National Network of Organizing Hubs for Nuclear Weapons Abolition

Grant Information
Categories	Peace
Location	United States
Cycle Year	2022

Organization Information
Organization Name (provided by applicant)	Back from the Brink
Organization Name (provided by automatic EIN validation)	Physicians for social responsibility
EIN	95-3956136
Website	https://preventnuclearwar.org/

Contact Information
Contact Name	Mr. Brennan Tierney
Phone	4019355312
E-mail	Brennan@preventnuclearwar.org
Address	617 S Olive St #1100 Los angeles CA 90014-1605

Additional Information
Used for	A primarily volunteer effort to date, Back from the Brink requests $25,000 to help hire a National Organizing & Outreach Director and a half-time communications consultant to increase the campaign’s digital and social media reach. The National Organizing & Outreach Director will manage and grow our national network of community-based organizing hubs that engage in sustained advocacy, media campaigns, and public education activities in support of nuclear weapons abolition. In time, BftB will onboard regional organizers and the funding to hire additional professional organizers and consultants will dramatically increase the campaign’s capacity to mobilize the public and its growing concern over nuclear weapons and enable this campaign to exert real influence over nuclear weapons policy.
Benefits	Today we are as close to the brink of nuclear war as at any time in the nuclear age and Back from the Brink is building a people-powered, national campaign that is mobilizing the public to create the political will and demand for fundamental reform of U.S. nuclear weapons policies, including a commitment to pursue negotiations with all nuclear weapons states to verifiably eliminate all the world’s nuclear weapons. BftB is giving voice and agency to thousands of people who want to take action by growing a national network of community-based organizing “hubs.” BftB’s strategic approach is modeled on the successful 1980s Nuclear Freeze Campaign, which activated millions and helped bring an end to the Cold War arms race, and we have to act quickly to bring about a similar change in nuclear policy today.
Proposal Description	Back from the Brink (BftB) is a grassroots coalition managing a national campaign to mobilize the public and build the political will needed to prevent nuclear war and fundamentally change nuclear weapons policy in the United States. Formed in 2017 by leaders of Physicians for Social Responsibility and Union of Concerned Scientists, BftB was created to bring a grassroots organizing and intersectional movement-building approach to nuclear weapons abolition advocacy. As of October 2022, BftB resolutions have been adopted by seven state legislative bodies and 60 municipalities, including Boston, Baltimore, Chicago, Des Moines, Honolulu, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Tucson, Los Angeles, Salt Lake City, and Washington D.C. Some 330 local, county, and state officials have endorsed the campaign. In June 2022, Representatives Jim McGovern and Earl Blumenauer introduced a Congressional resolution calling for the adoption of Back from the Brink’s policy platform in the U.S. House. Back from the Brink requests funding to help grow our national network of community-based organizing hubs that engage in sustained advocacy, media campaigns, and public education activities in support of nuclear weapons abolition and to secure endorsements of the BftB policy agenda. Specific outcomes for the next 12-15 months include: Formation of 15-20 BftB hubs, including in key regions like the Midwest and Southwest. 30-40 additional BftB municipal and state resolutions will be passed, including in Providence, Atlanta and New York City. 50-70 additional local, county, and state officials will endorse BftB 30-40 more organizations and/or experts or influencers will endorse BftB. 80-100 co-sponsors of Congressional BftB resolution Back from the Brink will accomplish the above goals by continuing to expand our network of organizing hubs, which will serve as place-based organizing bodies to advance the work of the campaign. Right now, our most urgent financial need is to have the necessary staffing support in place. Right now, our volunteer team can not keep up with the influx of individuals looking to get involved with our campaign. Funding will also help to support communications initiatives to help capture the growing attention to the nuclear danger into sustained, grassroots activism. A world free of nuclear weapons is essential to ensuring the safety and security of our communities, our environment, and for future generations.