A regional resource for Cape & Islands climate activists
July 11, 2020
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Dear Reader,
Most of us are staying close to home, wearing masks and doing our best to avoid contracting or spreading the Coronavirus. And many experience a sense of unrest, anxiety and depression as we see the Climate Crisis slipping away from "top of mind" while folks can't take in "one more crisis" to manage.
So, this ACTION ALERT is designed to empower you:
Taking ACTION is a great antidote to stress and anxiety
. Please read on to find one or two key ACTIONS you can take right now and then open your mind to EDUCATE yourself about important local topics, including how important it is for us to move from "not racist" to "anti-racist, and how our Mashpee Wampanoag neighbors are working to protect the land and sea.
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The climate can't wait. Act now!
Less than 4 weeks. That is all the time left in this session of the MA legislature to pass the
2050 Roadmap bill,
which will update the Global Warming Solutions Act to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and set strong interim targets to ensure we're on track to reduce Massachusetts' emissions at the rate required by the latest science.
This crisis has shown us time and time again that the most vulnerable are hit the hardest. It's time to formally link environmental justice to climate action by codifying much stronger environmental justice language. We need to pass the Roadmap Bill (
H.3983
) and a strong environmental justice bill (
H.4264
) this session. Please ACT NOW to move our Legislature to act this session.
Act Now
- Email this message to your state representative as soon as possible this week and follow-up with a phone call. Feel free to personalize the message. Find your Representative's contact information here.
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Share your priorities with House Rep. Tim Whelan about environmental justice and the
state ROADMAP bill
Thursday, July 16
12:00-12:40 PM
Please join us for a Zoom call with Rep. Whelan to s
hare views about the need to pass the MA Roadmap 2050 bill, local Climate Emergency resolutions, and any environmental justice bills that are up for vote this month. We can't afford to have another legislative session pass without bipartisan passage of climate action bills!
Act Now
- Email Susan Starkey, co-chair, Climate Collaborative's Faith Communities Environmental Network at [email protected] to receive a Zoom invitation. Space is limited.
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Climate Action Network (CAN)
Regional Meeting
Thursday, July 16
6:30-7:30 PM
Local Climate Action Network (CAN) leaders recognize that the Covid-19 pandemic has posed major obstacles to organizing, and that emerging CANs are at various stages of development. Join the call and bring an update about what your town's Climate Action Network is planning for the Fall, and learn from others, notably Yarmouth, Chatham and Wellfleet.
Act Now
- Join the call via this Zoom invitation.
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Pledge to vote for climate and help get out the vote!
Environmental Voter Project helps ensure principled, well-informed and trustworthy leadership in this country
The
Environmental Voter Project
i
s a non-partisan group with a clear mission: to get more environmentalists to vote in every election. “The Environmental Voter Project aims to significantly increase voter demand for environmental leadership by identifying inactive environmentalists and then turning them into consistent activists and voters.” They don’t endorse politicians; instead, they focus on voters.
Act Now
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We cannot fight climate change without being
anti-racist.
So, let's EDUCATE ourselves!
Act Now
And learn more about the connections between racism and climate change through resources shared by
Yale Climate Connections
.
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Resilient communities include
ALL voices
Native tribes are taking the lead - here on Cape Cod and across the nation
“Our Mother Earth feeds us in every way.
She can restore us to our natural state of being when we find ourselves disconnected from
what we think of as real.”
--Ramona Peters, Founder
The Native Land Conservancy
is a a Native-run land conservation group with a mission to preserve healthy landscapes for all living things and help restore land back to its original state wherever possible. It draws upon collective traditional cultural knowledge as indigenous people with generations of direct experience in the woodlands, coastlines, and waterways of New England.
It also aims to highlight the importance of getting indigenous voices into broader conversations about climate change.
"We know the water. We’re a fishing tribe,” said Leslie Jonas, vice-chair of the Native Land Conservancy. “And we’re some of the most vulnerable to losing our homes to the onslaught of climate change.”
“This Cape Cod land and seascape is in our DNA,” she said. “The power of this place is our identity as indigenous people. It’s our connection to our history and our ancestors. It’s our connection to one another. Warming and rising seas will force change not only for indigenous communities but for everyone on the Cape & Islands."
Beyond Cape Cod, native communities across North America are stepping up to adopt climate action plans to protect their way of life. Check out this story published on the
Yale e360
site. With their deep ties to the land and reliance on fishing, hunting, and gathering, indigenous tribes are especially vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.
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New online tool describes climate change-related flood risk
By
Ev
e Zuckoff
•
JUL 2, 2020, WCAI
In Falmouth, Dennis, Harwich, and Wareham, thousands more homes than previously thought could be at risk of flooding by mid-century, according to a new online tool that helps people examine flood risks in their communities.
The tool, called
Flood Factor
,
was created by the First Street Foundation, a group of over 70 academics and experts who compiled the data and created the
website
. The group takes into account a future with stronger storms, higher seas, and more frequent rain. These are just some of the consequences of climate change that are left out of flood assessments by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
“What used to be a 1-in-100-year event, now becomes a 1-in-50, 1-in-20, 1-in-10, once-a-year event," said Christopher Piecuch, an oceanographer at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution...
Worth noting, he said, is that for the year 2020, Flood Factor finds far fewer homes on Cape Cod are at risk of flooding than FEMA suspects. But when climate change impacts are factored in, a completely new picture emerges.
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DYK?
Climate Reality Leadership
offers its leadership certificate ONLINE for the first time this month.
The COVID-19 emergency has shattered our sense of normalcy and forced us to grapple with the kind of world we want – and need – when this crisis is over: A world where we rapidly transition away from fossil fuels to end the climate crisis, safeguard our health, strengthen our communities’ well-being, and ensure justice for those who have been marginalized in the past.
DYK?
Development of a 600-mile
Atlantic Coast Pipeline
has been abandoned,
even though
the
Supreme court ruled
(6/15/20) that the U.S. Forest Service has authority to grant the pipeline right of way under the Appalachian Trail.
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Massachusetts Legislative Resources
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The Climate Action Alerts newsletter is edited and designed by
Fran Schofield
and reported by
Susan Starkey
.
We'd love to hear your thoughts. Please share this action alert with your friends and
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The Cape Cod Climate Change Collaborative is a 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to reach carbon neutrality
—
or net zero
—
on Cape Cod and the Islands of Massachusetts by enhancing communication, collaboration, and activism among organizations, programs, and individuals committed to mitigating the climate crisis.
All donations are tax deductible as allowed by law.
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CAPE COD CLIMATE CHANGE COLLABORATIVE
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