the funding that he proposed to zero out.

But the, the important part was we maintained some funding levels through that term. And, we're still. Able to do [00:18:00] amazing restoration projects and clean up contaminated areas, restore wetlands, restore wildlife habitat across the Great Lakes region. amazing success stories because of these investments made at the federal level and carried out with.

With cooperation and partnership and matching funds at the state and local level. It's a real example of, the importance of building durable, bipartisan support for programs and something, that it helps to have it be the Great Lakes and [00:18:30] water, but we can carry into other issues too.

[00:18:33] Crystal: I imagine communicating across the aisle or even with everyday people who, who might feel less attuned or connected with politics or, or just skeptical in general. imagine communication has to be a little bit different. Do you have any real world examples of someone? Of a mind that you've [00:19:00] changed through communication?

[00:19:02] Bentley: Yeah. I think, well overall communications is so important. How you're communicating, being able to get your message. Out there. We, we frame it a lot around kitchen table issues. And so by kitchen table issues, we mean, you know, when people are thinking about how am I gonna pay my bills? How am I gonna just, you know, make sure my kids can thrive in school, how can I [00:19:30] make sure that we're dealing with this health, scare that's in our family and.

A lot of everyday people obviously care about the environment, but they might not consider themselves environmentalists. And so through this kitchen table frame, I think we've seen \ , a light bulb go off with things like our high energy costs, and our, utility accountability.

And we've had, not only everyday people that have said. Our energy bills are too damn high. But also the [00:20:00] political influence of our monopoly utilities has been a barrier for solutions to lower costs as well as advanced renewable energy, solutions like community Solar. So we've had, really local neighborhood groups that are not environmental groups.

They're not renewable energy groups. They are groups that provide direct services. To, people in need, and they are understanding and maybe understand better than anyone about. [00:20:30] How you really have to meet people's needs in order to get them to care and advocate for, you know, something maybe larger than than themselves sometimes.

the, the Flint water crisis is another example of where, people saw the coverage of that and they, they heard the stories, the tragic stories of people having to use bottled water for everyday needs and to bathe. And that is so important to having people [00:21:00] say, first of all, there should be accountability for who, what the decisions leading up to this, and also never again.

And we are going to prioritize. And that is important to see from our elected officials and our candidates that you are advocating for, you know, to keep our water clean. So what is more kitchen table than that glass of clean water that sits on the kitchen table and being able to trust the safety of the water that comes outta your tap.

So that health and safety, the [00:21:30] health of our kids, families, and future generations. dealing with things like your, your kid has asthma, or a friend of yours. Has asthma or you can't, go outside because of the either industrial pollution or, you know, compounding with wildfire smoke that we've seen, over the last few years that impacts people's day to day and gets them to mobilize in a way that goes beyond just like, I am an environmentalist and I care about these things.

That's part of who I am. It's like, no, this is [00:22:00] inherent to my health and safety and my. Ability to thrive and, you know, have a happy, healthy life.

[00:22:07] Crystal: Yeah. Making that connection of a healthy environment equals a healthy you is huge. And I think we've become so disconnected from nature that people, I.

Aren't making that connection as easily anymore, but how do you, how do you fight the misinformation? Mm-hmm. Or just the fatigue that people are feeling.

[00:22:28] Bentley: I think highlighting the wins, [00:22:30] even small wins are, are really, important. People need to know that it's not all doom and gloom and that we aren't.

As environmental groups, as advocacy groups, we're not the bearer of bad news. We, we, we don't have to be the bearer of bad news all the time.

[00:22:43] Crystal: We don't have to be. Yeah. Right.

[00:22:45] Bentley: And so, and that, demonstrating action and progress, even if sometimes right now you could really make the argument, it's one step forward, two steps back.

But to show that there are still good things happening, the continued success [00:23:00] of, Decisions made in the past, benefiting people of all kinds. You know, including, including rural and republican areas. And, that is so crucial and there's nothing like stories of making an impact in someone's community or everyday life that helps fight misinformation when they have that lived experience of, oh wait, I can see, how, A habitat restoration project is creating also an area [00:23:30] for recreation or I can see how, I was worried about a solar project, but that can coexist with our community and doesn't have to be a scary thing and can bring, you know, kind of economic benefits, but also help. make our community, you know, bring lower energy costs too.

[00:23:50] Bentley: and then you mentioned that connection to nature, I think that's like really important. Like people aren't as connected, but there's still. A [00:24:00] love for the outdoors that I see in Michigan that mm-hmm. I think is shared across the country. But we have things like more close line than any other state except for Alaska.

We have some of the most spec. Spectacular kidding. Yeah. We have some of the most spectacular national parks that you'll find anywhere, including national Lakeshores, like the Sleeping Bear Dunes, national Lakeshore, and the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore with huge cliffs that look like you're on the coast of California.

rugged national parks like Isle Royal in [00:24:30] Lake Superior that has several packs of wolves there. And you don't necessarily need to go to be proud of that and have that be part of your identity. But there are local places, inland lakes, rivers and streams, the, you know, cold water, trout streams, that people like to fish and paddle in.

And even in, cities like Detroit where people think this is industrial heartland, this is. there's, um, neighborhoods where a lot of the homes have been demolished but Detroit has some of [00:25:00] the most amazing green spaces and number and size of parks that you'll find anywhere in the country.

, So the connections to the outdoors is not just going to camp or hike, even though that is a part of a lot of Michiganders. It's like going to barbecue at, bell Isle State Park, which is a, an island in the middle of, uh, the Detroit River. that's, getting out and enjoying, nature as well too, and that's worth investing in and protecting as well, and reminding people [00:25:30] That we are all interconnected with the natural world, and, it's so important to prioritize that.

[00:25:36] Crystal: yeah, and those things are not necessarily a given. You can lose them if you're not fighting for them all the time. That's right. Yeah. But I, I wanna piggyback off of the success stories that you were saying that really helped to fight the misinformation and whatnot.

Can you tell me a success story that you've witnessed that is keeping you hopeful? it's [00:26:00] the success stories that I love talking about on forces for nature for the very reason you were talking about.

[00:26:05] Bentley: Absolutely. Well, I'm, I can start right here in my, hometown, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

And, There are things like we have created a green belt and I'm, I'm proud to say I'm part of the Green Belt Advisory Commission that has said we're concerned with sprawl, we're concerned with, things like farmland, being completely developed. we're concerned with [00:26:30] forest being cut down for, for development.

We want to create a green belt and have a strategy of conservation around. The city of Ann Arbor so that we know that we can grow our own food here and that we see the, the water benefits of wetland protection and forest protection. and that goes hand in hand also with urban planning to make sure.

That there's, enough housing and solutions to, make sure that we're not [00:27:00] creating in inequitable situation with like housing affordability for instance. But also here in, um, the city of Ann Arbor, We've, been able to put together projects and proposals that use those federal investments that I talked about.

Things like the grant money that was provided in the Inflation Reduction Act and come up with local projects and solutions like a community geothermal [00:27:30] project where a whole neighborhood, and in this case a neighborhood that's lower income Been more disenfranchised historically where they're now, once this project is gonna be done, they're now able to get energy from the ground and not have to rely on their electric bills, continuing to go up with the rest of the grid, and then paired with other services, almost like a energy [00:28:00] concierge where individual, Homeowners and even renters can, explain what's important to them about their home and what improvements they'd like to make. And then the city has a program to help, whether it's rebates, to, to replace appliances with more efficient appliances or insulation, whether organization and all of that Was important at the local level. But it's using resources that were provided by laws passed at the [00:28:30] state and federal level. And so it shows all that working together and so just something that keeps me going is seeing that right in my hometown. And a lot of our other successes are based on.

The passion and the efforts to push back on the Trump administration, but right now. It doesn't feel as successful in terms of, undoing those or completely stopping those. but there are some successes in there like. helping stop a provision that would [00:29:00] sell off our federal public lands, wholesale or, or the work that our attorney General Dana Nessel has done to sue the Trump administration for various environmental attacks and to stand up against things like a fossil fuel tunnel, for the Line five oil pipeline that goes through the heart of our Great Lakes.

There's a couple of examples but that are battles far from over.

[00:29:25] Crystal: in fighting the dismantling of these higher level [00:29:30] support mechanisms and weakening of all these different environmental protections, what are some of the legal or political or even narrative levers? you could use to push back?

[00:29:43] Bentley: Yeah. Well I, you know, I was just speaking about the legal, efforts by an attorney general.

So that's where, again, political power and getting involved to elect pro-environment candidates is so important. Without Attorney General [00:30:00] Nessel, she has really filed legal action to keep, rate increases for electric. Bills to go sky high and again, to push back on some of these, health standards and protections that are being rolled back by the Trump administration.

so that legal side is, is so critical. There's a bunch of groups that are intervening at the Michigan Public Service Commission and in other places. to try to prevent some of these [00:30:30] outdated fossil fuel infrastructure, projects from going forward and instead going to other healthier, cleaner alternatives, from a narrative perspective.

It does start right now because where the, where people are at is affordability and their energy costs. So we talked about how, the, the policies of the Trump administration are not working and they're sending costs higher and disinvesting in clean [00:31:00] energy, the cheapest form of energy around at this point.

So an issue-based campaign that we've put together is literally we're calling our bills are too damn high. And so we're tying some of these issues together. fighting against corporate influence into our politics, defending clean energy solutions. demanding performance based rate making to address our poor reliability and our higher energy costs, and introducing a rate payer bill of rights that addresses these issues.

and [00:31:30] then we are asking and calling on candidates to support that. Rate, payer Bill of Rights and, and that framing. so that's where the, you know, really the political side comes in. And, thanks to political wins in the past, like, we've, we've redrawn our congressional maps and our state legislative maps, before the last cycle.

because of a ballot initiative that was passed to set up a independent [00:32:00] citizens' council to, instead of have politicians gerrymander their district lines, we have a citizens' council do that. And so there are still flaws and tough factors, but as a result, now we have. More from a partisan perspective, more fair maps and candidates have to respond to the views and priorities of voters from all different types of backgrounds and ideologies.

And so building the people-centered political [00:32:30] power is so important now in Michigan. and understanding your vote matters more than ever when you're, when you're being gerrymandered into a district that's intended to, just make it easy for a. A politician to, to appeal to their base. That's where we're seeing, a big reason why we're seeing such extreme divides and a refusal of elected officials to work together.

When you have more fair maps, then there's a much more of an incentive in a purple state with many purple [00:33:00] districts like Michigan, that elected officials have to say, I have to be working together. I have to get results. I have to be focused on my voters and not just on. special interests or really extreme, views or just a small part of my base.

And so that's where that, all of these issues come together. Legal, political and narrative, in building that people-centered power.

[00:33:25] Crystal: Oh my goodness. We need so many more of [00:33:30] those, maps created in that way because right now we are seeing just an onslaught of, of maps created in the. In a way that politicians win, but not the people necessarily.

But speaking of the people and the power that they can have to win and make these changes. Local elections are coming up in many places throughout the country and people might not realize that. What is the easiest way for people to learn [00:34:00] where a candidate stands on environmental issues, for example?

[00:34:05] Bentley: Yeah, so I think it's really important to understand who is. Who was watching and tracking? elected officials when they're in office. so for Michigan LCV, we have a whole digital accountability suite with a voting scorecard where we're watching lawmakers votes on, on key issues. And so we, we really typically focus on state legislative offices and the governor, attorney [00:34:30] general, secretary of State, that all can be found at, at our website, Michigan lcv.org and National LCV does that at the national level for your.

US representatives and senators. so that helps when you're looking at an incumbent that is on the, ballot. but for new candidates, it is really important to, read the candidate's website, pay attention to the local media, but also, groups like Michigan, LCV really [00:35:00] try to set up.

Spaces for debate over the issues, candidate forums, literal debates. And so we've, we've helped do things like set up candidate forums for local elections in a nonpartisan way or have found ways to submit questions to be asked that, you know, candidate forums, and we did this recently in Detroit, we have some key local elections here in Detroit, including for Detroit Mayor.

And so we just had a debate. There was a CA candidate forum that we were a part of for [00:35:30] multiple, local candidates. And so getting linked in with a group that does do, endorsements, scoring of candidates and vetting of candidates is really important 'cause they can do. They can give you a lot of resources, information for you to start with, and then you can apply your own, values and your own kind of analysis into it.

And giving that thought before election day, is really important. And that's the power also of early voting and Voting by mail is, [00:36:00] you can. You can sit there with your ballot, see what's on it. It's not a surprise where you're just walking into the voting booth and you can do your research, take your time, alleviate the pressure a little bit, and you know, ask your neighbors, ask trusted, folks who, who really look at the candidates in depth.

[00:36:18] Crystal: Can you send me links to the, LCV or, or. How people in their own, they can look in their own state. can you send me links to the [00:36:30] scorecards that you have? Yeah. So I can include it in the show notes? Absolutely. Yep. Great. So what metrics are being considered when you guys score candidates?

[00:36:39] Bentley: So, for our endorsement decisions with candidates, we, we do have a robust questionnaire that's delivered to all candidates, and then candidates seeking endorsements must complete that questionnaire and interview with us.

So it's both an opportunity to get their views on different issues. But also it's an opportunity to [00:37:00] educate those candidates. So then we take, those answers, the results of our meetings with them, and we take, recommendations and that analysis to a vote of our board of directors. And so it's taken very, very seriously.

We, we are looking at, of course, if they're an incumbent, what, or if they've held, an elected. Position in the past where we're looking at their record, their voting record, and their, their actions on the environment and democracy. [00:37:30] And then we really try to get a feel for candidates by offering and having these meetings to dig into the issues with them.

And oftentimes we'll bring in partners or, policy experts from different areas to dig into the issues with them. And, hopefully, even. Influence their positions on the issues on the campaign trail. And especially once they get, into office but the environmental issues are important.

The democracy issues are just as important. Important. The [00:38:00] voter part of our name of the League of Conservation Voters is huge. And so we're also looking, are you standing up for voting rights, access to the ballot free, fair, safe, elections. And, like you mentioned, there are some real concerning attacks and we're, looking at potentially the pieces of the Voting Rights Act being rolled back that in the past, that prevented gerrymandering on racial lines and that could go away and have huge impacts [00:38:30] for what our congressional district maps look like in the future.

[00:38:33] Crystal: Yeah, those democracy issues have never been more relevant and important as they are right now. I often hear the critique that individual actions don't really make a difference. That we need systems change and policy change and business change. Do you agree?

[00:38:52] Bentley: I think we need both, and I think everything.

Really matters. Systems change is absolutely necessary. The, [00:39:00] the large systems that we live in and work in and affect our daily life, absolutely can have huge. Influences over pollution, over biodiversity. So we have to be working towards large system change. Changing our politics is one of the major ways we can change systems, and that's where we're, but I think there's cultural, systems change and there's, you know, [00:39:30] go economic systems change that, that is needed.

But, I worry about, With the importance of that is hugely important dismissing, individual, actions. because I really do think that every, everything matters and I, I am reminded, I, you know, I've been doing a lot of and, and a hero to the emerging Wildlife Conservation Leaders program, Dr.

Jane Goodall, who, who passed away but really has [00:40:00] left us with very clear. Words and a message from her and her lived experience of, small actions, large actions, everything matters. And every day that we wake up, you're having an, an impact on the world around you. And she said, what you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.

So by waking up and saying. My actions don't matter, or I'm apathetic, or I'm so cynical, it doesn't matter. We need, you know, I can't control the large systems. And [00:40:30] that's really what, you know, then the people that are waking up and deciding, they're the ones that are having a greater, you know, greater impact.

And so, I think it absolutely adds up. And we need individual actions to create large, large system change. So,there's nothing for me when I feel overwhelmed and when I feel like, wow, this is really getting to be a lot, it's, it's hard to look toward the future [00:41:00] and feel excited and feel like things are going to get better.

I think the way I. Find that really alleviates that feeling is, is going and channeling into action. So for me it's not, it's not, hope doesn't, doesn't lead to action necessarily. It's like action is what creates hope for me. and I think if people think about it that way and they can think about.

Serving others and, trying to do something, even if it's just in a particular [00:41:30] lane or if it's something that you're excited about or you have some expertise, I think that really does help anxiety, eco anxiety, and anxiety about, the future.

[00:41:40] Crystal: I very much agree with that and um,in line with that, so much so that at the end of every Forces for Nature episode, I like to leave the listener with ideas on what they can do to help voting, even in the smallest elections is definitely one of them. It's [00:42:00] totally vital, but what else? For example, are there any upcoming regulation changes that might have petitions we can look out for?

Or you know, what else can we do in between elections?

[00:42:12] Bentley: Yeah, absolutely. That's so crucial because voting is absolutely imperative, but it really is that time in between elections that, the policy decisions are being made and you can also. Potentially have better [00:42:30] access with your elected representatives, especially at the local and state level.

people, I think, would be surprised with how much access you can get if you reach out and start to build a relationship and do things like, I mean, you can, you can request a meeting and oftentimes get the direct contact of your local and state officials and they can, They should know you, recognize you.

And when you show up at their coffee hours, town halls, they're like, okay, I know. [00:43:00] I know Bentley. You know? I know. I know this guy. Right. You know, I know. And I've gotta be ready to answer his questions about these issues, you know? And that. Just having to go back and we have to remember they're human and they want to show other humans that they care that we share the same values.

'cause I really do believe we care about a lot of the same values, but there's very different ideas about how to go about that. So building relationships with them. Yeah, I say that all the

[00:43:26] Crystal: time.

[00:43:27] Bentley: Yeah. With building a relationship with your elected. [00:43:30] Representatives, especially at this state and local level, and have a personal story and a ask for them can be, game changing.

But there are what may seem like small changes that have huge impact that we're constantly tracking and responding to, and. Having more people weigh in really helps. And so some examples of ones that have made a difference just in the last few years, as a [00:44:00] collective effort, like strengthening the lead and copper rule where, which, which regulates and tries to keep lead contamination out of our drinking water.

That's a, that's a huge one. Securing P-F-A-S-I-I mentioned toxic PFAS chemicals. We got drinking water standards for the first time to limit. The chemicals that we're drinking in the water and requiring treatment if we do have PFAS, unfortunately we're seeing that should be

[00:44:25] Crystal: easy. Yeah,

[00:44:26] Bentley: exactly. We're unfortunately, we're seeing some rollbacks or [00:44:30] potential threats to those things.

preventing a, the line five oil pipeline from. Staying in the heart of our Great Lakes is another one that, we're working on. But one right now that that's open for comment that I would encourage listeners to, pair up with a, a group that can help you, make a comment, is the Environmental Protection Agency under, under Trump is proposing to broadly repeal, its longstanding greenhouse gas reporting program.

And so. We're [00:45:00] talking about eliminating climate pollution reporting for nearly every sector, and that is critical is 'cause if we don't have a way of measuring whether emissions are going up or down, That really undermines climate action. We don't know what solutions are really, are really helping and it shrouds the responsibility for our nation's climate pollution from public view.

And we have to have that for accountability and pushing our decision makers. Right? So, being able to. Require emitters to [00:45:30] report is huge. And that's open for comment right now. and uh, no matter when you're listening to this, there's going to be some. Rollback that we need people, even just for the historical record and for the record that may lead to legal action.

We need people to be making a comment, sharing their stories, sharing their, their impacts, and we'll also share. With you and you can share with our listeners a action hub that we've set up that kind of [00:46:00] keeps running tab of some of those current opportunities that are really timely and relevant at the moment, that people can jump in at least here in, at least here in Michigan.

But a lot of those are connected to the federal level.

[00:46:12] Crystal: That's great. , Would you be able to send me the links to, to all of those?

[00:46:17] Bentley: yeah. Happy to send you those, links to the comment. Portal for the climate pollution reporting rollback, as well as some other opportunities for sure.

[00:46:27] Crystal: this whole season is featuring.

[00:46:30] Leaders from the Emerging Wildlife Conservation Leaders Program, which you were a part of as well. What was your ewcl experience like?

[00:46:38] Bentley: Yeah. I loved my emerging wildlife conservation leaders experience. EWCL really came at a pivotal time in my life when I was moving, from. A longer stint at the National Wildlife Federation into my job working in the Senate for, US Senator Gary Peters.

And so I was going from, [00:47:00] an advocate to helping a decision maker and I really needed to. Have that time to ground myself in. why am I doing this? And, connecting with the people and finding such a passionate group of people for wildlife in our natural world really helped ground me in the why, why am I doing this and what do I want my life's purpose to be?

And, um, in addition, it like really helped me just from a like professional development [00:47:30] level. I had, new tools and resources to like analyze my skillset and my strength and areas of expertise, which. I've built on, and I've realized like the importance of kind of that self-reflection and kind of professional improvement, you know, it just doesn't, you know, you, you learn a lot of things through osmosis and, experience, but you also can be intentional about building your, skillset.

Yeah. Very nice. Bentley, thank you so much for taking the time to chat with me today. I feel [00:48:00] like what we spoke about was very timely with local elections right around the corner, and really important in this point of time of our democracy.

[00:48:10] Crystal: So thank you for all that you're doing. You are making a difference.

[00:48:16] Bentley: Thank you so much, crystal. I appreciate you getting these. Stories and different perspectives out there.

Crystal: Bentley made it clear that what feels like distant decisions being made all the way in Washington can absolutely have real, tangible impacts in your own backyards- on our bills, our air, the water we drink, and the wildlife that we live among.

But he also reminded us that we’re not powerless spectators in that process. Change can happen in between elections, when we hold leaders accountable and keep conversations going. We can build relationships with our representatives, show up at local meetings, and speak up when public comments are open.

And yes, voting, especially in the local and state elections that often fly under the radar, is one of the most powerful ways to protect the places we love. They are happening this November 4th in many places so find out if your area is having one and get out to vote! Because when we stay engaged, even in the smallest of ways or the smallest of elections, we show that we won’t back down from speaking up for the land, air, water, and wildlife we all need and love.

Don't forget to go to forces for nature.com and sign up to receive emailed show notes, action tips, and a free checklist to help you start taking practical actions today. Do you know someone else who would enjoy this episode? I would be so grateful if you would share it with them. Hit me up on Instagram and Facebook at Becoming Forces for Nature, and let me know what actions you have been taking.

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