Subject:
Support $8.3M for SUNY ESF to strengthen New York’s environmental future
Message:
Dear Legislator:
As your constituent and someone who cares deeply about environmental education, climate action and New York's green economy, I strongly urge you to support $8.3 million in funding for SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY ESF) in this year's enacted budget.
SUNY ESF is a national leader in environmental science education and research, drawing students from across the country to address the most pressing issues facing our planet. Its graduates are highly skilled and in high demand at the Department of Environmental Conservation, throughout private industry and in emerging green-economy jobs. If we are serious about climate action, sustainability and building a skilled workforce, we must invest in the institution already doing this critical work.
Unfortunately, state and federal research funding cuts have created a structural deficit that threatens this essential institution. A proposed stability plan calls for increased enrollment — a clear testament to the quality of ESF's programs and the demand for its graduates — but that same plan also calls for budget cuts and staffing reductions. These goals are inherently in conflict. You cannot grow a program while cutting the people who run it.
The state should invest in SUNY ESF as the essential school it is. An investment of $8.3 million would address the operating deficit and restore the campus to fiscal stability — allowing ESF to grow and continue training the environmental leaders New York needs.
Accordingly, I urge you to work with your conference and your leadership to include $8.3 million for SUNY ESF in the enacted budget. This investment will protect a proven institution that is critical to New York's environmental future and economic competitiveness.
Thank you for your consideration of this important issue. I respectfully ask that you bring up this issue with your conference and I would greatly appreciate a response to this letter.
Sincerely,
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