Western Organization of Resource Councils
Creating a democratic, sustainable, and just society through grassroots community organizing.
- We're honored to share our nearly half-century of experience developing and supporting organizers. Check out the key learnings of WORC and two other great organizations doing #communityorganizing. builttolast.grassrootssolutions.com/stories-of-p...
- Just over a year ago, Nebraska Organizing Project harnessed #grassrootsorganizing to bring language access and profound change to their rural community. Great reminder of the power of residents coming together around common values to create positive change. worc.org/organizing-f... #ruralorganizing
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- After five decades shaping rural organizing, Pat Sweeney is stepping away from WORC. We asked Pat about his most memorable moments, what he might do differently, and what brings him hope today. Also, why #communityorganizing is still our most effective tool for change. worc.org/worc-founder...
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- “It’s time for working-class people to reassert their power over the billionaires and corporations that Trump and his Congressional lapdogs serve at everyone else’s expense, especially the working class.” worc.org/facing-an-af...
- “Many of my neighbors who haven’t talked to me in years started to talk to me again.” As rural communities descend deeper into an affordability crisis, folks are crossing political divides to reconnect with their neighbors over shared challenges and values. #ruralorganizing worc.org/facing-an-af...
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- Rural electric co-ops are some of America's most democratic institutions. What happens when they begin to act like for-profit utilities? Bill Patrie is part of a growing movement to restore fairness and democratic ideals which co-ops were founded upon. worc.org/leading-light/
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- Reposted by Western Organization of Resource CouncilsYou can watch part two here: www.kptv.com/2025/12/23/m...
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- "I’ve seen firsthand how NEPA has spared many ranchers, farmers, and others in Montana from decisions that could have resulted in their ruin." writes Northern Plains mbr & former #NEPA compliance officer Beth Kaeding on the importance of opposing the SPEED Act. www.wvnews.com/news/around_...
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- Reposted by Western Organization of Resource CouncilsGive a listen to the latest Coast Range Radio Podcast - Is Amazon Fueling A Water Crisis in Oregon? www.buzzsprout.com/1046044?clie...
- We often call out transnational meatpackers like JBS and others for market manipulation, but their unchecked corporate power leads to the exploitation and suffering of so many across the food and agriculture sectors and in rural communities.
- SPEED Act will gut #NEPA, depriving federal decision makers of the info they need to make decisions that don't result in the kind of disasters NEPA is supposed to prevent. Also making it much harder to hold the govn't accountable when its poor decisions end up harming us and our communities. #mtpol
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- Farmers and ranchers aren't being hyperbolic when they use the words "farm crisis." It's looking pretty 1985 out there right now, with more pain on the horizon. These hotlines are critical for farmers in crisis. So is organizing for policies that work for producers instead of against them.
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- It seems like just letting the Biden administration's stronger antitrust updates to the Packers and Stockyards Act go into effect would have been easier and more effective than throwing researched and publicly supported rules away and jotting down a new executive order.
- What couold go wrong?
- The number "13%" doesn't really tell the story of families choosing between heat and food as temperatures fall. Prices in rural places have often seen the biggest increases. Families across the West will be making some painful choices this winter.
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- This move isn't going to bring coal back when current bids on federal coal leases are so low that the BLM is forced to reject them. Coal policy is out of touch with the markets.
- "The future for the thermal coal industry is very bleak and the companies seem to realize that." Thinking that just holding lease sales will resurect an industry shows how out-of-touch this administration is with the way actual energy markets work.
- "No one has wanted a coal lease. Basically, Trump got in and decided it would have been an exciting thing to have a coal lease & it would have helped the coal industry & the result was what you see—the real players in the coal industry said, 'No thanks, we're good.'" www.spglobal.com/market-intel...
- Reposted by Western Organization of Resource Councils"Hay tantos actores maliciosos a la vez”, dice Lay. “Cada uno de estos contaminadores tiene responsabilidad directa por la contaminación que generan y deben rendir cuentas." www.rollingstone.com/culture/cult...
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- “We have been slapped down by Congress to gratify the coal industry at the expense of everyday people.” Wyoming's delegation led the charge to remove the voice of the people on coal leasing in Wyoming's Powder River Basin.
- This is a case study in how powerful interests and self-dealing public officials can use secrecy and corporate power to create public health nightmares. #protectwater #cleanwater
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- Taking on corporate power, secrecy, and self-dealing public officials is how WORC members protect their communities. This story shows how @oregonrural.bsky.social's grassroots organizing is the spotlight in the darkness of Oregon’s water crisis.
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- “How can you live with yourself knowing that the water you put in people’s houses is causing miscarriages or cancer? And they’re still making money on deals for new data centers.” @oregonrural.bsky.social members are protecting water from powerful polluters. www.rollingstone.com/culture/cult...
- When ordinary people organize, engage, and take action, they can change the course of their communities and strengthen the foundation of our democracy. This was certainly true in the Mountain West, where the power of people-driven politics was on full display.
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- NEW REPORT outlines threats that idled oil and gas wells pose to rural communities, wildlife, and recreation. #KeepBondingReform to ensure the oil and gas industry–not taxpayers–pays for the cleanup. www.nwf.org/-/media/Documents/PDFs/Press-Releases/2025/A-Growing-Risk-on-Public-Lands
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- Out today, Rural Policy Action Report, which WORC and many of its member groups contributed to, provides practical steps Congress could take immediately to improve rural people’s lives and deliver lower costs, higher wages, and the freedom to make choices about our own lives. ruralpolicyaction.us
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- A Latino community served by Idaho Organization of Resource Councils suffered a brutal police raid this week. Police zip-tied children & fired rubber bullets into a crowd. Please consider donating to help the traumatized families whose head of households were detained. givebutter.com/ifaf?fbclid=...
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- "Sens. Daines and Sheehy did the industry’s bidding and laid waste to years of consultation the BLM conducted with local tribal leaders, ranchers, farmers, outfitters, and other Montanans to ensure that coal mining can co-exist in the Powder River Basin without destroying our livelihoods."
- Oh, the irony. Same day that Senate cancels two land-use plans to allow coal leasing to continue in eastern Montana and North Dakota, this happens. And it happened because coal is now worth essentially nothing-- 1/10 of a penny per ton, as one company priced it at on Monday. #mtpol #northdakota
- “What the hell happened to Daines and Sheehy’s conservatism, to their belief in local control and less government? Their votes today couldn’t be more top-down, more political, or more disconnected from the needs and interests of Montanans who will be most affected by their actions."
- "[Canceling the Miles City RMP] gives companies the green light to mine the public coal that sits underneath private property.... Property owners could literally have the earth taken out from underneath us." #mtpol billingsgazette.com/opinion/colu...
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- “Those of us who live with this don’t have any say in what happens to the land we own and have leased for generations. [The current Miles City Resource Management Plan] was a collaborative process, and to have that overturned in one fell swoop is stunning.” www.hcn.org/articles/dec...
- Any day now, the Senate could join the House in tossing out years of local collaboration, negotiation, and public involvement that went into the development of public land management plans in southeast Montana, North Dakota, and Alaska. The effect could "destabilize land management" across the West.
- “If the only way to keep this industry alive is for the federal government to basically give away coal for free, how does that make any sense?”
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- The One Big Betrayal of a Bill demands we hold our elected officials accountable. For that to happen, our neighbors need to know the harm it's going to bring to rural communities in the West and Midwest. We break it down for you. worc.org/one-big-betr... #grassrootsorganizing #communityorganizing
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- WORC's Principles of Community Organizing (POCO) gives everyday people the power to strategize, campaign, and manifest the future they want to see for their families and communities, people like Callie Stainbrook of Rapid City. worc.org/power-to-the... #grassrootsorganizing #communityorganizing
- Never mind there is enough coal already under lease in the Powder River Basin to flood the market for at least the next 15 years. Never mind that the energy market has already left coal behind, with 93% of new US electricity now coming from solar, wind, or batteries.
- “This program has been key to helping people who don’t have a lot of assets make a change and provide some cash flow for their family.” www.canarymedia.com/articles/cle...
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- This decision shows the power of grassroots organizing and is a good reminder that the public can still sway BLM state offices. We might not have the kind of money and influence that Exxon has, but we have the power of the people. #ruralorganizing montanafreepress.org/2025/08/08/e...
- Solar = freedom. Esp. in rural places.
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- Reposted by Western Organization of Resource Councils¿Crees que ves la actividad de ICE (la migra)? Asegúrese de incluir información CLARA cuando reporta actividad de ICE. Gracias por cuidar y defender a los inmigrantes de Oregón. ¡Comparte estos recursos para ayudar a mantener a nuestra comunidad segura e informada! youtu.be/--X9-G0O-Co?...
- Reposted by Western Organization of Resource CouncilsIdioma: Mam ¿Crees que ves la actividad de ICE (la migra)? Asegúrese de incluir información CLARA cuando reporta actividad de ICE. Gracias por cuidar y defender a los inmigrantes de Oregón. ¡Comparte estos recursos para ayudar a mantener a nuestra comunidad segura e informada! youtu.be/IoRPgYdbY0Y
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- Reposted by Western Organization of Resource CouncilsLanguages: Spanish & Mam www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WqD...
- Are you in #SouthDakota and want to know who grows your food? Pick up this beautiful #LocalFood directory and see who's producing what in your area.
- Reposted by Western Organization of Resource CouncilsIdiomas o lenguajes: Español y Mam www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WqD...
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- "The market has already left coal behind." Longtime WORC member and retired Wyoming coal miner Lynne Huskinson questions the administration's fixation on propping up a dying industry that makes energy more expensive, drains aquifers, and pollutes. www.wyomingnews.com/opinion/gues... #coal #Wyoming
- "The dire state of coal markets is what makes the administration’s fixation on the mineral so irrational. Does the administration prefer Americans pay more for electricity so long as it comes from coal?" #coal #energy
- Learn about the experience that participants had at WORC's most recent Principles of Community Organizing and how they've used what they learn to organize people and build power in their rural communities. worc.org/power-to-the... #grassrootsorganizing #ruralorganizing #communityorganizing
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- Reposted by Western Organization of Resource CouncilsLos inmigrantes de Oregón son trabajadores esenciales que merecen vivir en nuestras comunidades con sus familias y sentirse seguros y protegidos. En Oregón, todos pertenecemos. Hay recursos actualizados para todos los miembros de la comunidad. www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulSU...
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- Reposted by Western Organization of Resource CouncilsImmigrant Oregonians are essential workers who deserve to live in our communities with their families and feel safe, secure, and protected, just like other Oregonians. There are updated resources for all community members. www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulSU...
- Grassroots rural organizing in action--building leaders and lifting up the voices of people affected by poisoned water to be heard by the people whose job it is to keep people in Oregon safe. This video shows the incredible work happening at Oregon Rural Action. #ruralorganizing
- Special thanks to Meyer Memorial Trust for highlighting our work here in Eastern Oregon! vimeo.com/1103853751?f...
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