June is a special time. Because…Summer equinox! School is out! Vacations and travel plans are underway! And we are shouting hip hip hooray for our Climate Hero of the Month in June, Barbara Krupnik-Goldman!
Barbara is a retired speech language pathologist from South Bend, Indiana. After living in the midwest she moved to Fort Collins in 1979, to Maumee, Ohio in 2002, and then to Portland, Oregon in 2012 – a well traveled advocate for the Earth!
“I have six children and eight grandkids. I have been interested in environmental issues all my life, but during many years of raising kids, going back to school and working, all I did was sign an occasional petition and make a few donations.”
350 Northern Colorado Team Leadership Council celebrating after divestment rally in April 2023
“In 2013, when we were finally empty nesters, I checked a box in an email saying, ‘Yes, I am interested in volunteering to help stop the KXL pipeline.’ I was lucky to get hooked up with wonderful climate activist mentors in Portland who taught me so much.” Barbara supported a number of campaigns in the pacific northwest, including the historic Juliana vs. The United States lawsuit, brought forth by the 21 young plaintiffs across the country that are demanding their civil rights to a livable climate be preserved and fought for.
Fast forward to 2022, and Barbara and her husband Howard found themselves back in Fort Collins, CO. “I started looking for climate groups to work with and discovered 350CO and several other groups doing good work!” said Barbara.
“When we moved back to CO, I was shocked to see the extent of fracking that has been taking place in the 20 years we were gone!” – Barbara
Northern Colorado is at the top of the most fracked part of our beautiful state. The front range in general sees a lot of this destructive practice, but Weld and Larimer county have tens of thousands of wells that pollute our air and water. Air quality averages in places like Greeley, Windsor, and Eaton receive an ‘F’ rating from the American Lung Association.
In May 2022, Barbara made the move and joined 350CO. Needless to say she got to work right away! Signing petitions, making donations, coming to trainings like our Climate Leadership Workshop in Denver, Barbara was serious about organizing for a better Colorado and future. “I remember meeting Barbara for the first time and just really appreciating how grounding and warm she was,” says Chelsea Alexander, Movement Building & Volunteer Director. “She made a point to talk to multiple different people there, engage meaningfully in discussion and reflection, and help out cleaning up at the end when she didn’t have to. I appreciate Barbara and her bias for action so much!”
In addition to organizing for clean air and protection of our environment and communities, Barbara and the 350 Northern Colorado (NoCO) Team have been helping lead the charge with the Divest CSU campaign. The university still holds some bonds in oil & gas despite the catastrophic effects of its production and burning, and does not publicly disclose a large portion of their investments.
Since early 2022 the team has worked with other student activists, alumni, and faculty to put pressure on the university through peaceful demonstrations, a growing petition (show your support and sign here!), and meetings with a variety of stakeholders to build a more united front. Just in April the group had a fantastic march and rally to the president’s office on campus, where Barbara and previous NoCO Team Coordinator Riley Ruff delivered it to them in-person. Through Barbara and the Leadership Council’s (LC) support and planning, the event was smooth and successful! Read more about this campaign here.
Barbara has continued to level up her activism since joining, and joined the 350NoCO Team LC in January of this year. LC’s are critical for helping provide strategic support and guidance for the team’s campaigns and movement building efforts. “I very much appreciate my NoCo climate buddies and look forward to helping to grow our movement so we can have successful campaigns to move us in the right direction,” said Barbara.
We thank you today and every day Barbara for all your hard work, support, joy, and desire to make Northern Colorado the best place it can be! Your positive energy transmits to those around you and you undoubtedly make the climate movement stronger and more likely to succeed.