Today is Tuesday August 9 and the Senate has approved an important climate and energy package.

After more than a year of negotiations, Senate Democrats on Sunday passed ambitious legislation aimed at reducing cumulative U.S. greenhouse gas emissions about 40% below 2005 levels by the end of the day. end of the decade.

The $433 Inflation Reduction Act, or IRA, is “the most comprehensive piece of legislation affecting the American people in decades,” Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat.

The bill was drafted in a whirlwind when, after months of painful back and forth, Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia abruptly agreed two weeks ago to back a spending package with more than $369 billion. dollars in clean energy tax credits and other climate finance. and energy programs. Just three days after conservative Democrat Kirsten Sinema of Arizona signed the bill, all 50 Senate Democrats voted in favor, overcoming uniform opposition from 50 House Republicans.

Vice President Kamala Harris voted on Sunday, paving the way for unprecedented investment in everything from solar panels to wind turbines to electric cars. The bill includes half a billion dollars to produce more heat pumps and process more minerals essential to electric car batteries, and about $60 billion of its climate funding is specifically aimed at strengthening environmental justice, for example. example by reducing port pollution.

Independent analyzes predict that the IRA could avoid around 6.3 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions over the next decade and prevent up to 3,894 premature deaths per year by 2030. That the bill contains support for fossil fuel projects – a concession to earn Manchin’s blessing – experts say would prevent 24 tonnes of emissions for every tonne caused by leasing for oil and gas drilling.

“The bill certainly isn’t perfect, but that’s how we were able to do it,” Matt Casale, director of environmental campaigns for the nonprofit American public interest research group, told me. . Meanwhile, May Boeve, executive director of non-profit organization 350.org, called on conservationists to oppose the bill’s fossil fuel provisions. “Communities have been sold into this bill, and I think those same communities are going to fight back extremely powerfully,” she told me. “We must all join them.”

The House of Representatives is expected to pass the IRA on Friday. After that, it will go to President Joe Biden’s office to be signed into law.

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After decades of advocating for climate and clean energy, senator credits young people with victory for environmental justice and a livable future

Washington (August 7, 2022) – Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) – author of the Green New Deal and Waxman-Markey bill of 2009, the only comprehensive climate legislation to ever pass a chamber of Congress – released the following statement after the Senate passed the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. The legislation included Senator Markey’s provisions to create a first-of-its-kind climate bank that will invest in disadvantaged communities, provide funds for environmental justice mapping and community engagement, support environmental quality monitoring local air and introduce a brand new production tax credit. for offshore wind technologies made in the United States, among many other hard-won victories.

“Twelve years ago, I watched my landmark climate legislation pass through the House and die in the Senate. Today, powered by a movement that has never wavered in the fight for a livable future, I joined my fellow Democrats in passing a bill that makes historic investments in climate justice and provides the resources we need to have a chance at winning a livable planet.

“As I know all too well, doing nothing is a political option, but it is not a planetary option. The Inflation Reduction Act is far from everything we wanted to achieve, but it’s the beginning of what we need. Above all, this legislation passes the basic climate test of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, creating millions of new, well-paying union jobs, and beginning the long-awaited process of investing in justice for communities in First line. I am proud that we have not backed down from our commitment to center environmental justice in this agreement, but much more needs to be done to ensure clean air and water for every American and to protect our most vulnerable communities, especially especially those that remain threatened by fossil fuel projects.

“In this legislation, we have also served American workers by energizing the clean energy revolution, with major investments in clean domestic manufacturing for industries like offshore wind. And finally, this legislation is a win for millions of families by reducing health care and prescription drug costs, ensuring big business and tax cheats pay their fair share, and creating new opportunities for workers. and American companies in the clean energy of the 21st century. economy.

“As I voted today, I was overwhelmed with gratitude for the commitment of the intergenerational movement that made this moment possible. This victory has been decades in the making, but it took the hard, hard work of countless young people across the country who refused to give up the fight of their lives. Today is a day of celebration and solidarity as we look forward to the battles ahead. With this momentum at our back, we can’t stop there. There can be no going back to business as usual. When we come together, when we refuse to be rejected, then we can win. The Green New Deal generation is here to stay.

This historic package contains several provisions that Senator Markey has championed in legislation or in petitions to the Senate administration and leadership, including:

• Second. 60103: Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, $20 billion for general climate bank activities, including $8 billion specifically for disadvantaged and low-income communities, corresponding to the National Bank for Climate Change Act. climate
• Second. 60201: Combat urban heat islands, extreme heat, community air monitoring, reduce indoor toxics with the $3 billion Environmental Justice Block Grants, similar to the Environmental Justice Act. Preventing Heat-Related Illness and Death, Environmental Justice Air Quality Monitoring Act, and Removing Toxic Substances from Schools Act
• Second. 60105: $3 million for air quality sensors in low-income and disadvantaged communities under the Environmental Justice Air Quality Monitoring Act
• Second. 60401: $32.5 million for mapping efforts at CEQ, to help comply with the Environmental Justice Mapping and Data Collection Act
• Second. 13102(h): New Eligibility for the Energy-Efficient Electrochromic Glass Tax Credit to Reduce Energy Use in Buildings, Based on the Dynamic Glass Act
• Second. 30001: $500 million for the Defense Production Actto support the efforts requested by Senator Markey in a letter to President Biden
• Second. 40004: $150 million for monitoring, forecasting, and reporting extreme heat and weather information to NOAA, similar to elements of the Prevention of Illnesses and Deaths from HEAT Act
• Second. 70002: $3 billion for USPS clean vehicles, which Senator Markey requested in a letter to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy
• Second. 50151: $2 billion in loans to fund transmission facilities that could build CHARGE lines
• Second. 50152: $760 million for grants to facilitate the establishment of interstate power lines as provided by the CHARGE Act
• Second. 50153: $100 million for inter-regional and offshore wind power transmission planning, modeling and analysis. This would allow the development of offshore wind power and the construction of the transmission networks provided for by the CHARGE law
• Second. 60501: Neighborhood Equity and Access Grants Program: $3 billion for grants to improve walkability, safety and access to affordable transportation, mitigate impacts from surface transportation facilities and to plan and build capacity in disadvantaged and underserved communities. Identification, monitoring and assessment of ambient air quality and transportation-related air pollution are also eligible under this program. These programs are contained in Senator Markey’s Complete Streets Act, the Environmental Justice Air Quality Monitoring Act, and Connecting America’s Active Transportation System Act.

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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says a supplemental environmental assessment for a $700 million gas plant project in Superior failed to fully consider the project’s potential impact on climate change and emissions. of greenhouse gases.

Federal environmental regulators say the Nemadji Trail Energy Center, or NTEC, project could — if built — cause an estimated $2 billion in climate damage from greenhouse gas emissions through 2040. .

The 625-megawatt gas plant would be built along the Nemadji River in Superior by La Crosse-based Dairyland Power, Duluth-based Minnesota Power, and a subsidiary of a North Dakota utility. Dairyland Power is applying for a loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service to help pay for the plant as utilities retire coal-fired plants and switch to renewable energy.

Last year, four organizations, including Clean Wisconsin and the Sierra Club, asked the Rural Utilities Service to conduct an additional environmental assessment of the plant. They argued that the agency failed to fully assess climate impacts as part of an environmental review of the project. This review revealed that the plant would have no significant impact on the environment.

Additional analysis released in June estimated that the project would generate 2.7 million tonnes of carbon emissions each year. However, regulators said the plant would reduce emissions by around 964,000 tonnes a year because it would displace coal-fired power plants and require less frequent ignitions.

But, the EPA said the additional review “does not fully quantify or adequately disclose” the effects of greenhouse gas emissions. The agency recommends that the Rural Utilities Service analyze upstream, construction-related and indirect emissions from the project.

“Federal agencies have a legal obligation to consider direct and indirect impacts, including upstream and downstream emissions caused by the production, processing, transportation, and consumption of project resources,” the report wrote. EPA staff in a July 26 letter.

The Rural Utilities Service said in its supplemental review that the specific sources of natural gas transported for the project are unknown and subject to change.

“For this reason, the environmental impacts of upstream natural gas production are not reasonably foreseeable to be accurately predicted,” the analysis states.

The EPA disputes the agency’s findings. A USDA Rural Development spokesperson said the agency is reviewing the EPA’s comments.

Environmental groups have praised federal environmental regulators for their recommendations, saying it demonstrates support for the Biden administration’s climate goals.

“The time has come to move away from fossil fuels. It’s probably yesterday, so this project shouldn’t go ahead,” said Katie Nekola, attorney for Clean Wisconsin. “If the USDA (Rural Utilities Service) is investing in energy, it should be investing in clean energy – not carbon emitting sources.”

Elizabeth Ward, director of the Sierra Club’s Wisconsin chapter, said conservationists want utilities to cancel plans to build the plant. She said the pending $369 billion climate deal with West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin includes a plan to cut methane emissions.

“I think this just adds to the growing awareness of the seriousness of gas and methane pollution and the fact that we won’t be able to properly address climate change if we don’t do something. about it,” Ward said.

In its comments, the EPA further alleges that the plant failed to analyze potential measures to reduce the effects of carbon emissions through alternative fuels like hydrogen or the use of carbon capture technology. . Federal environmental regulators also say the supplemental assessment failed to properly consider the effects of climate change on the project, as well as its effects on Native American tribes and environmental justice.

The Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa wants to see a closer look at the direct and indirect effects of the project, said Linda Nguyen, the tribe’s environmental manager.

“Like considerations upstream and downstream of the point of extraction, where the fuel is extracted from,” Nguyen said. “And, then also to take into account the effects of climate change, particularly the 500-year flood events, if those happen more frequently, how are we going to prepare for that?”

Beyond that, the tribe would like to see the Rural Utilities Service consider potential impacts to the remains of the Fond du Lac Band ancestors of Lake Superior Chippewa in Minnesota. In 1918, nearly 200 Ojibway graves were removed from the Wisconsin Point burial grounds in Superior, on the western shore of Lake Superior. The remains were reinterred at St. Francis Cemetery in Superior, which is located near the site of the proposed gasworks.

Red Cliff would also like the supplemental environmental assessment to consider indirect effects on murdered and missing Indigenous women, which it believes may be affected by the extraction and transportation of natural gas for the Project.

Nguyen said the USDA had made limited contact with the tribe about its concerns, adding that there had been virtually no consultation from other state and federal agencies authorizing the project.

“It would make sense to us for the regulatory and permitting process to take a pause until meaningful, good-faith consultation can take place,” said Noah Saperstein, the tribe’s environmental justice specialist.

In a statement, Dairyland Power said it has complied and will continue to comply with state and federal permitting and environmental review requirements.

“Dairyland plans for more renewable resources as we work towards low carbon targets. However, renewable energy additions are also increasing the grid’s need for flexible installations capable of delivering reliable, fast-start generation, which will be NTEC’s specialty,” said Katie Thomson, a spokeswoman for Dairyland Power. “It will be a flexible, low-emission and highly efficient natural gas facility that will provide on-demand generation and support the rapid expansion of renewable energy resources.

Thomson added that Dairyland and its partners continue to evaluate technologies that would allow flexibility in the types of fuels used at the Superior gas plant.

The Midcontinent Independent System Operator also submitted comments on the supplemental assessment, urging the Rural Utilities Service to consider the value of the project to ensure reliability. The regional grid operator said 15 states, including Wisconsin, could experience a power shortage of 2,600 megawatts next year.

“Given changes to the generation fleet and potential generation capacity shortfalls, it is imperative that reliable generation resources, such as those at Project NTEC, be recognized for the regional reliability value provided to customers in the region. said Kristina Tridico, an attorney for MISO in a July 25 letter.

Project owners are still reviewing EPA comments and awaiting direction from the Rural Utilities Service, according to Julie Pierce, Minnesota Power’s vice president of strategy and planning. But she stressed that the need for the project has not changed.

“We still see a huge need on our network, especially in what we’re seeing right now with very scarce energy resources as the transformation takes hold, to ensure that we can keep reliable service available to everyone here. in the area,” Pierce said.

The Rural Utilities Department is accepting public comments on the supplemental review until August 23. An EPA spokesperson said it expected to provide comments on the final document.

The Nemadji Trail Energy Center has faced legal challenges in Minnesota and Wisconsin, some of which are still ongoing. The utilities had hoped the facility would be in service by 2025, but Pierce said that date would likely be pushed back as they continue the permitting process.

Wisconsin Public Radio can be heard locally on 91.3 KUWS-FM and wpr.org.

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BAKERSFIELD, California– Community and conservation groups and the United States Bureau of Land Management today reached an agreement to suspend new oil and gas leases on more than one million acres of public land in the Central Valley and the central coast of California.

A separate agreement also requires the Bureau to conduct a new environmental scan before drilling is permitted on 4,000 acres leased in December 2020 in Kern County.

“These agreements require federal officials to disclose the damage caused by fracking to air, water, and communities in central California,” said Liz Jones, an attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity. “For decades, the people and wildlife of this region have paid the price for the dirty extraction of fossil fuels. This must stop and we will do everything we can to ensure that these pauses become permanent bans.”

Today’s agreements resolving the two cases follow two previous successful lawsuits by climate and community groups that have prevented new onshore oil and gas concessions in California from 2012 through 2020.

“Protecting public lands is not just a step forward, but also a way to avoid several steps back,” said Cesar Aguirre, a senior organizer with the Central California Environmental Justice Network. “Using public land to support the oil industry is dangerous for our green spaces and our communities. We must protect our public lands not just for our enjoyment, but for us in order to protect the Earth. Green spaces should not fall victim to oil drilling, especially since extraction sites are the epicenter of the climate crisis. The fewer approved epicenters there are, the less we back off.

In 2019, the Bureau broke the moratorium on leasing and reopened 1.2 million acres of federal public lands to drilling and fracking in Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara counties. , Tulare and Ventura. This happened despite the opposition of 35,000 people and 85 community and advocacy groups.

Environmental justice, conservation and business groups and the state of California have filed lawsuits challenging the management plan, citing the Bureau’s failure to fully assess the significant damages of fracking to communities and l ‘environment.

“Today’s agreement protects the iconic landscapes that define central California, safeguards public health, and brings us closer to a cleaner energy future,” said Jeff Kuyper, executive director of Los Padres ForestWatch. “Fossil fuel extraction has wreaked havoc on our public lands, farms and neighborhoods for far too long. We now have the opportunity to chart a new course for safe and healthy communities across our region.

“This agreement provides a long-awaited reprieve for local communities and neighboring national parks like Sequoia and Kings Canyon, which already face drought, high temperatures and annual wildfires due to climate change, as well as the ‘one of the worst air qualities in the country,’ said Mark Rose, Sierra Nevada program manager with the National Parks Conservation Association. “Opening up more than a million acres for oil and gas drilling in one of the most polluted regions in the country was a blatant move by the Bakersfield Bureau of Land Management under the previous administration, and we are happy to see the Biden administration taking action to protect California’s overstretched communities and environment.

“Central Valley residents and grassroots activists work every day to make their communities healthy, and today they have won a victory in the fight against air and groundwater pollution from oil and gas development. gas,” said Daniel Rossman, assistant California director at the Wilderness Society. “This agreement represents an important step in ensuring that our public lands are managed in a way that puts people, clean air, clean water and climate first over the profits of the fossil fuel industry. .”

“The future of our business depends on the health of the planet, especially the wild places loved by our community,” said Hans Cole, environmental activism manager at Patagonia. “We are grateful to have worked with our NGO partners to demand a comprehensive assessment of the impacts of drilling and hydraulic fracturing on public lands in central California. This is a victory for the environment. »

In December 2020, the Trump administration relied on the same flawed environmental review to auction off seven parcels of public land in Kern County for drilling and fracking. Conservation groups have also challenged the decision. The parcels sold include land located in an Area of ​​Critical Environmental Concern and land adjacent to the Carrizo Plain National Monument.

“Today’s victory is a testament to the grassroots activism of Central Valley communities, who have fought oil and gas leasing in their backyards and supported people, public health, wildlife and climate. “said Nathan Matthews, senior attorney for the Sierra Club. “The temporary halt to drilling on these lease parcels in Kern County is an important step toward halting the impermissible decision to open up new federal Crown lands for oil and gas leasing in the Central Valley, a region already overburdened by the impacts of oil and gas extraction. The Biden administration should put in place a moratorium on leasing oil and gas on federal public lands.

Developed leases would disproportionately harm local residents. According to the US Census Bureau, more than half of Kern County residents are Latinx and nearly 20% of residents live below the poverty line.

“This is a victory not only for the environment and the climate, but also for the people who call Kern County home,” said Hallie Templeton, Legal Director of Friends of the Earth. “It is a shame that the federal government tried to greenlight these leases without fully analyzing the impacts on the communities living nearby. Our victory also secured Spanish translation of relevant documents and live translation at public hearings, so that all stakeholders can truly have a seat at the table.

Further drilling would have intensified air and water pollution in the region, which already has some of the most polluted air in the country and faces water scarcity and drought.

“The Bureau has repeatedly authorized oil and gas development in central California without serious consideration of the serious consequences for local communities or the environment,” said Michelle Ghafar, senior counsel at Earthjustice. “The agency must halt and fully assess the community and environmental impacts of all oil and gas expansion it authorizes on public lands in order to comply with the law.”

Several analyzes also show that climate pollution from fossil fuel developments already in production around the world, if fully developed, would push warming beyond 1.5 degrees Celsius. According to the International Energy Agency, to avoid such warming, investment in new fossil fuel projects, including new federal oil and gas leases, must be halted.

“Fracking on California’s public lands in the midst of our climate and drought crisis has always been a pretty dubious idea and was downright unacceptable without proper environmental review,” said Ann Alexander, senior counsel for the Natural Resources Defense Council. . “It’s crucial that the BLM take the time to assess what opening up this land to drilling would look like for local communities, who are already living with crippling water shortages and some of the worst air in the country.”

Today’s agreements are subject to court approval.

Background

Fossil fuel extraction on federal public lands causes nearly a quarter of greenhouse gas pollution in the United States, worsening the climate and extinction crises and disproportionately harming to Black, Brown, Indigenous and low-wealth communities.

Peer-reviewed scientists estimate that a nationwide federal ban on fossil fuel leasing would reduce carbon emissions by 280 million tons per year, ranking it among the most ambitious federal climate policy proposals in the world. these last years.

Oil and gas extraction uses well pads, gas lines, roads and other infrastructure that destroy habitat for wildlife, including threatened and endangered species. Oil spills, leaks and other damage from drilling have caused immense damage to wildlife and communities. Fracking and drilling also pollute watersheds and waterways that provide drinking water to millions of people.

WASHINGTON (AP) — An unexpected deal reached by Senate Democrats would be the most ambitious action the United States has ever taken to fight global warming and could help President Joe Biden move closer to his pledge to cut half greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, experts said on Thursday, as they considered a massive bill that jump-starts action on climate change weeks after the legislation appeared dead.

The deal would spend nearly $370 billion over 10 years to boost electric vehicles, jump-start renewables like solar and wind, and develop alternative energy sources like hydrogen. The deal stunned lawmakers and activists who had given up hope that legislation could be enacted after West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin said he could not support the measure due to concerns. of inflation.

While analysts were still studying the 725-page bill, the deal announced Wednesday night includes a long-term extension of clean energy tax credits that “could plausibly put the United States on the right path to reduce emissions by 40% by 2030,” said Ben King. , associate director of the Rhodium Group, an independent research firm.

Additional action by the Biden administration and Democratic-controlled states could “help close the rest of the gap to the goal of a 50-52% reduction in emissions by 2030,” it said. said King.

But approval of the bill is far from certain in a 50-50 Senate where the support of every Democrat will be needed to defeat the unanimous Republican opposition. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Arizona, who forced changes to earlier versions of the plan, declined to reveal her position Thursday.

In the tightly divided House, Democrats cannot lose more than four votes and win a possible party vote.

Still, Biden called the bill “historic” and urged swift passage.

“We will improve our energy security and fight the climate crisis – by providing tax credits and investments for energy projects,” he said in a statement, adding that the bill “will create thousands of new jobs and help reduce energy costs in the future”. .”

Environmental groups and Democrats have also welcomed the legislation.

“This is an eleventh-hour reprieve for climate action and clean energy jobs, and America’s greatest legislative moment for climate and energy policy,” said Heather Zichal, CEO of Clean Power, an American clean energy group.

“Passing this bill sends a message to the world that America is leading on climate and sends a message home that we are going to create more great jobs for Americans in this industry,” added Zichal, former energy adviser to President Barack Obama.

Tiernan Sittenfeld, senior vice president of the League of Conservation Voters, summed up her reaction in one word: “Wow!

Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., tweeted that she was “stunned, but in a good way.”

Manchin, who chairs the Senate Energy Committee, insisted he had not changed his mind after telling Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer two weeks ago that he could not support the bill due to inflation concerns.

“There shouldn’t be any surprises. I’ve never left anything in my life,” he told reporters on a Zoom call from West Virginia, where he is recovering from the COVID-19.

Manchin said the bill was an opportunity “to really give us an energy policy with the security that we need for our nation” while bringing down inflation and high gas prices.

The bill, which Manchin dubbed the ‘Inflation Reduction Act of 2022,’ includes $300 billion for deficit reduction, as well as measures to cut prescription drug prices and expand subsidies. to help Americans who buy health insurance themselves.

Along with investments in renewable energy like wind and solar power, the bill includes incentives for consumers to buy energy-efficient appliances like heat pumps and water heaters, electric vehicles and solar panels. rooftop solar panels. The bill creates a tax credit of $4,000 for purchases of used electric vehicles and up to $7,500 for new electric vehicles.

The tax credit includes income limits for buyers and caps on the list prices of new electric vehicles – $80,000 for pickups, SUVs and vans and $55,000 for small vehicles. A limit of $25,000 would be set on used vehicles.

Even with the restrictions, the credits should help boost already-rising electric vehicle sales, said Jessica Caldwell, principal analyst for Edmunds.com. Electric vehicles accounted for about 5% of new vehicle sales in the United States in the first half of the year and are expected to reach up to 37% by 2030.

The bill also invests more than $60 billion in environmental justice priorities, including block grants to address disproportionate environmental and public health harm from pollution and climate change in communities. poor and disadvantaged.

Beverly Wright, executive director of the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, called the bill a step forward, but expressed concern about tax credits for “dirty industries” such as coal, oil and the gas. “We need bolder action to achieve environmental and climate justice for ourselves and future generations,” she said.

The bill would set a levy on excess methane emissions by oil and gas producers, while providing up to $850 million in grants to industry to monitor and reduce methane.

The mix of tax incentives, grants, and other investments in clean energy, transportation, energy storage, home electrification, agriculture, and manufacturing “makes it a real bill on the climate,” said Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii. “The planet is on fire. This is huge progress. Let’s do it.

But not all environmental groups were partying.

The deal includes pledges from Schumer and other Democratic leaders to pursue licensing reforms that Manchin called “essential to unlocking national energy and transmission projects,” including a controversial gas pipeline planned in his State of origin and Virginia. Over 90% of the Mountain Valley pipeline project has been completed, but the project has been delayed by court battles and other issues.

The pipeline should be “top of the heap” for federal approval, Manchin said, and is a good example of why permit reform is needed to speed up energy project approvals. Manchin, a longtime proponent of coal and other fossil fuels, said environmental reviews for such major projects should be concluded within two years, instead of lasting up to 10 years as in current practice.

“Other countries around the world – developed countries – are doing it extremely well, and they are doing it in a very short time. We should be able to do the same,” he said.

Although authorizing the reforms is being considered in separate legislation, the budget deal would require the Home Office to offer at least 2 million acres of public land and 60 million acres of offshore waters for leasing of oil and gas every year. If the Interior fails to offer minimum amounts for lease, the department would not be allowed to grant approvals to any large-scale renewable energy projects on public lands or waters.

The requirement “is a climate suicide pact,” said Brett Hartl, director of government affairs at the Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group.

“It is counterproductive to limit renewable energy development to massive new oil and gas extraction,” Hartl said, adding that the new fossil fuel leasing required under the bill “would fan the flames of disasters.” climatic conditions that are burning our country”.

But an oil industry group called the bill punitive and inflationary.

“We are very concerned about the potential negative impact of this bill on energy prices and American competitiveness, particularly in the midst of a global energy crisis and record inflation,” said Anne Bradbury. , CEO of the American Exploration and Production Council, which represents independent petroleum. and natural gas companies.

———

AP reporters Tom Krisher in Detroit and Drew Costley in Washington contributed to this story.

After denver stories

Nope stories could be found

Massachusetts residents will soon be able to directly contribute funding to support some of the most climate-vulnerable countries in the world.

A bill expected to be passed by the state legislature soon will allow its citizens to voluntarily donate to the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) fund when filing their tax returns.

The fund was created by the UN to help the world’s poorest countries cope with the impacts of climate change. He has funded hundreds of projects worth $1.7 billion.

Absent opposition to the proposal, the bill would make Massachusetts the only subnational jurisdiction where citizens are able to contribute directly to climate finance.

“This is about climate justice on a level that a lot of people haven’t really thought about before,” said Larry Yu, co-chair of the Climate Reality Project Boston Metro chapter, which supports the bill.

“Government bodies at all levels must recognize the huge inequalities of the climate crisis,” he said. Massachusetts has about 17 times more emissions per capita than Bangladesh. “So why shouldn’t the state contribute, especially if federal contributions are lagging behind?”

The idea of ​​subnational actors contributing to climate finance came from across the Atlantic: in Oxford, UK.

Benito Müller, from Oxford University’s Environmental Change Institute and a former adviser to the LDC group of negotiators, has worked on ways to increase the supply of climate finance for developing countries.

“It has become increasingly clear that we need new, innovative sources of contributions to these funds, in addition to traditional donations from national governments,” he told Climate Home.

Funding to help the poorest countries cope with climate impacts and reduce emissions falls far short of what has been promised. The target of mobilizing $100 billion a year by 2020 will not be reached until 2023 and the OECD’s latest assessment of the international supply of climate finance found that only a fifth of the money reaches LDCs .

Chinese Court rules bitcoin mining harms climate

Back in Massachusetts, Peter Fox-Penner, director of Boston University’s Institute for Sustainable Energy, took up the idea with Democratic Sen. Mike Barrett, who sponsored the bill.

Massachusetts taxpayers already have the opportunity to contribute to six charitable causes when filing their taxes. “But none of the six speak to a real need felt by my constituents and that’s climate change,” Barrett said in a campaign video promoting the bill. “If you think it’s important that there are people living today in countries that will be under water 30 years from now, we would give you the opportunity to contribute to the UN LDC Fund.”

Since only government agencies can contribute directly to the LDC Fund, the money must be collected by the Massachusetts government, which can then pass on contributions to its citizens, at no cost to it.

Proponents of the bill agree the move is more symbolic than likely to raise big bucks.

Dorcas Robinson, of Oxfam America, which campaigned for the bill, said it was “a good first step towards climate justice” and part of an effort to close the funding gap climatic.

“This approach can also educate and engage more people on the need for more ambitious climate action,” she told Climate Home.

UK: Leadership candidates in Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss have bad weather records

At a time when President Joe Biden’s landmark climate legislation is stalled in Congress and the US administration has allocated just $1 billion in climate finance for 2022 – a far cry from the $11.4 billion a year pledged by Biden – the bill allows Massachusetts citizens to act directly, Robinson added.

While this does not absolve the federal government of its climate obligations, “part of the intent of state action is to help facilitate federal action, to show the federal government that the public supports doing whatever it takes,” Yu added.

The bill could serve as a model for the other 41 states in the United States that have income taxes. The Oxford Climate Policy Group has already engaged with California lawmakers.

“It would also be a powerful example for subnational bodies overseas,” Yu said.

US Senator James Lankford has denounced a proposal by the National Education Association (NEA) to compile what it calls an “enemies list” of groups who have opposed critical race theory in schools and curricula. similar on the left.

Lankford’s focus on the union comes even as the NEA’s state affiliate touts its influence in the Oklahoma Legislature, particularly with top House education officials representatives from Oklahoma.

During the recent NEA Representative Assembly, union members across the country, including Oklahoma, considered several New Business Items (NBI).

One such measure, NBI 15, called on the union to spend $140,625 to “compile research to create fact sheets on the top 25 organizations that are actively working to diminish students’ right to honesty.” in education, freedom of sexual and gender identity, and teacher autonomy.

This provision would apparently lead the NEA to target various organizations in Oklahoma.

Groups such as the NEA have criticized states for passing laws that restrict the use of critical race theory concepts in classrooms, arguing that it prohibits honest or accurate education. Oklahoma law prohibits teaching students that “one race or sex is inherently superior to another race or sex”, that “an individual, by virtue of his race or sex, is inherently racist, sexist or oppressive, whether consciously or unconsciously”, or that “an individual should be discriminated against or receive adverse treatment solely or in part because of their race or sex”.

Oklahoma also has a law that limits student access to multiple cubicle bathrooms based on gender, rather than allowing access based on self-declared gender identity, and has implemented a similar law for sports competitions.

NBI 15 asked the NEA to investigate and compile data on organizations that support these laws, stating, “These fact sheets should include, but not be limited to, information on sources of funding for these laws. organizations, their leaders within the organizations, their ties to entities that seek to dismantle public education, the organization’s headquarters and chapter locations, characteristics of the campaign strategies employed by these organizations, and ties to known entities seeking to dismantle public education.

The NEA’s proposal was strongly rebuffed by Lankford, R-Oklahoma City and the US Sens. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn.; Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo.; and Steve Daines, R-Mont. In a joint letter sent to NEA President Becky Pringle, the senators said they were “concerned” that the NEA wanted to “create a ‘list of enemies’ of the groups.”

“We are troubled to know that the largest union in the country, with more than 3 million members working in public education, seems more concerned with advancing a ‘social justice’ agenda than meeting the needs of children and students who experience catastrophic learning disabilities,” Lankford and colleagues wrote.

The OAS celebrates the victories of Baker, McBride, Moore and Stanley

Even as Lankford criticized the NEA, the Oklahoma Education Association (OEA), the union’s state affiliate, touts the election of several lawmakers who aligned themselves publicly enough with the union’s agenda to receive union endorsement. .

The OAS highlighted the primary election of state representatives. Rhonda Baker, R-Yukon; Mark McBride, R-Moore; Anthony Moore, R-Clinton; and State Sen. Brenda Stanley, R-Midwest City, with OAS President Katherine Bishop, calling these four lawmakers “big primary wins.”

Oklahoma Ethics Commission records show that the four candidates’ campaigns were funded, in part, by the Oklahoma Education Association through its Children and Public Education Fund (CIPF). The union describes CIPF as “the political action arm of the Oklahoma Education Association.”

On the OAS website, the union states: “When the OAS CIPF and the NEA Fund for Children and Public Education recommend candidates for public office, whether it is a local school board or the election of the President of the United States, candidates are measured by their commitment” to various union causes, including “opposition to vouchers” which allow families to choose from several schools.

Parental support for school choice has increased in Oklahoma and nationally, especially in situations where families object to the inclusion of critical race theory and similar agendas left in the classroom.

Baker and McBride chair the House Common Education Committee and the House Appropriations and Budget Subcommittee on Education, respectively, and both lawmakers have voiced their opposition to and/or killed bills that would expand school choice opportunities for families in the ‘Oklahoma.

The business items submitted to the 2022 NEA Representative Assembly offer a broader insight into the worldview and agenda embraced by lawmakers seeking the union’s endorsement and financial support.

NBI 41 called on the NEA to “take all necessary action to defeat and overturn Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law and other homophobic and anti-transgender laws and attacks nationwide.”

The referenced Florida law – which does not prohibit the use of the word “gay” – instead states that “school district personnel may not discourage or prohibit parental notification and involvement in critical decisions affecting mental health. , emotional or physical or the well-being of a student”. be”, unless there is reason to believe that disclosure “would result in abuse, neglect or neglect”. The legislation also states that “classroom instruction by school staff or third parties about sexual orientation or gender identity may not take place from kindergarten through grade 3 or in a manner that is not appropriate for the age or development of students in accordance with state standards.

NBI 82 also urged the NEA to “recognize the existence in our country of institutional homophobia and transphobia.”

NBI 29 called on the NEA to “publicly denounce current and pending anti-LGBTQ+ legislation,” including working “with state affiliates to challenge state legislatures that pass anti-LGBTQ+ legislation by filing amicus briefs. where appropriate” and assisting “state and local affiliates by actively organizing to defeat anti-LGBTQ+ bills through lobbying efforts.

Oklahoma’s laws on girls’ sports and bathroom access are likely among those targeted by this proposal.

Support for abortion and attacks on states that have restricted abortion, such as Oklahoma, was a recurring theme among the items of cases before the NEA’s Representative Assembly.

NBI 34 called on the union to “stand publicly in defense of abortion and reproductive rights and to encourage members to participate in activities such as rallies and demonstrations, lobbying and political campaigns, educational events and other actions to support the right to abortion, contraception and a person’s decision regarding their health.

The accompanying rationale read, “NEA is a social justice union made up of a majority of women, transgender and non-conforming people who will stand against these attacks on our members, students, families and communities.”

In an article for The 74, Mike Antonucci reported that Item 34 was approved by NEA delegates by a vote of 3,103 to 1,084.

NBI 62 called on the union to “use every means at its disposal to defend reproductive freedom and Roe vs. Wade, including working with affiliates to organize and support marches and rallies for women’s rights and supporting clinic advocacy in cities where abortion clinics are under attack from the right. This proposal also provided for the approval of the enlargement of the Supreme Court of the United States, the removal of the justices of the Supreme Court of the United States who had overturned the deer decision this year and an end to the US Senate filibuster.

A wide range of leftist causes were showcased through various other new NEA business proposals at the convention.

The proposed written rationale for NBI 11, which dealt with recruiting school board candidates, stated: “In the wake of right-wing attacks on diversity, inclusion and equity reform movements in of the school board, it is imperative that people of color have a seat at the table.

NBI 53 called on the NEA to “establish a policy working group to develop strategies to place the intersectionality of climate justice and environmental racism at the center of all relevant conversations and cases.”

NBI 63 asked the NEA to provide sample language for school employment contracts that substituted “biological parent” for “mother” and “non-biological parent” for “father.”

NBI 65 called on the union to “encourage members and others to wear orange every Tuesday in September and October to show support for common sense gun safety laws.”

At least one proposal appears to come from a union member in Oklahoma.

Among other things, NBI 68 called on the union to advocate “for classes that provide time and space to learn how to navigate white supremacist culture and address sexism, homophobia, transphobia, anti-darkness, colorism, etc. The contact listed for this proposal was Yesenie Cano from Oklahoma.

It takes 50 delegates to present a paper to the NEA assembly, but those 50 delegates represent approximately 30,000 NEA members.

Brenda Lebsack, a California teacher who has criticized many left-leaning tendencies in public education, was among those present at the NEA convention. In a column, Lebsack wrote that his “worst fears were confirmed” at the event.

“Public schools are no longer a safe place for families who hold traditional values ​​or for families who believe that gender (as in the male/female binary) is biologically determined,” Lebsack wrote. “It was also apparent that the teachers’ union is a pressure arm of the Democratic Party.”

This year’s CEC Council session builds on the November 2021 North American Leaders Summit, where President López Obrador, President Biden and Prime Minister Trudeau highlighted the CEC’s role in developing a North American climate adaptation work plan.

We are committed to building on the progress of successful CEC grant programs. Through 25 grants valued at more than $3 million, CEC supports climate resilience and COVID-19 recovery at the community level. With the Environmental Justice and Climate Resilience (EJ4Climate) and North American Partnership for Environmental Community Action (NAPECA) grant programs, we are taking action for a healthier environment and rebuilding a prosperous and equitable economy for all.

We expressed a shared commitment to work to empower our citizens with effective solutions for a sustainable future, especially for an equitable recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

In particular, we support actions aimed at preserving the knowledge and practices of indigenous peoples and local communities within the framework of our trilateral model and our regional approach to environmental collaboration.

Our shared vision to lead the way in promoting complementary regional environmental and trade policies is based on our unwavering commitment to sustainable development and environmental justice and equity. Through the CEC, we will continue to drive an ambitious agenda that promotes awareness and participation in environmental governance and stewardship, mobilizes collective action, and facilitates the inclusion of a diverse network of stakeholders and partners.

Community-led environmental education for sustainable development

This year’s theme for the 2022 Council Session, “Community-led environmental education for sustainable development”, focused on activities from across North America that support an understanding and awareness of key environmental concerns, from the perspective of directly affected communities and that work to develop and share best practices for climate change adaptation. The importance of this theme is timely, as it promotes the development of local and context-specific strategies as well as an international cooperative approach to managing and responding to environmental and socio-economic risks across society.

This year’s Council session addressed several topics supporting the development of community projects and initiatives. Our exchange with the Joint Public Advisory Committee, the Traditional Ecological Knowledge Experts Group (TEKEG) and the CEC Secretariat led to a constructive discussion of immediate priorities and urgent needs, including opportunities ranging from solutions specific, innovative and nature-based, to the best use of traditional and local knowledge, including the integration of indigenous perspectives.

As part of the Council session, we were pleased to benefit from the two open public forums, which provided an invaluable space to share information with the public and an opportunity for questions, comments and suggestions from the public on the trilateral work of the CEC. This year’s session included in-person and virtual participation, with broad representation from diverse groups of individuals and interested stakeholders from across North America.

Specifically, in the context of the Council session, we:

• Announced extra $2 million to launch a new round of the EJ4Climate grants program that will focus on projects supporting environmental education to build resilience to climate change. The EJ4Climate grant program supports underserved and vulnerable communities, as well as Indigenous communities, by Canada, Mexicoand United States prepare for climate-related impacts;
• announced a C$750,000 initiative to undertake work to support increased adoption of circular economy approaches with sustainable production and consumption patterns in North America;
• Announcing a large-scale, multi-year initiative totaling 1 million Canadian dollars build community resilience to climate change;
• Contributed CA$300,000 support a JPAC-led initiative that will raise awareness in the three countries to advance sustainable forestry and responsible consumption of wood products;
• approved one CA$300,000 Initiative led by TEKEG to address threats to food security by improving our understanding of traditional indigenous practices and knowledge related to food systems;
• Committed to the winners of the CEC Youth Innovation Challenge 2022 from Canada, Mexico and United States about their innovative and practical solutions to help communities recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. We were impressed with their skills, dedication and vision; and
• Review of progress on the CEC’s current operational plan and the projects we approved last year.

“The government of Mexico presented concrete steps to achieve environmental and social justice for all Mexicans, and we are confident that the trilateral work propelled by the CEC will add to efforts to ensure the well-being of the poorest and most vulnerable sectors. to climate change in North America.”—María Luisa Albores González, from Mexico Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources

“Strong environmental cooperation between our three countries has never been more important. The impacts of climate change, from flooding and coastal erosion to dangerous heat waves and wildfires, pose a real threat to our health, safety and economic security. I am pleased to see that all parties are committed to ensuring that international environmental cooperation remains a top priority. I thank the other members of the CEC Council for supporting community solutions and working to advance sustainable development as we tackle these environmental challenges together. – The Honorable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change

“Advancing environmental justice and equity is essential to addressing the climate crisis both at home and abroad, and I am proud that CEC is centering community engagement as part of our environmental agenda. way to create long-term sustainable solutions for our community environmental challenges come from the grassroots I am committed to working hand-in-hand with communities, young people who demonstrate incredible innovation and our North American partners, to build a healthier and more equitable future for all. Michael S. Regan

To advance

Building on our strengths and our long tradition of facilitating cooperation and promoting public participation, we will strengthen our resolve to modernize and increase the effectiveness of our regional efforts. We will strive to expand our collaboration by promoting awareness of issues of common concern as well as solutions for a more sustainable future, sharing knowledge in support of evidence-based decision-making and contributing to the capacity building in communities through North America.

We affirm the urgent need to address the devastating effects of climate change on the well-being of our communities. We underscore the unequivocal threat of this crisis, ranging from extreme weather events, such as floods, wildfires and drought, to the implications for our food systems, for our continent’s biodiversity and for vulnerable and underserved communities. , all of which have environmental consequences, economic and societal impacts.

We underscore the importance of promoting collective action, including on innovation and green growth, to ensure clean air, land and water for present and future generations, and to protect our ecosystems and the rich flora and fauna found in our common environment.

The path to a healthier environment and meaningful progress towards sustainable development in our region depends on our collective determination to succeed, and persistence in finding and promoting solutions that protect the environment, support sustainable use and conserving our natural resources, and maximizing the socio-economic benefits of empowering our communities.

As we prepare to welcome a new Director General for the CEC, we extend our thanks to Mr. Richard A. Morgan for his invaluable services and contributions to the mission of the CEC during his three-year tenure as Director General of the CEC. We take this opportunity to express our sincere appreciation to him for his leadership, vision and tireless work on behalf of the CEC.

We look forward to continuing our work on regional environmental cooperation and will meet next year at the CEC Council session in British Columbia, Canada.

SOURCE Commission for Environmental Cooperation

For more information: Patrick Tonissen at [email protected] or Vedika Daswani to [email protected]

Ohen Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng tweeted on the eve of the Jubilee long weekend that the government was giving the green light to a new oil and gas project in the North Sea, ministers were likely hoping the news would spread without too much noise.

But less than 24 hours later, hundreds of protesters, furious that the government was planning to expand fossil fuel infrastructure amid a climate crisis, took to the streets across the UK to voice their objections.

They blocked the entrance to government offices in Edinburgh, throwing red paint and scrawling messages – including ‘blood on your hands’ – on windows and walls. In London, campaigners chanted ‘we will win’ as they gathered outside the Business Secretary’s office in Westminster to demand the government reverse its decision.

The speed and scale of the response to the announcement provides insight into one of the most dynamic and diverse climate movements in the UK: the campaign to halt all offshore oil and gas expansion from North.

Lauren MacDonald, 21, one of the campaign’s leading figures, said when the announcement was made, a whole network of campaign groups sprang into action.

“It was at 4.45pm just before the start of a holiday weekend, and there were a few of us working together and someone said, ‘Oh, did you see that?’ – and that was it. There was so much action in the group chats and it all took off… people all over the country started to organize.

The campaign to stop further oil and gas extraction in the North Sea is made up of dozens of different groups, from young climate activists to energy poverty campaigners, Church of England figures to doctors and lawyers, from trade unionists to direct action environmentalists, large NGOs like Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth to small community and neighborhood organizations.

He has his work cut out for him. Last month the Committee on Climate Change (CCC), the government’s own statutory advisers, raised concerns that ministers were backtracking on the legally binding commitment to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions. by 2050, noting “major policy failures” and “little evidence of delivery”. .

Tessa Khan, director of campaign group Uplift, who is one of those involved in the movement to stop new fossil fuel developments in the North Sea, said the fight was urgent and “unprecedented”. [in the UK] in its breadth and diversity. She added that a growing number of climate justice groups are now linking the climate crisis to broader issues of poverty and social justice.

“If you look at the range of voices and organizations, think tanks and others that are involved, it’s a real testament to the strength of this movement and the determination of the people involved,” she said. .

Last year campaigners from Stop Cambo, the precursor to the current campaign, called for a major scalp when Shell pulled out of the controversial Cambo oilfield off Shetland. At the time, it was seen by some as a likely ‘death blow’ to further oil and gas expansion off Britain’s coast.

But the war in Ukraine and the cost of living crisis have changed the political landscape. Fossil fuel companies backed by the British government are again pushing ahead with new extraction plans, arguing the move will help energy security and higher energy bills.

Many experts have dismissed these arguments, saying that the UK’s reliance on increasingly expensive fossil fuels is at the root of energy security issues as well as the cost of living crisis, without talk about climate degradation.

They also point out that any new fossil fuel generation will not come on stream for years – and even then it would be sold on international markets, making virtually no difference to UK energy bills.

Khan said more and more people were realizing the fossil fuel companies’ arguments and that the UK government was not piling up. “The industry seems to be in the limelight right now compared to last year due to this major geopolitical development but, in fact, I think it is more vulnerable than ever because people are waking up .”

Warnings about the climate impact of increased fossil fuel production are becoming increasingly urgent. A recent scientific study has found that far from opening up new fossil fuel production, almost half of existing sites need to be closed early if global warming is to be limited to 1.5°C, the internationally agreed target. to avoid climate catastrophe.

Last year, the International Energy Agency, considered a conservative institution, called for an end to all new oil, gas and coal development. And UN Secretary-General António Guterres said fossil fuel companies and the banks that financed them “have humanity at their throats”, telling governments there could be no expansion fossil fuels if the world was to avoid catastrophe.

Khan said it was against this backdrop that the movement to halt the British government’s plans for expansion in the North Sea was gaining momentum.

“The evidence is overwhelming for anyone who considers this … the next two years are crucial, and I think we are going to hear more and more voices acknowledging that there is something fundamentally wrong with our prioritization of oil and gas by relation to renewable energy at the moment.”

Steven Croft, the Bishop of Oxford, is one such disparate voice. Earlier this year, he was among more than 500 church leaders who signed a letter to the government calling for a halt to new fossil fuel developments and increased support for renewable energy and energy efficiency to combat against climate and cost of living crises.

Speaking to the Guardian, he said the church had an important role to play in the climate justice movement by bringing people together and offering moral leadership and hope. “We have to face the reality of where we are, but at the same time we have to realize that all is not lost and together we can still make a difference.”

Croft said Christians’ faith in God’s purpose and recognition of the potential of human beings to work together to solve huge problems offered comfort in the face of the climate crisis. “We are not defeated and overwhelmed by the problems we face. But in fact, we can stand up together to fight them. The church can provide the passion and commitment we need to face the reality we face.

The government-announced Jackdaw development is at the center of the campaign at the moment, but campaigners say the fight is much wider. A May study found that several large fossil fuel projects in the UK had been approved since Cop26 in November last year, with another 50 projects in the pipeline.

Overall, the picture is even more urgent. A Guardian investigation last month found the world’s biggest fossil fuel companies were quietly planning 195 ‘carbon bombs’ – huge oil and gas projects that would push the climate beyond internationally agreed temperature limits , with catastrophic global impacts.

But activists remain fearless. In the coming months, they plan to use a wide range of tactics, from direct action to church interventions, from legal challenges by large NGOs, to mass mobilizations by anti-poverty activists and trade unions.

MacDonald, a Stop Cambo campaign leader, says they are ready to fight and urges everyone to get involved.

“I want to implore everyone to take action against oil and gas. Whether your motivation is the impact it is having on poverty levels in this country, or the dire consequences people around the world are feeling at cause of climate change, you can act as an individual, as part of your local church, as part of a trade union… it doesn’t matter The next few years are absolutely crucial and we need everyone world.

By SILE MOLONEY

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), in partnership with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), announced Thursday, July 7 the extension of the public comment period for the draft disadvantaged communities criteria. submitting comments has been extended until August 5.

New York’s Climate Justice Working Group (CJWG), comprised of representatives from environmental justice groups across the state and representatives from several state agencies, developed the draft Community Identification Criteria Disadvantaged, which was released for public review and comment in March. The state held a total of 11 public hearings: four in-person hearings and seven virtual hearings, as well as three public education sessions, on the draft criteria.

All New Yorkers are encouraged to provide their input on the criteria that officials believe will help advance environmental justice and guide climate programs and projects aimed at reducing air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. greenhouse effect that alter the climate, to provide opportunities for economic development and to target clean energy and energy efficiency. investments.

To view the draft criteria, list and interactive map of disadvantaged communities, visit the Climate Act website. Written comments may be submitted through August 5, via the online public comment form, by email to [email protected], or via US Mail Attn: Draft DAC Comments, NYS DEC , Attn. Office of Environmental Justice, 625 Broadway, 14^e Floor, Albany, NY 12233.

Visit the Climate Act website for more information on the criteria and for more information on the Climate Justice Task Force.

To better understand the concepts of ecofeminism and environmental ethics, we must first realize that climate change is not only an environmental issue, but also a political and social issue. These concepts take on more importance in the face of the current climate crisis and are more relevant than ever when we realize that the root causes (capitalism, patriarchy, etc.) of climate change are also at the origin of climate change. deep injustices.

—

Women – already a vulnerable group in society – will become even more so as a result of climate change. In its 2020 report Forced out by climate change, the international solidarity association CARE emphasizes that in developing countries, women are particularly affected: they are the ones who provide support and supplies of food, water and fuel to their families. As climate change exacerbates supplies, their work and tasks are becoming increasingly difficult. There is no doubt that women are, and will continue to be in the future, extremely vulnerable to the effects of the climate crisis and environmental degradation.

The latest IPCC report confirmed the responsibility of human activities in climate change, as well as the need to radically change our production and consumption patterns to achieve a low-carbon economy. Those responsible for this environmental damage should also be responsible for ensuring a healthy and sustainable environment for present and future generations. Environmental ethics – in accordance with Jonas’ review of this concept – fits in perfectly with the logic since it advocates profound changes in the economic sphere in terms of production and consumption methods. These are the only means that would allow us to preserve our environment and not compromise the resources it offers us and on which humans depend.

Women have a key role to play in making this intergenerational equity a reality. “We women have been generations of pioneers and leaders in environmental conservation. Our traditional knowledge, know-how and skills are needed more than ever to build resilience to climate impacts and reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” said Khadidjath Zimé Arouna – a young woman beneficiary of the program Green Amazons program. Indeed, women are at the forefront of their communities when it comes to finding effective and sustainable solutions to mitigate the impacts of the climate crisis on themselves as well as the well-being of their families. .

Ecofeminism is a current of environmental ethics that has gained momentum in recent years due to the climate crisis. She places the question of gender relations and domination in the approach to environmental protection at the center of her thinking. This current, which considers that there is a link between the exploitation of nature and that of women, advocates principles such as equity (equitable distribution of benefits and burdens), “nothing for us without us” (the closer to the problem are closer to the solutions), and collective access (our movements must be flexible and nuanced in how we engage with each other). These principles take us back to the essence of climate justice which, according to the Mary Robinson Foundation, “connects human rights and development to achieve a people-centred approach, protecting the rights of the most vulnerable and sharing the burdens and benefits of climate change and its consequences. impacts in an equitable and just manner”. Thus, it can be said that promoting ecofeminism is therefore promoting climate justice.

The policies, democratic institutions and major organizations at the international level, essential to achieving climate justice, must therefore better take into account the experiences of women, invest in women leaders and activists who are at the forefront of the ecofeminist movement and create a supportive environment allowing them to freely express their thoughts and opinions.

You might also like: Gender and climate justice: why we need more women in leadership positions in Hong Kong

Deputy Leader of the Greens and Spokesperson for International Aid and Global Justice, Senator Mehreen Faruqi, today wrote to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to encourage the Australian Government to back Vanuatu’s bid to seek advice advisory to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the rights of the present and the future. generations to protect from climate change.

Vanuatu’s initiative would be discussed at the Pacific Islands Forum, which Prime Minister Albanese is attending, next week.

Senator Faruqi said:

“Australia’s support for the initiative would demonstrate that the new government wants to be a climate leader rather than a climate laggard. Importantly, it would also prove to our Pacific neighbors that we have listened to them and are genuinely committed to climate justice.

“Those least responsible for the climate crisis, including countries like Vanuatu, face the worst impacts of climate change.

“An advisory opinion from the ICJ could put climate justice and human rights at the forefront of the climate change discussion and spur countries to take stronger climate action.

“Wealthy, colonial countries in the North, including Australia, bear overwhelming responsibility for causing and driving the climate crisis. It is imperative that Australia advocates for global climate justice.

In June, the White House selected the NIEHS Environmental Career Worker Training Program (ECWTP) to participate in the new Justice40 Initiativea bold effort to promote economic opportunity in underserved communities while advancing environmental justice.

Initiative aims to provide 40% of proceeds from federal investments in climate change, clean energy, clean transportation, affordable housing, water infrastructure, workforce development and neighborhood clean-up disadvantaged.

ECWTP is well placed to contribute immediately to this effort.

For nearly three decades, the program has helped unemployed, underemployed, homeless, or formerly incarcerated people find good jobs and become productive members of society. They get careers in environmental cleanup, construction, hazardous waste disposal, and emergency response.

To date, more than 13,500 people have been trained by ECWTP grant recipients, which include community colleges, historically black colleges and universities, and apprenticeship programs, among others. The program maintained a high placement rate of 70%. The ECWTP is funded by appropriations from the Department of the Interior, Environment and related agencies for NIEHS Superfund-related activities.

Strengthening Families, Adding Economic Value

“I am proud that ECWTP has been selected to participate in the new Justice40 initiative,” said Sharon Beard, director of the NIEHS worker training program, which helped launch ECWTP in the 1990s.

“Over the past 27 years, our grantees have done incredible work providing hands-on worker training and career opportunities in underserved areas,” she said. “These efforts give individuals the skills they need to create better lives for themselves and their families, and it strengthens the communities where participants live and work.”

“ECWTP has truly transformed communities for the better by providing in-depth job training,” said Beard, featured here at a 2014 NIEHS Worker Training Program meeting. “It has improved the lives of trainees and their families.”

A 2015 economic impact report showed that between 1995 and 2013, ECWTP generated $1.79 billion in value for communities across the country, or about $100 million each year. Given that the program received $3.5 million in federal funding each year, this kind of return on investment is a significant achievement.

Beyond these economic benefits, there are stories of inspiration.

“I’m a Mason,” said an ECWTP graduate who joined the program as a single mother. “I make a difference. Without the training at ECWTP and the efforts of all the training coordinators, I would not be where I always wanted to be today. I don’t have a job, I rather have a career. I can say that I am certified and experienced to go on a job site and do what I was trained to do. I know the security risks. Chemicals, slips, trips, falls, confined spaces, oxygen levels, air hazards, how to lay the perfect brick, and how to behave as a tradeswoman.

Learn more about the program and the many underserved communities that have benefited from it by reading this fact sheet.

I’m sitting across from climate change activist DeeDee Belmares at the Cake Thieves bakery on the East Side as she reflects on the social changes she’s seen in the local queer community.

Our conversation takes place two weeks after Pride Month, and Belmares, 52, shares his journey as an advocate for cleaner air.

True to her LGBTQ activist roots, she wears a rainbow-colored watch strap. This prompts me to ask her what Pride Month means to her.

“Being able to do whatever I want and need to do, whether professionally or personally, as a queer mother, a queer partner, a queer activist,” she says. “Just being able to be myself.

I ask Belmares what impact marriage equality had on her 22-year relationship when the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in 2015.

“Well, my partner and I have a 19-year-old son,” she explains. “We did all the legal preparation for ourselves before marriage equality. Once we did that [and] once marriage equality passed, it was as if nothing had changed. We were still the same people as before, and getting married wasn’t going to change that. I’m glad people are able to do that, but for us it wasn’t necessary for our relationship.”

Belmares is the former co-chair of the Community Alliance for a United San Antonio (CAUSA), the coalition that worked to pass the 2013 non-discrimination ordinance.

“It was hard work juggling the child and the activism, but we had to take the time to get the NDO through,” she says. “It was actually my first step into the activist world.”

At the central level, why is it important to fight for equality?

“Because people are dying,” she replies almost instantly. “People are being fired. People are being abused. People are getting murdered because of who they are. It’s a life or death situation for [LGBTQ+ people]I think.”

Although there is a season for activism, Belmares notes that there is also a time for being a mother, a partner, and a human. For her, that moment came soon after the adoption of the NDO.

“I had to withdraw from the coalition because my father fell ill [and] my mother had just been diagnosed with dementia,” she says. “If you can’t take care of your own family, you can’t take care of everyone else. My parents were sick for a long time.”

In 2018, during one of his frequent trips to Port Aransas, Belmares made two life-changing observations.

“On the way to Corpus you see the refineries and all this smoke coming out of them. I’m at the beach and I see the wells outside on the ocean and the tankers coming in and out of the port with LNG – from liquid natural gas. I thought to myself, ‘This can’t be good.'”

She continues, “Then that was…probably Trump’s first State of the Union address where he called coal ‘beautiful and safe’. Man, I just lost my shit! I said, “What is he talking about? This is absolutely false, dangerous and deadly! A friend of mine worked for an organization called the Environmental Defense Fund. They were looking for a time-organizing role in San Antonio, and she said to me, ‘Do you want to come on board?’ I was like, ‘Damn, yeah I want to come on board.’

Coincidentally, Belmares joined the movement on Earth Day 2018.

“At the time, San Antonio needed to embrace the climate action and adaptation plan. Also, it’s been a very long struggle here in San Antonio. [to get] CPS Energy is closing its last coal plant,” she says. “That’s what it looked like then – and it still looks like that. The climate plan has been adopted, but we are still trying to convince CPS Energy to close its coal plant. »

Belmares – who is a member of CPS Energy’s rate advisory committee – says the city-owned utility is actively looking for alternatives to the plant, which is one of the area’s biggest sources of air pollution.

I ask him what his vision of the San Antonio air is.

“Let it be clean and breathable for everyone, especially those most vulnerable to pollution,” she says. “These are the poor, people without health insurance, children, the elderly, people with respiratory diseases and asthma.”

Do you think this will happen in your life?

She laughs.

“You have to,” she said. “I will definitely keep fighting for it.”

Belmares is now a climate justice organizer for Public Citizen, a Washington, DC-based watchdog organization Given her deep involvement in environmental causes, I ask her if she still considers herself an LGBTQ+ activist.

“I consider myself a climate justice activist who happens to be a queer,” she explains after a contemplative pause.

“Here in San Antonio, gay activists do the heavy lifting,” she adds of the climate activist community. “I believe that climate change is the overriding issue of our time. Climate change affects some people more, such as black and brown communities. This coal plant is in the southern part of the city. It is not to Stone Oak.”

How does that make you feel?

“It hurts me, you know? I grew up on the South Side. My parents are buried in the cemetery right where this refinery is.

Belmares attended St. Leo Catholic School, although she admits she is no longer a Catholic.

“I think church is boring,” she said nonchalantly. “I got tired of praying for others and nothing ever happened. I never used to pray for myself, really. I always used to pray for others and things haven’t changed, you know? I don’t think God hears prayer. , or if there is a God, he doesn’t listen. The more I see things happening to children, the more I feel realize that we can only save ourselves.

What would you say to a passionate young activist who has just joined the climate community?

“Take care of yourself. Take breaks. Talk to everyone and keep challenging the power,” she says.

What did you learn about yourself through this work?

“That I learned working with different types of people,” she says. “I’ve always thought that to do this job, you have to work with people that you’re aligned with — like, politically, only progressives will do this job. And, on the whole, that’s true…but I You can’t forget that there are people who aren’t necessarily like you who care about the same issues.”

Finally, I ask her what she would say to a young person seeing Pride for the first time this year.

“Have fun! Enjoy! Bring someone with you to do the same, because you could really help that person a lot.”

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Around the world, the state of environmental stress is unprecedented. As research and activism on “environmental justice” points out, the poorest and most marginalized communities are particularly vulnerable to environmental harm. This is particularly true for the populations of the countries of the South. The role of illicit drugs in relation to these environmental stresses is underexplored territory. Yet, as this report will show, drugs, and the policy responses to them, are an environmental problem.

This disconnection between anti-drug policy and environmental policy is largely the result of the institutional compartmentalization of the drug issue in the field of delinquency and repression, with little openness to other spheres related to the environment or sustainable development. . References to the environment in drug policy have remained rare and limited in scope.

It is slowly changing. A resolution on alternative development adopted by the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) – the central drug policy-making body within the United Nations system – in March 2022 paid particular attention to the protection of the environment, encouraging “Member States to examine and address, within the framework of alternative development efforts, the harmful impact of the illicit cultivation of plants used for the production of narcotics on the environment, which can lead to deforestation and soil and water pollution, and to seize the opportunities offered by alternative development in terms of the conservation and sustainable use of the environment and the protection of biodiversity”. And for the first time this year, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) World Drug Report 2022 includes a special brochure on the link between illicit drugs and the environment.

This report, which draws on TNI’s original research, fieldwork, interviews, and extensive literature review, aims to add to this emerging debate in the following ways:

• By examining the drug-environment nexus in relation to trajectories of agrarian change and the implications for rural workers, particularly in the Global South. This is in recognition of the fact that what are currently considered illicit crops under the international drug control regime often have a long history of traditional cultivation and use by rural communities and indigenous peoples around the world. . In addition to long-standing traditional uses, many others depend on the cultivation of illicit crops for their economic production and social reproduction activities. At the same time, these rural populations are often the most exposed to the risk of poverty, marginalization, discrimination and criminalization, while being the least represented in the policy-making spaces and in the decisions that affect them. Raising the voices and perspectives of these growers of illicit crops (or growers of banned plants) and the communities in which they are embedded is therefore a key objective of this report.
• By critically interrogating both drug policy and development responses in relation to the drug-environment nexus. From toxic eradication campaigns that spray the ground with chemicals, to interdiction efforts that push illicit cultivation into ever more fragile ecosystems, drug control policy has been responsible, directly or indirectly, for a number of number of serious environmental damages. Furthermore, crop substitution programs that ignore the fact that for millions of peasants, small farmers, landless people and migrant labour, drug crops are a development alternative to trade regimes and investment from which they are excluded or negatively integrated will ultimately fail. .
• By bringing knowledge and literature from, among others, the field of political ecology and critical agrarian studies and applying it to the question of drugs and the environment, it is hoped that new exchanges between these two spheres quite distinct until now may be stimulated. . Drugs are an environmental problem. By making this case, it is hoped that policy makers, researchers, civil society organizations and social movements from both fields can be encouraged to engage in a process of mutual learning and knowledge exchange. Through this bridging, new forms of solidarity, academic activism, and policy change can coalesce around, for example, movements for climate justice, agroecology, or peasant and indigenous rights.

Key points and recommendations

• The impacts of so-called “forbidden plants” or illicit drug crops – mainly coca, opium poppy and cannabis – on the environment are a matter of concern. depending on the particular context, they have, to varying degrees, been associated with soil erosion, land degradation, desertification, water depletion, deforestation, biodiversity loss and increased greenhouse gas emissions, pollution and waste
• Despite this, drugs are rarely seen as an environmental problem. There is no mention of drugs in any of the recent global agreements on climate or biodiversity and in drug policy circles environmental issues have, until very recently, been debated only on the fringes. This disconnect stems from an institutional sequestration of drugs from crime and law enforcement.
• Greater coordination between UNODC, UNDP, UNEP, as well as a leading role for the task force supporting the implementation of the UN common position on drug policy, can help foster UN system-wide coherence, support the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and global commitments to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions
• Greater synergies can be forged by assessing drug policy against a set of cross-cutting climate and environmental indicators, in addition to those developed around human rights, public health, sustainable development, etc human rights governance instruments such as the CFS Guidelines on Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in rural areas
• The development of an environmentally sustainable drug policy must stem from an approach centered on environmental justice: the recognition that the poorest and most marginalized communities, often differentiated along lines of class, gender and breed, are particularly susceptible to environmental damage. This is particularly true for the populations of the countries of the South
• In the realm of drug policy, this means that those who depend on the cultivation of illicit crops for their economic survival and social reproduction must be at the heart of decision-making processes that affect them. It also means that instead of focusing on the persecution/criminalization of people based on particular uses of plants, the underlying political and economic systems of oppression, discrimination and injustice that ultimately result in account of environmental damage must be examined.
• Critically interrogating drug control policies can bring important environmental benefits. All forms of forced eradication – whether by aerial fumigation or manual means – must end. These have proven to be environmentally destructive and ultimately counterproductive, given the well-known “balloon effect” whereby the crop simply moves to other, often more fragile areas on the ecological plan. meanwhile, the logic of the ban may also be called into question from an environmental point of view given the number of hectares of land “wasted” due to the destruction of seized products and the inevitable replanting that results.
• Ultimately, the power of drug trafficking organizations can best be challenged by removing their source of profits from prohibition while strengthening forms of access to and control over community resources to help counter the influence of these non-state actors, with special protections in place. for environmental and human rights defenders.
• In the realm of alternative development, there must be a clear red line drawn that the replacement of illicit crops with industrial monocultures or other large agribusiness complexes should not be considered an AD agenda. Rather, AD programs should actively seek to promote and strengthen sustainable production systems based on agroecology and regenerative practices combined with a comprehensive land reform program that supports territorial markets and more equitable access and control. natural resources (land, water, seeds, forests, etc.).
• While there are opportunities in advertising programs to tap into sources of climate finance, there are also risks associated with market-based conservation mechanisms and natural capital accounting that promote the commodification of nature to the detriment pro-poor outcomes. Public policies should reward models of agrarian environmental justice and community conservation strategies based on the principles of co-creation between man and nature.
• Ongoing drug policy reforms, particularly in relation to cannabis, open up the possibility of developing forward-thinking strategies to address issues of environmental sustainability. The high carbon footprint associated with growing cannabis indoors means that where possible, priority should be given to growing outdoors, especially in traditional growing countries in the South.
• Setting environmental standards through, for example, organic certification (including peer-to-peer forms of certification), eco-labelling, designation systems and fair trade can and should all be taken into account to ensure environmental sustainability in regulated markets. In addition, public agricultural research and seed banks should seek to conserve genetic diversity and local varieties.

Chocolate is everywhere you look. Different varieties are stacked on large plates in a display case. There’s cranberry white alongside peanut-salt whole milk and refined dark chocolate with cardamom, clove and pepper. Chocolatier Franz Kässer makes the delights and sells them in his store in Garmisch-Partenkirchen. But the customers have been gone for weeks. “We are wasting a lot of time,” Kässer says angrily.

Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a spa town in Upper Bavaria that lives mainly from tourism. Skiers come in winter, hikers in summer. “The tourist beds are occupied, but for three weeks it has been police, security guards and people preparing for the G7 summit,” Kässer says, explaining his problem. “Of course they don’t shop with us or eat with us, because they are served differently.”

And it’s not just him, he adds: “I went out to eat last night, there were three people sitting in the restaurant, where normally everything is booming at this time of year.”

Even the schools are closed

At least 18,000 police have been deployed to Garmisch-Partenkirchen and Elmau, the small village above the resort town in a hard-to-reach valley, to provide security for the G7 summit. Police cars are lined up everywhere and helicopters repeatedly slam through the air.

Heads of state and government are hermetically sealed at Schloss Elmau, a secluded luxury spa retreat, while in Garmisch the media center has been set up for the approximately 3,000 journalists who have arrived. Hundreds of manhole covers have been sealed with white stickers, no trash cans are allowed on the streets, schools are closed and students are forced to take their lessons online.

Police checkpoints have been set up at all access roads within a 16 kilometer (10 mile) radius. Motorists must stop, personal data is checked. The plan is to spot and screen troublemakers and potentially violent protesters before they reach Garmisch.

Lentil Stew with the Chancellor

“Many activists do not come because of the controls, they do not want to be searched and are also afraid of repression”, explains Tatjana Söding, who, together with Christopher Olk, pitched her tent in a protest camp on a meadow in the edge of Garmisch. Söding has just completed his master’s degree in human ecology, Olk is preparing a doctorate in international political economy. Both belong to the “Stop G7 Elmau” alliance, which plans to hold several protest rallies throughout the summit.

“Seven heads of state pursue their own interests and their decisions affect the world population, which has no right to have a say”, criticizes Olk. “They talk about climate justice, but their own specific political and economic interests are at the forefront, which does not allow for real climate justice at all.”

It was pouring rain when Söding and Olk arrived on Friday evening. “It was a bit uncomfortable.” Now barefoot and in summer clothes, the two stand in the sun on the lawn and watch more and more tents being erected at the protest camp. Authorities approved 750 protesters.

What would the two say if they had the opportunity to speak with Chancellor Olaf Scholz in person? “I would invite him to eat a lentil stew with us and then we would talk about how we can make Germany part of a just world,” Olk says, laughing in disbelief. But talking to the Chancellor isn’t on the cards.

Instead, it was suggested to the activists that 50 of them be driven to Elmau, where they could demonstrate out of sight of heads of state and government, under guard. But they find this unacceptable. “Freedom of movement and assembly will be severely restricted,” criticizes Söding.

Tatjana Söding and Christopher Olk have joined the protest camp

Will the protest remain peaceful?

The plan is for the protesters to march through the town at the bottom of Garmisch, but they also want to try to advance through the mountain forest to Elmau in a so-called “star march”, in which several groups converge to an agreed point. from different directions. The police know this and have already announced that the activists will not go far. “There are a lot of police in Garmisch, and there’s a reason for that,” Upper Bavarian Police Chief Manfred Hauser said when presenting the security concept to the media.

Garmisch business people hope the protests will remain peaceful. “Many residents have left for a few days,” explains chocolatier Kässer. “But we had already planned all the holidays here in store when we learned six months ago that a G7 summit was to be held in Elmau for the second time.” The last time, in 2015, he added, they had been warned a year and a half in advance and could have planned differently: “I can’t send people on vacation now.”

Some 18,000 police have been deployed in Elmau and Garmisch-Partenkirchen

G7 always up to date?

Kässer is certain that there will be no third G7 summit here. “Never again G7,” he said fervently in his voice. “People here in town would disagree with that, and that’s supported by some local council members.” The chocolatier criticizes that the whole effort is not even up to date. “We’re supposed to heat less and take fewer showers, and here they’re wasting energy with hundreds of police cars driving around and helicopters doing training flights for weeks on end.”

Kässer does not deny that meetings of Heads of State and Government are necessary. “But please, not in this format,” he said. “There are hundreds of people in every entourage. Why don’t they meet their closest circle of advisors, and everyone else can meet on the internet these days, right?”

There are also places where such meetings could be better held, he said. “At (US Air Force Base) Ramstein, a NATO summit was organized at short notice with important personalities, and the American president was able to land directly on the site with his Airforce One. You do not have to impose all this to anyone these days.”

Two Northwestern University undergraduates – Isabella Twocrow and Kadin Mills – have received national recognition from the Morris K. and Stewart L. Udall Foundation, a federal agency that supports studies in fields related to the environment, tribal public policy and Native American health care.

Twocrow is the first-ever recipient of Northwestern’s Native American Congressional Internship from Udall. The Udall Foundation and the Native Nations Institute for Leadership, Management and Policy select 11 students each year to spend a summer in Washington, D.C. Students in the program work alongside Native American and Indigenous policymakers to gain hands-on experience with the federal legislative process to understand the relationship between Native tribes and the US federal government.

Mills was awarded the 2022 Udall Undergraduate Scholarship, which is awarded to students for leadership, public service, and commitment to issues related to Native American nations or the environment. Northwestern’s first-ever Indigenous recipient of the Udall Scholarship, Mills will dedicate the $7,000 scholarship towards tuition, housing and other expenses while completing her studies. In August, Mills will also join fellow Udall Scholars and alumni at the annual Udall Scholars Orientation in Arizona, where he will meet with community leaders in the fields of environment, tribal health care and governance. .

Both Twocrow and Mills are Native American students at Northwestern, where they are very active in the Center for Native American and Indigenous Research (CNAIR) and the Native American and Indigenous Student Alliance (NAISA).

“These awards are the most prestigious of their kind,” said Patty Loew, founding director of CNAIR and professor in Medill’s School of Journalism, Media and Integrated Marketing Communications. “We are so proud of them. Their selection is a good reflection of Northwestern’s efforts to promote Native American research, teaching and outreach.

Isabelle Two crows

A member of the Ho-Chunk Nation and co-chair of NAISA, Twocrow is a junior, studying learning and organizational change in the School of Education and Social Policy, with a minor in Native American and Indigenous Studies. After graduation, Twocrow plans to work in education policy to help reform tribal education systems, ensuring that Native American and Indigenous students have equitable access to education. Higher Education. She discovered this passion in high school, while navigating the college application process. Now, Twocrow works in undergraduate admissions as a student outreach coordinator for Native American and Indigenous students and as a project management aide in the Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion, where she is currently co-designing a “Native 101” workshop for the campus community. .

“It is important to defend our sovereignty and our treaty rights. I want to protect the rights of our people to land, water, health care and education.” —Isabelle Twocrow

“I am honored and privileged to have received this internship in DC with the Udall Foundation and look forward to exploring, experimenting and learning more about tribal public policy,” said Twocrow. “I am beyond grateful to have this opportunity and cannot thank you enough for the support I have received here at Northwestern – from NAISA, CNAIR, and other Native American and Indigenous teachers.”

With the Udall internship, she hopes to gain research and networking skills while working for the federal government. These skills will help prepare him for a future career in law and politics.

“With my North West degree and the knowledge I gained from the Udall internship, I hope to serve tribal nations, including my own, the Ho-Chunk Nation,” Twocrow said. “It is important to defend our sovereignty and our treaty rights. I want to protect the rights of our people to land, water, health care and education. The education of our young people, in the Indigenous way, is essential to rebuilding and sustaining our Indigenous nations, and I hope my work at Northwestern and DC can help in any way.”

Kadin Windmills

The first descendant of the Keweenaw Bay Indian community, Mills is a sophomore in journalism at Medill and Native American studies at Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences. He is passionate about social and climate justice – and advancing these causes through literature, storytelling and culture. On campus, Mills writes for the Daily Northwestern and serves as communications manager for NAISA.

When Mills learned he had been awarded the Udall Fellowship, he and Loew were visiting the Poarch Creek Reservation in Mobile, Alabama as part of a National Science Foundation-funded climate change project.

“When I learned that I was chosen, we shouted with joy in the court.” — Mills of Kadin

“I’m thrilled to have been chosen for the Udall Award in Michigan,” Mills said. “When I learned that I had been chosen, we cheered in the courtyard of the Tribal Administration buildings of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians. I will always remember that and the lunch we had in celebration. From then on Patty introduced me as the “New Udall Scholar”. I thank the Northwestern Indigenous community and my loved ones for pushing me and believing in me.

In her spare time, Mills enjoys engaging in the arts – including singing, musical theatre, playing the saxophone, sewing and bead making. He is committed to pursuing a career related to tribal public policy.

FIRST ON FOX: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has spent $4.3 million from President Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package on environmental justice and climate change programs promoting activities such as tree planting, “pruning workshops” and achieving “greater acceptance of trees” in cities.

Last April, the EPA announced it was awarding $200,000 each to dozens of projects “focused on the impacts of COVID-19, as well as climate and disaster resilience” in “underserved communities.” through its Environmental Justice Collaborative Problem Solving Cooperative Agreement Program (EJCPS). . The program awarded a total of 34 organizations using $4.3 million in Biden’s U.S. Bailout Act (ARP) funds, as well as $2.5 million from the EPA’s annual credit for environmental justice.

An Indianapolis-based organization called Keep Indianapolis Beautiful received $200,000 for an initiative called “Greening Urban Neighborhoods” that included educating residents about “the benefits of trees” and increasing “the acceptance of trees in the city“.

Another organization, Tree New Mexico, based in New Mexico, received funding from ARP to plant trees in the “underserved area of ​​Albuquerque’s southeast quadrant.” This project included “pruning workshops” and “tree care education” with the goal of having more residents become “citizen tree stewards committed to caring for newly planted trees and older trees” and reduce the “heat island effect” that occurs in urbanized areas. areas.

THE EPA HAS SPENT $7M FROM THE U.S. BAILOUT FUND TO REPLACE DIESEL SCHOOL BUSES WITH ELECTRIC BUSES

The Houston-based Black United Fund of Texas has received ARP funds through the EPA program for a project to develop “a shipping container farm, residential gardens, green technology, planting of native trees and habitats, workforce development and public education”.

According to the EPA’s website, St. Paul, Minn.-based Hourcar also received ARP-funded EJCPS funds to launch “Evie carshare, a new all-electric carsharing program featuring 150 shared electric vehicles supported by 70 curbside charging stations, with a focus on serving low-income and BIPOC communities.”

The USASpending.gov website, which documents government spending, says the $200,000 in ARP funds for the grant were “compulsory.”

Just before Democrats passed the ARP in March 2021, without any Republican support, Biden described every allocation of funds in the legislation as essential.

“We need Congress to pass my US bailout plan which addresses the immediate crisis – the emergency,” the president said at the time. “Now the critics are saying my plan is too big, it’s $1.9 trillion. So that’s too much. Well, let me ask them: what would they make me cut? What would they make me omit?

US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris deliver a speech on the US bailout in the South Court Auditorium of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building July 15, 2021 in Washington, DC.
(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Today, the ARP faces increasing scrutiny for its role in the ongoing inflation crisis, which hit 8.6% last month. Some economists, including former economic advisers to the Obama administration, have accused the ARP of overheating the economy.

“With our nation in the $30 trillion hole and money hemorrhaging federally, news like this should outrage all taxpayers,” Rep. Ralph Norman, RS, told Fox. .C., who sits on the House Committee on Oversight and Reform. News Digital in a statement. “These examples are not proper functions of government and are just the tip of the iceberg. The EPA – and I would argue every agency – must be held accountable for how it uses public funds.”

Fox News Digital previously reported that the EPA also used $5.25 million in ARP funds through its Environmental Justice Small Grants Program in 2021 to award grants to projects that had next to nothing. to do with the fight against COVID-19 or the effects of the pandemic.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has spent $4.3 million from President Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package on environmental justice and climate change programs, including including “pruning workshops”.
(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

One of the nonprofits that received a grant under this program was Massachusetts-based organization Speak for the Trees for a project using “storytelling” and “tree walks.” , among other techniques, aimed at “increasing awareness and dialogue around inequitable tree canopy cover.” and its implications for the health of residents living in [environmental justice] communities. »

Clean Air Carolina, based in Charlotte, North Carolina, received a grant for a project to install a Level 2 electric vehicle public charging station and create an educational video as a way for “members of the community to get involved in mitigating air pollution”.

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In a statement provided to Fox News Digital on Wednesday evening, the EPA said all EJCPS program applications “have gone through a rigorous scoring and approval process to ensure that project activities and objectives are consistent with statutory authorities and to the language and intent of the ARP”.

“All applications selected for funding have been reviewed by EPA’s Office of General Counsel,” the statement said. “The EJ Grants Program funds community projects. A fundamental tenet of environmental justice is that communities speak for themselves and are best placed to know how to resolve the challenges they face. The EJ Grants Program, now with nearly three decades of experience delivering effective grants to communities across the country, has a reputation for investing taxpayer dollars responsibly and in places that meet community needs and support longer-term goals of community revitalization.

The Philippines has slammed what it describes as ‘delaying tactics’ by several key nations that have hampered the UN’s work for the mandated global program on climate change and called for action that would benefit vulnerable countries. .

Climate Change Commission Secretary Robert Borje says key issues such as financing climate loss and damage and improving ways to access technology and build capacity have not gained traction despite previous declarations of commitments by parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). .

“As key stakeholders engage in appalling delaying tactics disguised as discussions, we are undermining global trust in multilateralism and eroding the confidence of our people and young people in the work we do,” Borje said during the talk. the closing plenary of the 56th session of the Subsidiary. Organs (SB56) of the UNFCCC in Bonn, Germany.

He expressed concern about the effect of inaction on global confidence in climate change work and called for more “meaningful results”. He also cited the need to “unlock” climate finance for the developing world.

Borje said the Philippines remains committed to engaging all parties and called on nations to anchor their work and actions on climate justice ahead of COP 27 to be held in November in Egypt.

President Duterte said last April that industrialized countries should pay for the damage caused by their carbon emissions as poorer countries like the Philippines suffer from the impact of climate change.

The climate crisis is deepening, but it seems governments around the world, big and small, are still busy passing the buck. While the UN calls all nations to action, the poorest are left behind, waiting for the big economies to deliver on their promises and do their fair share. Everyone is basically accusing each other of stalling while the world burns.

When will the governments of the world pull together and work in unison to prevent one of the greatest threats facing humanity?*

Extreme heat has its moment in the sun. This year’s headlines have been as relentless as the temperatures: ‘Spain suffers record heat wave’; “Devastating heat wave in South Asia”; “Texas Breaks Heat Record”; and “Can you even still call the deadly heat ‘extreme’?”

This global coverage has drawn attention to a colossal challenge that will only grow in scale and severity. Nowhere are cooling measures more urgent than in our cities, where streets, buildings, industries and vehicles could raise temperatures by a catastrophic 4°C by the end of the century, putting the most vulnerable people world’s poor at risk.

The search for solutions is already underway, but it must be stepped up. At last year’s UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), the Cool Coalition – a partnership of 120 organizations led by the UN Environment Program and including RMI – released a comprehensive guide to sustainable district cooling. And in Davos last month, the Cool Coalition and the Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Center launched an online heat action platform that makes it easy for policymakers and planners to identify the most relevant to them.

To stay ahead of the problem, city leaders will need to adopt many measures, including smarter urban design. To draw fresh air into a city, planners and developers can orient streets and building heights with prevailing winds and develop more strategically placed green and blue spaces. They can also create more shaded suburban corridors for pedestrians and cyclists, and plan more diverse mixed-use developments that lend themselves to efficient neighborhood cooling systems (and less heat-emitting automobile traffic).

Planting more trees in concrete jungles could also make a significant difference. Urban forests and parks can be 7°C cooler than treeless neighborhoods, and a tree-lined street can be 3°C cooler than a treeless street. Cities from Freetown and Athens to Melbourne and Milan are already reaping the benefits of using urban nature as a cooling mechanism – one that also improves stormwater management, sequesters carbon, increases biodiversity and provides recreation.

Another common sense measure is to resurface our cities so that they reject heat rather than absorb it. The typical asphalt road absorbs up to 95% of the sunlight that falls on it, and concrete roads and sidewalks absorb up to 75%. These hot surfaces disproportionately harm outside workers, those without personal vehicles, and the poor who live in neighborhoods dominated by these materials. By using lighter colored building materials that increase the reflectivity of these surfaces by just 10%, we can reduce their temperatures by up to 5°C, a potentially life-saving difference.

Better buildings are also essential. Cooling a poorly designed building with air conditioning is like running a faucet through a leaky bucket. In contrast, good building design can completely minimize the need for air conditioning. For example, light colored reflective “cold roofs” are inexpensive and can reject 90% of the thermal energy that lands on them, making a huge difference even where other measures are not viable, as in informal housing.

Passive building efficiency measures such as orientation, insulation, reflection, shading and ventilation are not new. But we need to enact more ambitious building codes and performance standards, and invest in the institutional capacity to enforce them.

In addition, air conditioning, where it is used, can be made more climate-friendly. As it stands, it is both a key enabler of productivity and a major source of urban heat and emissions. By 2050, air conditioners could consume as much energy as the combined economies of the United States, Germany and Japan today.

The most common refrigerant they use is nearly 2,000 times more potent than carbon dioxide as a global warming agent. Accordingly, regulators must set standards that exclude the worst-performing units from the market; and the public and private sectors must work together on marketing campaigns, financing solutions and incentives to entice buyers to adopt climate-friendly products.

City planners and developers should also consider district cooling systems, which serve many buildings with a single cooling installation. Since these systems can offer economies of scale without heating city air as much as individual air conditioning units, they should be the default technology choice in large new commercial and mixed-use developments, townships and the campuses.

Finally, policymakers in some cities should consider various last-resort options to protect the most vulnerable. In India, people joke that the reason Bollywood movies are so long is that the filmmakers want to give people the opportunity to spend four hours in an air-conditioned room. But, as this spring’s devastating heat wave showed, the value of cool space is no longer a joke.

Cities in areas prone to extreme heat will need to invest in a range of common spaces that are accessible to the most vulnerable when heat and humidity exceed survival thresholds. These can be cinemas, shopping malls, schools, places of worship, swimming pools, parks, transit centers or dedicated cooling centers. Emergency power generation, potable water, medical supplies, heat and health education materials, and trained personnel would make these spaces even more useful in an emergency.

Extreme heat is arguably the biggest climate justice issue we face. Of the 1.7 billion city dwellers currently exposed to extreme heat, most live in fast-growing cities in poor countries, and most lack access to the air-conditioned buildings and cars that people in advanced economies hold for granted. Addressing these inequalities should be a top global priority.

The Cool Coalition is kicking off in India, where the government has already developed the world’s first national cooling action plan, and where state and city leaders are deeply committed to addressing the threat of extreme heat.

But there is still a lot to do. The launch of the US$10 billion Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet has shown that the international community is still able to rally behind major efforts to mitigate and adapt to change. climatic. The deployment of renewable energies and the improvement of access to clean energy remain essential objectives. But building thermal resilience and implementing sustainable cooling solutions have also become pressing priorities. We need to take action now to help our hottest cities cool down.

– Rushad Nanavatty is Managing Director of the Urban Transformation Program at RMI. Sheila Aggarwal-Khan is Director of the Economics Division of the United Nations Environment Programme. Copyright: Project Syndicate, 2022.www.project-syndicate.org