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We must prevent what we cannot cure.

 The Big Share

Tuesday, March 5th, 2024

Information

What is the Big Share?

The Big Share is an online day of giving hosted by Community Shares of Wisconsin. PSR Wisconsin is just one of nearly 70 non-profits included in this fun, interactive, and engaging fundraiser. Participants can feel confident about their donation through GiveGab.

For more information specific to the Big Share, please visit https://www.thebigshare.org/.

What to expect as a donor?

The Big Share offers a variety of prizes, incentives, and opportunities for participating organizations and members. See below for the step-by-step tutorial of how to donate.

Directions…

  • Access the Big Share website, hosted by Community Shares of Wisconsin. Click below to go directly there!

    https://www.thebigshare.org/

  • Once at the homepage, scroll down until you see the section titled “Search for an Organization to Support”. You can use the search engine(s) to quickly located your preferred organization OR view all participating organizations by clicking “View All”. See all participating organizations by clicking here.

  • You can access the Organization’s fundraising page by clicking on the name. (PSR Wisconsin/WEHN’s page). Alternatively, you can view the organization’s fundraising page by clicking the blue “view” button.

  • You can enter your desired donation amount by either:

    1) Clicking the blue “donate” button directly on the search results

    OR

    2) clicking the green “donate” or blue “chose your own amount” on the organization’s official fundraising page.

    TO DONATE DIRECTLY TO PSR WISCONSIN/WEHN: https://www.thebigshare.org/donate?campaign_id=192832

What are the incetives for participants?

The Big Share offers a variety of prizes for donations. See below for a description of the prize types, as well as specific detail for each for 2024.

  • One $750 prize will be awarded to the organization that receives the first donation at the official start of The Big Share at 6:00 p.m. on Monday March 4. Groups that win the First Donation Prize cannot win the Last Donation Prize. Online donations only.

    https://www.thebigshare.org/prizes

  • The organization with the most dollars raised between 6:00-7:00 p.m. on Monday, March 4 will win an additional $2,000. Each group can only win 1 Power Hour. Groups that win a Power Hour cannot win Golden Tickets.

    OR

    The organization with the most unique donors between 6:00-7:00 p.m. on Monday, March 4 will win an additional $2,000. Each group can only win 1 Power Hour. Groups that win a Power Hour cannot win Golden Tickets.

    Sponsored by MG&E

    https://www.thebigshare.org/prizes

  • The organization with the most dollars raised between a 1 hour Power Hour window will win an additional $1,000. Each group can only win 1 Power Hour. Groups that win a Power Hour cannot win Golden Tickets. Power Hour windows include: 6am - 7am; 8am - 9am; 10am - 11am; 12pm - 1pm; 2pm - 3pm; 5pm - 6pm; 7pm - 8pm.

    https://www.thebigshare.org/prizes

  • The organization with the most unique donors between a 1 hour Power Hour window will win an additional $1,000. Each group can only win 1 Power Hour. Groups that win a Power Hour cannot win Golden Tickets. Power Hour windows include: 6am - 7am; 8am - 9am; 10am - 11am; 12pm - 1pm; 2pm - 3pm; 5pm - 6pm; 7pm - 8pm.

    https://www.thebigshare.org/prizes

  • 7:45am-

    Match Minute starts at 7:45 a.m. All online donations during this minute are matched up to $1,000 for one minute in proportion to the number of nonprofits receiving donations during that time until the match runs out. All groups are eligible for this prize regardless of if they have won a prize previously.

    3:30pm-

    Match Minute starts at 3:30 p.m. All online donations during this minute are matched up to $5,000 for one minute in proportion to the number of nonprofits receiving donations during that time until the match runs out. All groups are eligible for this prize regardless of if they have won a prize previously.

    https://www.thebigshare.org/prizes

  • For large and small organizations.

    A donor who gives during a Golden Ticket hour (10pm - 11pm & 11pm - 11:59pm) will be randomly drawn and the nonprofit they donated to receives a $250 prize. Power Hour winners are not eligible for Golden Ticket prizes. Each group can only win 1 Golden Ticket prize.

    https://www.thebigshare.org/prizes

  • 1 $750 prize will be awarded to the organization that receives the last donation at the official END of The Big Share at 11:59:59 p.m. on March 5. Groups that win the First Donation Prize cannot win the Last Donation Prize. Online donations only.

    https://www.thebigshare.org/prizes

  • One $500 prize will be given to nonprofits participating in The Big Share 2024 for the most creative video, live or produced. This prize is sponsored by designCraft Advertising.

    https://www.thebigshare.org/prizes

  • $500 to the member group who has the highest number of fundraising champions for their organization that raise dollars on TheBigShare.org site.

    https://www.thebigshare.org/prizes

 
 

  Nuclear Energy Conflicts with Cure for Climate Change

Op-Ed authored by Amy Schulz, R.N., PSR Wisconsin President

Published in the Wisconsin State Journal on January 16, 2021.

The recent proposal to extend the license of Wisconsin’s Point Beach nuclear reactor for 20 more years is bad for the health of Wisconsin residents. The two Point Beach nuclear reactors began operating in 1970 and 1972. The licenses are due to expire in 2030 and 2033 and the extension of these licenses will extend the life of these aging reactors to nearly 80 years. Nuclear energy is not a “carbon free” source of electricity as it is fraught with problems related to radioactive waste and pollution, safety, environmental justice and extraordinary costs. Wisconsin could replace the equivalent energy output of these reactors through renewables and conservation.

Because of radiation, nuclear energy is a dangerous and expensive way to boil water, produce steam, and drive a turbine which powers electric generators. The fuel used for this process is uranium. Mining uranium requires fossil fuels to extract and process it. These mines and processing mills are disproportionately found in communities of color and indigenous peoples’ lands which contributes to increased rates of birth defects, cancers and other diseases. (Roscoe RJ, 1995)Radioactive waste continues to be generated by each reactor. Presently, this highly radioactive waste is stored in pools or outdoors in dry casks (there isn’t a permanent repository for this waste and it’s vulnerable to a terrorist strike) (Biello, 2009) and will remain hazardous to humans for thousands of years. Three major nuclear accidents (Russia in 1957, Chernobyl, Ukraine in 1987, and Fukushima, Japan in 2011) have made the surrounding land uninhabitable for up to 20,000 years. (Blakemore, 2019)

Nuclear reactors were designed and licensed to operate for 40 years. As they age, we can expect an increase in accidents due to equipment failures. (Smith, 2006) Reactor pressure vessels are thick steel containers that hold nuclear fuel and serve as a barrier to keep radioactive material out of the environment. (U.S Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 2020)Nuclear reactors generate subatomic particles, which hit the steel and reduce the steel’s ability to withstand cracking and the stresses of operation. This is “embrittlement” and the Point Beach reactor #2 is one of the most embrittled reactors in the U.S. due to its age and materials, making it vulnerable to cracking and the release of radiation in the event of an accident. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission estimated that the Point Beach 2 reactor was to reach its “embrittlement screening limit” by 2017. (Zipp, 2014) Point Beach nuclear reactor is located on the shores of Lake Michigan, which supplies drinking water to millions of people in the U.S. and Canada. In the event of an accident, the radioactive contamination could be catastrophic .

Proponents of nuclear energy state that it is “emissions-free” technology and that this will help Wisconsin to meet its clean energy goals. (Hubbuch, 2020) This argument doesn’t account for the carbon costs that come with the extraction and processing of uranium and the construction and eventual decommissioning of these plants. The threat of permanently poisoning the planet from a nuclear accident far outweighs the benefits. When one considers that Point Beach Nuclear Plant supplies Wisconsin with 16% of its electricity, we would have to create a similar amount of energy through renewables and energy conservation over the next several years. States around the country are implementing plans to reduce the effects of climate change and Wisconsin is following suit. The Governor’s Task Force on Climate Change included a 32 member task force representing a broad swath of the public. (Hubbuch, Report offers 55 new paths, 2020)

Their report includes 55 recommendations for mitigating and adapting to the effects of climate change. (State of Wisconsin, 2020) (Dewar D, 2013) This is the path that Wisconsin should adapt for the health of our state.