Get Real. Take Action.
What steps will YOU take?
Our planet is in crisis. Global climate change along with the warming and acidification of the oceans are already taking place, and because of the inaction of the past, we need to begin to reduce greenhouse gases around 8% annually in the United States and other developed nations. This assumes that developing nations begin curbing emissions soon after the developed world.
This is a huge task ahead of the global community. There are seemingly insurmountable odds in the form of apathy and despair, corporate and financial interests, and a political system in gridlock. The small incremental reductions of the past and in current proposals are not going to be sufficient. We must meet the level of crisis we face with an equally significant level of ACTION. Both personal and political change is necessary to usher in the systemic changes needed in our society.
Our name, the Great March for Climate Action, often prompts people to ask us what actions should be taken or supported. Our community, both on the ground and virtually, represent a wide arrange of perspectives on the solutions, yet we agree on the following:
*Leave it in the ground – enough fossil fueling
*We demand clean, green, renewable energy
*Shrink our individual and community footprints now
*Listen to and connect with nature and all communities
*Change our mindset to change our world
But, what does that really mean?
Leave fossil fuels in the ground: We support actions to stop extreme energy extraction such as fracking, mountaintop coal removal, tar sands development, liquefied natural gas (LNG) and further exploitation of oil, coal, and gas in sensitive ecosystems including the Arctic. The time has come to retire fossil fuels from our everyday lives, and we must demand that exploration of new fossil fuels stop immediately. They have served a purpose in our past, and we respectfully call for an end to their widespread use. Additionally, we support actions to stop the expansion of the fossil fuel infrastructure that moves fuels across the country and overseas. We must halt proposed pipelines, coal fired power plants, LNG and coal export terminals, etc. The business model of extracting fossil fuels here and shipping them overseas is neither acceptable nor defensible.
Clean, green, renewable energy: We must drastically reduce the use of fossil fuels by turning to renewable energy as well as adopting energy conservation and efficiency techniques. We support solar, wind and geothermal, and through distributed sources of renewable energy this can happen with the least amount of ecological impact. We maintain that a wholesale reduction in energy use is the only 100% clean energy available, and we cannot rely on clean energy technology only. Similarly, we cannot rely on “bridge fuels” such as natural gas which leaks methane at extraction and transport.
Shrink your footprint NOW: We believe that individuals must consider substantial changes in their everyday lives. We believe in moving away from a consumerist, materialistic mindset, and then moving towards localized economies, local foods and cooperative living. Personal choices in what we eat (consider eating less meat, a vegetarian or vegan diet, and simply know where your food comes from), where we live and how we transport ourselves are the pieces of our lives that need to change. Many of these life changes will be new and make us feel uncomfortable at first, but we see moving to a simpler way of living on our shared planet as key to addressing the climate crisis. We contend that this world is brighter, more just and more sustainable than the one we occupy now.
Listen to and connect with nature and all communities: We must listen to those voices and communities traditionally ignored. Environmental and intergenerational justice is an important part of the transition to a post climate crisis world. We must learn to build connections across communities most vulnerable and most exploited. Also, the rights of nature must be considered as paramount to the survival of all.
Change our mindset: We see a true paradigm shift or change in consciousness the absolute end goal. We need to change the way we relate to ourselves, to each other and to the natural world. While there is not one true way to live, the current way of living is killing us and our planet. Profits-over-people, consumer capitalism must be transformed. The old goals of runaway growth and the current consume-and-throw-away economy have put people and our planet in peril.
What now?
We call on all individuals to take the most significant actions possible, and we also encourage people to challenge themselves to do what is unfamiliar and uncomfortable. Actions taken by working within the current political system and also nonviolent direct actions must all be an option. Science tells us we only have a few years to make these across-the-board changes. These actions have to be taken now, and we simply cannot wait for our politicians or those in power to make them for us. We have to be louder in our call for climate action. We must choose these changes, and we have to change ourselves in the process. CLIMATE CAN’T WAIT!
Nationwide
Comment on the Clean Power Plant Proposed Rule
Deadline EXTENDED to December 1, 2014!
We think the proposed EPA regulations on existing coal power plants are not strong enough, so we encourage you to send comments to the EPA.
Iowa
Credo petition: Tell Gov. Branstad: Stop the Iowa Bakken Oil Pipeline
From the petition:
Governor Branstad, the Iowa Bakken Oil Pipeline will be a climate disaster. Building it could harm Iowa’s water quality, contribute to catastrophic climate change, and threaten the property rights of everyday Iowans across the state. You must find that this pipeline is not in the public interest and reject it.
Nebraska
Bold Nebraska petition on oil train and pipeline transparency
Tell Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman:
“Order the disclosure of Nebraska oil train traffic and pipeline contents, and create a statewide emergency response plan so our first responders are adequately trained and prepared for oil train explosions and pipeline spills.”