Contents:
We are bringing the light forward — together.
Safeguarding Clean Water & Public Health
Drinking unsafe water that contains PFAS, lead, and nitrates damages human health. These toxins cause cancer, premature births, and problems with thinking and learning. Thanks to you, we’re securing protections for clean water in states across the country.
Wisconsin Water Win
After meeting with teachers about her son’s learning challenges, Shy McElroy had questions. She dug through her son’s medical records and discovered high lead levels that had been ignored, damaging his ability to learn.
Lead affects children’s brain development, vision, hearing, and motor skills — and about 500,000 children in the U.S. are currently exposed to dangerous lead levels. McElroy now leads the Coalition on Lead Emergency, which focuses on addressing lead poisoning in Milwaukee.
This coalition is one of many that LCV Education Fund’s state affiliate, Wisconsin Conservation Voices, participates in. Wisconsin Conservation Voices is a leader in ensuring safe drinking water across the state. In 2025, following years of forging partnerships and educating and mobilizing communities, their work to safeguard clean drinking water paid off.
Their efforts secured $732 million from the state to address water contamination and ensure clean water for households statewide, including those like McElroy’s. This investment, together with federal funding provided by the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, will provide drinking water treatment, replacement of toxic water mains, and removal of PFAS and other harmful chemicals for tens of thousands of Wisconsin households.
Since the 2023 U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Sackett v. EPA gutted federal clean water protections, LCV Education Fund has invested heavily in building a coalition of states focused on protecting water and health, including Alabama, Indiana, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Wisconsin.
Meet Wisconsinites Who Will Benefit From Clean Water
$732M
Clean water investments won in Wisconsin
1,000
Wisconsin clean water infrastructure projects to be completed in 2026
9
LCV Education Fund state affiliates advancing clean water protections
Expanding Clean Energy
In the face of federal attacks, states continue to lead the way — advancing clean energy and helping to preserve our environment, safeguard our health, and protect our pocketbooks.
Our Nationwide Progress Continues
LCV Education Fund and our 30 state affiliates — together, the Conservation Voters Movement (CVM) — are a nationwide powerhouse. Our innovative approaches have been winning clean energy progress in the states since 2017, and 2025 was no exception. With your support, last year the CVM defended against federal attacks and continued to secure monumental progress on affordable clean energy, climate action, and environmental justice.
We mobilized constituents, organized events, and built coalitions with labor, environmental justice groups, communities, and other allies to advance climate and clean energy policies.
2025 State Clean Energy Wins
ILLINOIS residents will see increased access to cleaner public transportation, an accelerated transition to affordable clean energy, and new tools that lower energy costs — thanks to the work of our state affiliate, Illinois Environmental Council Education Fund.
MAINE residents will see a 10-year acceleration of the state’s transition to clean energy and lower costs after it moved its deadline for reaching 100% clean energy to 2040 from 2050 — thanks to the work of our state affiliate, Maine Conservation Alliance.
NEVADA residents will be refunded more than $65 million in gas bill overcharges, and residents in multifamily affordable housing will have access to cost-saving solar power — thanks to the work of our state affiliate, Nevada Conservation League Education Fund.
NEW YORK CITY residents are benefiting from cleaner air, less noise pollution, and shorter travel times due to a congestion pricing program that resulted in 27 million fewer car trips in Manhattan over a one-year period — thanks to the work of our state affiliate, New York League of Conservation Voters Education Fund.
OHIO residents will no longer be forced to subsidize aging coal plants that have cost $90 million annually, and will benefit from cost-saving increases in more efficient and renewable energy — thanks to the work of our state affiliate, Ohio Environmental Council.
41%
People in the U.S. living in places committed to 100% clean energy (compared to 1% when we started)
18
CVM states committed to 100% clean energy to date
29%
Increase in utility-scale solar in the past year
Stepping Up to Reduce Harm
LCV Education Fund and our state affiliates are defending our communities, our environment, and our democracy against harmful policies that benefit the few at the expense of the many.
Collective Action Is Powerful
In 2025, we mobilized people across the country in defense of clean air, clean water, safe communities, a healthy climate, free and fair elections, and equitable representation.
We worked to protect public lands and waters from the Trump administration’s ongoing attempts to sell them off to polluters:
EDUCATED AND MOBILIZED lawmakers and community members about the historic, cultural, economic, and environmental importance of public lands and waters.
ORGANIZED WITH LOCAL COMMUNITIES, artists, advocates, and elected officials in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, and Oregon.
DEPLOYED INNOVATIVE SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGIES, reaching 10+ million views among people we might not otherwise engage.
Our movement showed up and pushed back in states across the country:
CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL VOTERS EDUCATION FUND collaborated with state agencies and our other state affiliates to push back against the Trump administration’s and Congress’s illegitimate dismantling of state cleaner vehicles rules.
MICHIGAN LEAGUE OF CONSERVATION VOTERS EDUCATION FUND worked alongside communities to highlight the Trump administration’s forced reopening of the dirty and expensive Campbell Coal Plant.
20+ LCV EDUCATION FUND STATE AFFILIATES worked closely with state attorneys general who have pushed back against the Trump administration’s clawing back of funding for clean energy projects.
Last year, alongside millions of people, we stepped up, not back. We are undeterred, and we will continue to grow this movement — thanks to you.
Watch How We’re Pushing Back
7M
People who turned out for October’s peaceful No Kings rallies
10M+
Views of social media posts calling for public lands protections
45,000
Petition signatures and emails sent to decision-makers to protect clean energy and public lands
In late 2025, our Indiana state affiliate successfully educated the public about the dangers of gerrymandering and generated a groundswell of public support against rigging the state’s congressional maps.
Their approach showcased the power of their public education, mobilization, outreach, and coalition building, and included:
Demonstrating public opposition to gerrymandering using polling data
Building and leading statewide coalitions of pro-democracy organizations
Informing the public about the threat to fair maps through strategic ad campaigns
Collecting and delivering tens of thousands of petition signatures
The attempt at mid-decade redistricting was unpopular with the public, widely seen as unfair, and ultimately failed in the state legislature.
Thanks to you, in 2025, LCV Education Fund and our state affiliates protected voting rights in Indiana and 28 other states, including:
COLORADO: Voters of color gained legal protections, and local elections will have additional oversight thanks to our efforts.
MAINE: Voters will maintain access to absentee voting and inclusive voter ID requirements thanks to our work.
MICHIGAN: Voters won’t face onerous barriers to voting — such as having to present proof of citizenship, like a passport or birth certificate, when registering — since we helped defeat a resolution that would have required this.
WASHINGTON: Voters will be automatically registered to vote when signing up for Medicare, Medicaid, and Affordable Care Act health insurance, or interacting with Tribal offices, since we educated the public and leaders about the need to prioritize voting justice.
See How We Informed the Public
160
State policy wins that protect or expand voting access in 2025
24
Fair maps policy wins, creating districts that reflect the will of the voters
23
Voter ID policy wins, resulting in fewer barriers to casting a ballot
Increasing Civic Participation
Thanks to you, people across the country are registering to vote and casting their ballots, including in historically underrepresented communities and communities of color
Because Every Voice Matters
Registering to vote and voting should be easy. But, depending upon where voters live, the registration and voting processes can be complex and hard to navigate. LCV Education Fund works to change that.
Our multi-state nonpartisan voter registration and engagement program is among the largest in the country and focuses on underrepresented rural and urban communities. In 2025, we ramped up our voter registration efforts, registering 90,000 people and testing innovative programs to learn more about what gets people to the polls.
CALIFORNIA: 1.44 million people heard our 30-second YouTube audio spots focused on reaching Latina women in and around Los Angeles.
NEVADA: Hundreds of newly naturalized citizens registered to vote thanks to the work our state affiliate did in partnership with the Clark County Clerk’s Office, which oversees registration for the most populous county in the state.
NORTH CAROLINA: 10,000 people registered to vote through our North Carolina affiliate’s Power the Vote program, which focuses on accessibility, culturally competent outreach, and existing relationships to connect with constituents.
Outside of the local grocery store, our canvasser engaged a passerby about voter registration and helped him complete the process. He said he appreciated our nonpartisan approach and that it was refreshing to find common ground.
Our success in 2025 is our springboard for increasing the scale of our work in 2026 as we continue to build a fairer and more just democracy.
Learn About Our Democracy Work
2.6M+
Voters registered since 2012
90,000
Voters registered in 2025
13,000
Mobilizers in Virginia who sent reminders to vote to 55,000 friends
Spurring the Next Wave of Bold Climate Action
We’re working to build actionable commitments to clean energy from state-level candidates and leaders.
Informed Leaders Make Better Policies
Confronting the climate crisis requires a mix of policy, technology, and infrastructure solutions to make a real difference. LCV Education Fund’s nonpartisan Race to the Top program prepares leaders to step up, take bold action, and fight for our future.
Our program educates candidates across the political spectrum about the importance of clean energy and environmental justice. It encourages them to make the environment and climate priority campaign issues. And it equips them to lead ambitious and successful clean energy initiatives in their states.
In 2025, LCV Education Fund and our state affiliate, New Jersey LCV Education Fund, engaged gubernatorial candidates and made sure the public was informed about their approaches to energy and the environment. Our robust education, paid and earned media, and on-the-ground organizing elevated the importance of clean energy’s affordability and other benefits for candidates and the public.
Our achievements included:
Hosting a bipartisan gubernatorial candidate forum at Rutgers School of Health that was broadcast on New Jersey Public Television.
Informing reporters about the candidates’ policies before the Rutgers gubernatorial forum, such that the debate included questions about the environment.
Successfully pressuring gubernatorial candidates Mikie Sherrill and Jack Ciattarelli to release opinion pieces outlining their environmental policy visions.
Spurring earned media coverage that highlighted the differences between the candidates’ visions.
We will build on these 2025 successes in 2026 and beyond. Our 2025-2026 Race to the Top program is active in seven states and counting, including California, Colorado, Maine, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, and Wisconsin.
Headlines Showed That the Public Was Paying Attention to Energy Issues:
New Jersey gubernatorial race tightens as power bills jolt voters
September 29, 2025
22% Jump in Electricity Rates Dominates New Jersey Governor’s Race
October 9, 2025
Electricity prices surge to the forefront of NJ governor’s race
October 16, 2025
Get an Inside View of Our Race to the Top Program
1.4M
Influencer-generated social media impressions in the lead-up to New Jersey's gubernatorial race
135
Press mentions connecting environmental issues to candidates in New Jersey
25
Partner organizations convened to develop environmental policy platforms in New Jersey
ANA LOAIZA-CAMPEAN often wakes to the sound of her son’s wheezing and rushes to his bedside to reattach his breathing machine. She’s a Chispa volunteer working to ensure that the 6 million children suffering from respiratory damage in the U.S. get clean air to breathe.
MONNA LYTLE wasn’t looking to be an activist. But when her neighbors weren’t getting the help they needed, she stepped up. Today, she is a Chispa leader working to protect her Texas community from a damaging and costly water desalination plant and dangerous industrial rezoning.
For 10 years, LCV Education Fund’s Chispa program has been working alongside community members like these to help address their challenges. Our approach focuses on relationship-based organizing that builds a pipeline of strong local promotores (leaders) in five states.
With the help of supporters like you, our Chispa programs:
PROTECTED CHILDREN’S HEALTH by leading the nationwide movement for clean school buses.
WORKED TO SAFEGUARD irreplaceable public lands and waters by engaging with local communities.
HELPED COMMUNITY MEMBERS engage effectively with leaders to protect their health and well-being.
Watch How Chispa Engages Communities
525
Community leaders driving our campaigns
23,000
Active volunteers advocating at the local, state, and national levels
275,000
Students set to ride 14,000 clean electric buses in 54 states and U.S. territories
Developing the Next Generation of Climate Leaders
We’re building a pipeline of environmental justice and climate leaders ready to shape the policies that affect our lives.
Preparing Today — for a Bright Tomorrow
A successful movement requires people with knowledge, drive, talent, and skills. LCV Education Fund equips pro-environment leaders with what it takes to secure strong policies for their communities. Here are two examples of the hundreds of people we trained and developed in 2025:
AUTUMN GABBARD grew up in Michigan during the Flint water crisis. Seeing families across her state lose trust in something as basic as their tap water stirred her to action. After earning her degree in environmental studies and political science, she dove into her internship at Climate Action PA, a project of our Pennsylvania state affiliate.
There, she organizes local events, connects with grassroots partners, and supports youth-focused climate activism. She’s learned to turn climate anxiety into action so that people never have to question the safety of their water again.
Our Climate Action programs build grassroots momentum by training volunteers across the country to engage online and on the ground in their communities.
ALEX JOYNER was recently elected mayor of Farmville, North Carolina. He believes that by elevating the messages of those around him who may not have a voice, he can strengthen his community and ensure equity for all of his neighbors.
While in office, he plans to do just that. Joyner is an alum of LCV Education Fund’s Boards and Commissions Fellowship training. Our nonpartisan program equips a pool of highly qualified, diverse leaders with the skills to advance climate and democracy progress.
Our Boards and Commissions Fellowship programs equip aspiring environmental leaders with the skills to advance a clean energy and pro-environment agenda.
Watch Community Leaders in Action
115
Boards and Commissions Fellows trained in 2025, with 275 trained to date
50+
Boards and Commissions Fellows currently serving
44,000
Climate Action volunteers and activists engaged to date; 40% under age 35
