A couple of weeks ago, I traveled back to my home state to accept an award on behalf of the Center for Progressive Reform. The first-ever De Prey Peace Awards, named for Sheboygan, Wisconsin, peace activist Ceil De Prey, honor individuals and organizations whose work, volunteerism, and advocacy contribute to peace, a stronger democracy, and a better, more inclusive world for future generations.
Over the course of her life, De Prey has advocated for peace and worked to improve the lives of those around her. This included her past work as a medical researcher and volunteer efforts in every community she lived in. In just one example, for many years, First Congregational United Church of Christ of Sheboygan served what it called “Ceil’s Meal,” which brought together area residents from all walks of life to share meals. Many of the dishes featured at the events were based on De Prey’s own recipes. De Prey is also a cancer and stroke survivor.
The De Prey Peace Awards were coordinated by the local Giving Back Campaign to preserve De Prey’s legacy, and they were presented in conjunction with her 87th birthday celebration on March 19.
While the Center for Progressive Reform’s mission and vision do not specifically mention peacemaking, there is a connection between peace and the work we do. That through-line is a strong, effective democracy.
As we've seen in Eastern Europe since late February, strong, effective democracies are essential to peace. That's because autocracies like Russia tend toward oppression, violence, and war. That's not to say that democracies are inherently peaceful, because we know of too many that are not. But the difference is that democracies include mechanisms that make it possible for people to rise up, speak out, and make change – and move their democracies down a more peaceful path.
At the Center for Progressive Reform, part of our mission is to hold our government accountable, demanding strong, effective democracy. We believe that governments — from local levels to state and federal — must work on behalf of the people writ large, rather than on behalf of powerful special interests or the wealthy elite. Our governments must create opportunities for all voices to be heard, included, and taken seriously. They must work to ensure that the policies they pass on climate change, air and water pollution, and more benefit everyone and leave no one behind. And they must work to address and correct the injustices inflicted upon historically marginalized communities through the undue burdens of air pollution, water pollution, climate change, and more.
As an organization, we strive for climate justice, strong public protections, and a responsive government that works on behalf of the people, and it is an honor to have received the inaugural De Prey Peace Award.
In addition to the Center, awards were granted to De Prey, the Above and Beyond Children's Museum (which also hosted the awards ceremony), Ebenezer United Church of Christ of Sheboygan, the Friends of Peace Park Sheboygan, the Sheboygan Peace House, and the local chapter of the United Church Men and Women.
We are deeply moved by the award and are grateful to the local community for its generous donation to our organization so we may continue to move our government along the path toward a stronger, more peaceful democracy.
De Prey Peace Award video courtesy of Kevin Gumm. Climate justice sign by Bob Fleming.
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Brian Gumm | March 31, 2022
A couple of weeks ago, I traveled back to my home state to accept an award on behalf of the Center for Progressive Reform. The first-ever De Prey Peace Awards, named for Sheboygan, Wisconsin, peace activist Ceil De Prey, honor individuals and organizations whose work, volunteerism, and advocacy contribute to peace, a stronger democracy, and a better, more inclusive world for future generations.
William Funk | March 30, 2022
On the day before President Biden’s inauguration, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) adopted the Securing Updated and Necessary Statutory Evaluations Timely rule, colloquially known as the SUNSET Rule, because it would sunset any regulation that had not been assessed and, where required, reviewed within a specific timetable. Everyone is now expecting HHS to rescind the SUNSET Rule in the near future, and the agency should indeed take this action.
James Goodwin | March 29, 2022
The regulatory system, contrary to the claims of its conservative critics, is an indispensable part of the broader civic infrastructure on which our democracy is built. Significantly, the ability to exercise voting rights -- the most visible and potent act of civic engagement -- necessitates a stronger and more inclusive regulatory system.
Ian Campbell | March 28, 2022
Women led the battle for industrial democracy — even before they won the vote. However, women’s contributions to and leadership of the organized labor movement, though lionized within the movement itself, have largely escaped public consciousness.
Marcha Chaudry | March 24, 2022
Women’s History Month isn’t just a time to recognize achievements made throughout the decades to advance women’s rights and demand equity. It’s also an opportunity to celebrate women making history today, the ones in our unwritten history books.
Daniel Farber | March 22, 2022
In describing cost-benefit analysis to students, I've often told them that the "cost" side of the equation is pretty simple. And it does seem simple: just get some engineers to figure out how industry can comply and run some spreadsheets of the costs. But this seemingly simple calculation turns out to be riddled with uncertainties, particularly when you're talking about regulating the energy industry. Those uncertainties need more attention in designing regulations.
Alexandra Klass, Hannah Wiseman | March 21, 2022
The U.S. system for regulating electricity divides responsibility among too many players, assigns too many overlapping or competing tasks, and creates too many distorted incentives, a group of law professors says. They propose reforms that would break down governance silos to ensure greater collaboration in the clean energy transition.
Catalina Gonzalez | March 16, 2022
State officials in California are leading an extensive multisector planning effort to develop the 2022 Scoping Plan, the third update to California’s climate mitigation strategy. The new plan will outline a pathway for statewide action toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40% by 2030 and reaching net-zero emissions no later than 2045.
Daniel Farber | March 15, 2022
On March 11, there were two seismic shocks in the world of gas pipeline regulation. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has spent years resisting pressure to change the way it licenses new gas pipelines. The whole point of a natural gas pipeline is to deliver the gas to users who will burn it, thereby releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. FERC has steadfastly refused to take those emissions into account. The D.C. Circuit held that position illegal in an opinion released last Friday. That same day, by coincidence, FERC published guidelines in the Federal Register explaining how it proposed to consider those emissions.