Last fall, WashPIRG students at the University of Washington and The Evergreen State College took action towards ending Hunger and Houselessness, moving Washington beyond plastic, and turning out the youth vote!
Hunger and Homelessness
This Winter, we are excited to continue to train students to successfully organize around meeting basic needs, and extend our public education efforts off campus to reach people across the state!
No I-2117
Climate change is one of the greatest challenges our world faces today. With rising sea levels threatening the future for young people around the world and warmer temperatures across the globe, we can no longer wait to act on climate change.
That is why WashPIRG is extremely excited to report that I-2117, a ballot initiative that would repeal part of Washington’s climate commitment act, did not pass! This past quarter, WashPIRG solidified itself as the leading student organization working to ensure I-2117 did not pass. Students organized hundreds community members across the state of Washington to pledge to vote no on I-2117 to defend our climate.
New Voters Project
Democracy only works when we all participate, that’s why WashPIRG mobilizes students across the state to get out and vote, creates cultures of civic engagement and institutionalizing voting to ensure all voices are represented. Leading up to the November 5th election WashPIRG is excited to share that we reached over 3,000 students from Olympia to North Seattle to turn out to vote!
Looking into the rest of 2025, WashPIRG’s priority campaign will be Beyond Plastic. Plastic exists everywhere from the bottom of the Mariana Trench, the deepest part of the ocean, to the top of Mount Everest. It is virtually inescapable and is one of the greatest threats to our health and our environment. That is why WashPIRG is calling on our state leaders to pass a bill in Olympia this year that will hold plastic producers financially responsible for the waste they create.
All Made Possible by our Student Members
All of this campaign work is made possible because of students who pay the WashPIRG fee. Every few years, students at WashPIRG chapter campuses vote to reaffirm their support of our work by funding our WashPIRG chapter through various student fees.
Students pool their resources together statewide with other WashPIRG chapters to hire staff, such as advocates, lobbyists, and organizers, to work with students on issues that they care about and represent students where decisions are made—in Olympia and Washington D.C.
The problems that WashPIRG tackles are large, statewide, and often national in scope. Our goals are not simply for students to “make their voices heard” on these issues, but to win concrete reforms that improve people’s lives. In order to make real, substantial change, we combine student enthusiasm with professional staff to run our effective statewide organization.
In addition, we could not run strategic local campaigns without strong partnerships with campus leaders and community members, or without advice and support from folks like you. As we celebrate 50 years of working to realize important social change across the state of Washington and empower students to win campaigns, we are truly grateful for the continuous support from our communities. Here’s to another 50 years of changing the world!
