I am concerned about the chances of a national Carbon Tax passage in the next few years, and think that a commitment that a significant number of UUA members could make in the short term would be to fund a ‘voluntary’ carbon tax. If we were to assume that 10 families in each of the approx. 1000 UU congregations could commit to this, we would have 10,000 voluntary members. My family’s carbon footprint from auto fuel and home energy usage is about 16 metric tons a year, and if this were taxed at $20/ton, our share would be about $320 per year. Multiplied by 10,000 families, this voluntary tax would amount to $3,200,000 per year that could be used for clean energy initiatives to be determined, such as clean energy projects for the poor (funding solar panels for Habitat Homes is an example), international clean energy studies (helping to fund RMI’s Reinventing Fire in China is an example), and any number of other very important initiatives. I suggest that this be administered either through the UUSC, the UUA, or jointly.

I am joining gofossilfree.org’s call for divestment actions across the globe on Feb. 13 + 14. I have a small demonstration scheduled in mid-Florida. Are there any of you who would like to join in? The title of the action is ‘Divest Stranded Assets’.

I am a member of the UU congregation of Lake County, FL, and also the UU church of greater Lansing, MI, and at both, I am a member of the Social Justice Committees.

Bob Cleveland

989-627-1212

clevelandbc@yahoo.com

I currently do surveys every Saturday for about an hour and a half with a couple of friends. The survey is a personal way to engage people and see what they know about the state of the planet, what they know about where they get their electricity, find out if they know what fracking is, whether they know about a global water shortage, do they feel climate change is happening, and what do they see as a solution. I also give them a flyer that has many ideas, documentaries, and resources about the environment and how to reduce their impact on the planet. I can share this flyer and encourage many people to do this same thing. People are not informed about how big a crisis this really is. It is not only climate change but resource depletion that we are up against. We need to change our lifestyle now or we are not going to make it. Please help if you can. Simply changing a light bulb is not going to do it, and our leaders are certainly not to be counted on at all.

Sometimes it all seems so overwhelming. Ho.w can I possibly make any difference at all, once I’ve made my personal life as sustainable as possible? I think the key to that dilemma is to find a piece of the climate crisis challenge that I can work on and give it my best. That includes being with others who are also working on my piece of the problem. So…I am chair of our Climate Justice Committee, and we have a committed group of dragon slayers (those trying to stop the destruction of the fossil fuel industries) and chalice bearers (those trying to bring hope to our congregation and our community). I’m going to do a workshop at GA 2015 on how to work with an investment committee to prepare for a vote to divest from fossil fuels. I’m sure more opportunities will present themselves!

We need to acknowledge climate change as a product of fossil fuels-oil, gas, coal emissions- and start pushing for renewables-wind, solar, geothermal. Then our economy will grow and our world become more sustainable.

The Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship, in Bellingham WA, will be lighting our Chalice for Lighting the Way as part of our Post Totem Pole Journey: Our Shared Responsibility event on December 4th. For more information on the Totem Pole Journey check out: http://totempolejourney.com/

We need to promote alternative clean energy so that it can compete with dirty fossil fuels. The more that it is seen, the more likely others will invest. The technology exists, the market is expanding, prices are dropping and we can keep it moving forward.

Vegetarian meal options at events

make the crucial connection between climate and diet a cornerstone of our offerings for action

At the Unitarian Universalist Church of Sarasota (FL), we are looking into the relationship between animal agriculture and climate change. We are holding a Forum on this topic and showing the film “Cowspiracy” in January. The role of methane has been underemphasized by all the major climate action campaigns to date, in favor of focusing on carbon dioxide . Shall we update ours with this opportunity? We all eat.

The Unitarian Universalists of San Mateo (CA) are going on a Low Carbon Diet. In 2015, we will be calculating our individual and familial carbon footprints and then taking specific, measurable actions to lower our pollution impact over 6 months in four areas: transportation, food, home, and shopping. Join us!

If other congregations are doing something similar, please get in touch so we can share ideas and resources.

The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of San Miguel de Allende (the only fellowship in Mexico) is launching a community read of Naomi Klein’s book “This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs the Climate” during the winter months when many visitors from the US and Canada are here. Our aim is to better educate them (and ourselves) about climate change so we can act more effectively to mitigate it. We have invited several other community organizations to join us in this common read.

I wish I saw more about preventing the worst consequences of global warming here. The climate disruption global warming causes will only escalate more rapidly if we do not attack the causes, especially greenhouse gas pollution, and do it urgently.


I like the statement, “Our grounding in climate justice means we recognize the central role inequality plays in the current crisis. Marginalized communities—low-income, people of color, Native, and/or non-industrialized—are often the first to experience the effects of climate change and environmental degradation. We envision a future where the most vulnerable are protected from these dire consequences.”


But if we do not prioritize rooting out the physical causes of this crisis our words are hollow because we only contribute to making climate warping worse. We have a responsibility to work on prevention, sometimes called mitigation, as well as adaptation. But we will never be able to adapt to the results of global warming with no end.


It is also clear that this will be difficult. Some of the most powerful companies on earth – the fossil fuel companies – have the extraction and and burning of ancient carbon as their main reason to exist. It is us against them, with life in the balance, which is a tough position for many of us.


The climates of our childhoods are gone, never to return for generations, if at all. Here in Nebraska, we already know that the heat and drought and heartache of 2012 will be the new normal, probably by the 2040s. (http://bit.ly/UnlCCImplications2014)


As a religious denomination we UUs have a history in the fight for justice that we need to bring fully to bear on building this movement. I shudder to think what awaits if we do not act to stop the process as well to care for those most injured by the consequences of our society’s prior inaction.

Three years ago we added 40 solar PV panels to our rooftop and replaced our natural gas furnace with a geoexchange heat pump. We no longer burn ancient hydrocarbons for our residential energy needs AND we harvest enough solar energy to drive 10,000 miles / year in our plug-in hybrid (Chevy Volt). See “Living without Fire- just the Sun and the Earth” by Milt Hetrick (available at Amazon). That’s a bottom up approach to climate change. We joined Citizens Climate Lobby (CCL) to advocate for putting a price on carbon pollution – that’s a top down approach to climate change. We sold our fossil fuel industry stock and re-invested in solar/geothermal/electric vehicle to stop buying the fossil fuel industry’s products – that’s called Total Divestment inspired by the UUA 2014 Fossil Fuel Divestment Resolution. (We stopped feeding the fossil fuel monster because there are other sources of inexhaustible energy).

Have Naomi Klein author of This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. The Climate give a talk at this years GA

Have courage, commit2respond, and speak out against the #1 cause of climate change, the animal industry. Encourage all activists to be traveling the road toward vegan eating.

Try to share rides with spouse for trips of 30 min. or more, support new regional bus system by actually riding it, even though scheduling may be challenging. Enjoy walking, taking the time for it, in summer, fall, spring (winter?).

Research online voting and emailing and share the results. For example, several advocacy sites provide a way to post comments or email our support of some legislation or issue. How effective is it? And where are these really going when we “add our name” to the list of those in support? Should we be able to provide a count of our members who support change on an issue or are in favor of legislation? Or do we direct members to a particular site and trust?

I went to the About page and noticed that many of the people in the photo have gray hair like me. Climate Change will directly affect today’s children and yet there are no children or people without gray hair featured in the About page. Hmm. Perhaps it’s possible to include those who will be affected most by climate change???

Make sure everyone is learning about the latest website greenworldrising.org Its avery good movement and us 99% need to stand behind it 100%, Thank you.

homes need to generate their own power and heat. we must break the dependency with corporations and countries that use energy to control.

We each have our own personal favorite ideas. However, as citizens we can be most effective by all pulling in the same direction.


The Citizens Climate Lobby presents the best ideas I have seen for citizens to organize themselves, and make a real difference for climate change. CCL advocates building a citizen groundswell of support for an economically powerful and politically feasible approach, a revenue-neutral carbon fee, by making the case where it counts the most: in Washington, DC.


I hope Commit2Respond will include broad participation and collaboration with Citizens Climate Lobby. Check them out at citizensclimatelobby.org!

(see my post below. I neglected to include my own climate activism web site, www.climateambition.com)