A Year in Review: VCN’s 2023 Annual Report
Thanks to highly coordinated efforts and despite political headwinds, VCN — in our role as the strategic facilitator of our 150+ Network Partners — was successful in holding onto major environmental and climate policy successes from the last few years while celebrating historic investments in conservation funding through the budget.
Our Annual Report reviews Virginia Conservation Network’s work from Spring 2022 to Winter 2023. While it feels almost impossible to cover everything we worked on last year in only a few pages, we did our best to squeeze in the highlights, including:
- our strategy to advance conservation initiatives year-round,
- our policy gains and challenges through the General Assembly session and beyond,
- our Network Partner engagement events,
- and more.
As we sent this annual report to the printer, we learned of the tragic loss of our Clean Energy & Climate Justice Policy Manager, Shawn Soares, on May 4th, 2023. Shawn was committed to devoting his career to bettering the Commonwealth and was a rising star in the climate movement. We are dedicating this annual report to him and are committed to working in his honor moving forward.
Read more of our recent updates from our blog:
Crossover Update from Virginia’s 2026 General Assembly Session
As of this Tuesday, we have reached “crossover” – the day that bills introduced and passed in one chamber of the General Assembly must “cross over” to be voted on by the other. VCN provides an update on the unprecedented amount of remaining conservation bills in this long session.
Bill of the Day: Monitoring PFAS Contamination
Virginia does not currently require testing, disclosure, or limits on PFAS, including on our drinking water sources like in private wells or runoff from sewage sludge.
Advocating for Environmental Priorities at Conservation Lobby Day
Over 250 advocates met with their legislators to discuss environmental priorities on Conservation Lobby Day.
Bill of the Day: Data Center Reform
Legislation is needed to hold data centers accountable for their fair share of environmental burden while reducing harmful impacts, preventing pollution, and protecting the public.
Bill of the Day: Investing in the Transition to Electric Vehicles
VCN is supporting legislation to invest in the transition to electric vehicles across the Commonwealth.
Bill of the Day: Defending Attacks on Our Climate Laws
We’re defending attacks on the Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA), passed in 2020, that outlines a path for Virginia’s two largest electric utilities—Dominion Energy and Appalachian Power Company—to transition to 100% clean energy by 2045 and 2050, respectively.