Dear Center Supporter,

Last week hundreds of people rallied in Sacramento to protest Trump's disastrous plan to allow a dramatic increase in oil and gas drilling along all U.S. coasts and the Arctic. But this week Trump doubled down on dirty fossil fuels in his proposed budget, which slashed funding for clean-energy programs and gutted climate-change research positions while increasing investments in oil, gas and coal.

It seems like whoever wasn't talking about Trump's terrible budget was talking about the Winter Olympics. But there's a connection between the two: Thanks to climate change, many former Olympics host cities may be too warm by mid-century to support the games. No matter who takes home the gold this year, the games serve as a reminder that we can't wait another four years to ditch fossil fuels and switch to wildlife-friendly renewable energy.

For the wild,

Crowded Planet / Golf courses, sports fields and Olympic villages are yet another way human development changes habitat, forcing wildlife to adapt to the new landscape. Check out more photos of wildlife, from lynx to lobsters, on the playing field.

Population / Government Review Glosses Over Gag Rule

One of Trump's first actions as president was to sign an executive order that reinstated and expanded the global gag rule. This rule prohibits international organizations from receiving funding if they provide any services or information to clients about abortion. The State Department just released a six-month review of the policy's impact. The report claims that health services have continued without disruption. According to family planning and health care advocates on the ground, the reality is very different.

The review took place a year before the global gag rule is due to be fully implemented, so it failed to take into account funding cycles or long-term effects of the rule as struggling clinics are forced to close their doors. It also didn't solicit meaningful feedback from organizations and hasn't made the comments it did receive public. It's a far cry from the thorough, transparent, ongoing review more than 100 organizations called for. Instead, it provides cover for a rule that puts family planning and lifesaving healthcare at risk around the world.

Earth-friendly Diet / Taking on Cruel Animal Slaughter

The Center joined more than 30 organizations to oppose a proposed rule that would end pig-slaughter limits and shift key inspection duties from the USDA to factory farms themselves. In addition to raising food safety and animal-welfare concerns, this rule would further increase concentrated production at factory farms, increasing the waste and pollution that go with it. A similar request from the National Chicken Council to waive slaughter-line speeds was denied by the USDA last month. You can help: Tell the Food Safety and Inspection Service to deny the requested limit waiver.

Five Wild Picks / Center Staff Shine a Light on the News

Part of our work to protect the environment is making connections between the news and the wildlife and wild places we're fighting for. Here are five recently published opinion pieces from the Center's expert staff:

1) Senior Population Campaigner Catherine Thomasson responds to a New York Times article on the decision of whether to have children in the age of climate change.

2) Public Lands Director Randi Spivak breaks down how Trump's latest directive puts fossil fuel industries in charge of public lands in an op-ed in The Hill.

3) Associate Conservation Director Jean Su shares her powerful experience as a climate activist, attorney and eco-feminist in Ms. Magazine.

4) Senior Food Campaigner Jennifer Molidor explains why producers, not taxpayers, must bear the cost of meat production in a letter to the editor in The Guardian.

5) Senior Scientist Nathan Donley exposes how the EPA and Monsanto are hiding the truth about Roundup in a Sacramento Bee op-ed.