| Introduction to CCL – October 18 Welcome to the new members of Citizens’ Climate Lobby who have signed up this summer at local tabling events or on the national website. The floods in Pakistan and the hurricane in Florida demonstrate that climate change is already posing grave dangers and all of us need to act. We are grateful that you have chosen CCL as the means by which you can make a difference on climate policy. But you probably would like to know more about how CCL operates and what opportunities are available to you in our chapter. Our regular monthly meeting on October 18 will be an introduction to CCL. All are invited: –new members –veterans who have never been through the Climate Advocate Training –anybody who wants to learn more about CCL and pricing carbon Come explore the philosophy behind CCL, our special lobbying focus, and what we do at the local level. Our interactive meeting will be held in person at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church. If you cannot be there in person, a zoom connection will also be available. Details below. I’m looking forward to seeing you as we all make a renewed commitment to fight climate change. Sylvia Neely Monthly Meeting Tuesday, October 18, 2022 5:30pm – 7pm Our meeting will take place at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in downtown State College. A Zoom option is available for those unable to attend in person. In Person Room 325 at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church 208 West Foster Avenue, State College, PA For directions and parking information, click here. Via Zoom Write to PaStateCollege@citizensclimatelobby.org for zoom information. Also in this newsletter: News from our chapter College Township resolution Conference opportunities Important climate news in the media Review of a book on Russia and climate change CCL members in action Sylvia Neely’s OpEd on the looming global food crisis and its connection to climate change was published on September 11 in the Centre Daily Times: “Long-Term Solutions Needed to Food Shortage Problems.” John Swisher wrote a letter to the editor exploring the financial implications of climate change and the heavy costs that it will generate. “Who is paying for the climate crisis?” appeared on September 21 in the Centre Daily Times. Dick Jones and Sylvia Neely demonstrated the EnRoads climate simulator at the Adult Forum at University Baptist and Brethren Church on Sunday morning, September 25. Please contact us if your organization or group would like to have a presentation on this innovative and interactive way of exploring climate policy options. State College Borough hosted Lion Bash again this year on Thursday, September 8th, 5:00 pm – 8:00pm, along Allen St. This event introduces Penn State students to the opportunities available in our community. CCL had a table, and asked people to join us to lobby congress to pass legislation to reduce CO2 emissions, through writing a letter to their member of Congress, signing up for the monthly calling campaign, and/or joining our chapter. Diane Mills organized the tabling and Grace Oram and Sylvia Neely helped out at the event. .  Our monthly meeting in September featured a special presentation from Grace Oram and Helen Kenion on how to talk to everybody about climate change. A lively discussion followed. They also led us in celebration of the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act and treated us to a delicious cake.  One of the founding principles of Citizens’ Climate Lobby is that we should strive for bipartisan support for climate action. A recent CCL blog written by Don Addu explains the power of bipartisanship by looking at the measures passed during the current Congressional session. “Bipartisan Climate Lessons from the 117th Congress.” Community News College Township passes climate resolution We would like to thank the members of the College Township Council (Rich Francke, Carla Stilson, Paul Takac, Dustin Best, and Eric Bernier) for passing a resolution in support of climate action. The resolution makes a good case for the importance of strong national legislation. Our local governments are implementing measures to reduce greenhouse gasses. They understand that local endeavors will be a lot easier with the support of measures at the national level. Here is the text of the resolution which was passed on July 21, 2022. Climate Conference at Dickinson College Registration is now open to attend, in-person or via livestream, Science-Based Choices for Climate Action, Insights from the IPCC 6th Assessment Report, hosted by Dickinson College 24-26 October in Carlisle, PA. Both in-person attendance and the livestream are free, but registration is required. Click here for more information. Shale Conference League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania will be holding their annual conference on Shale and health on Tuesday, Nov. 15 and Wednesday, Nov. 16. The conference is free, but registration is required. Click here for more information. ICYMI – In Case You Missed It Article on Antarctica ice sheets Penn State Professor Richard Alley was quoted in an article on “Inside Climate News” describing a new research paper on ice sheets in Antarctica that finds potential for greater sea-level rise than previously predicted. “Uncertainties about sea level rise are “largely one-sided,” said Penn State University geoscientist Richard Alley, who was not involved in the new research, meaning there hasn’t been any recent research suggesting that ice melt and sea level rise won’t be as bad as thought. The new paper focuses on one of the big uncertainties—what happens at the base of the ice sheet, he said.” The article is entitled “Where Thick Ice Sheets in Antarctica Meet the Ground, Small Changes Could Have Big Consequences.” Kigali amendment passes in Senate “With broad bipartisan support, the Senate on Wednesday ratified by a 69-27 vote a global treaty that would sharply limit the emissions of super-pollutants that frequently leak from air conditioners and other types of refrigeration.” This is the beginning of an article that appeared in the Washington Post of September 21 about this important global agreement, an amendment to the 1987 Montreal Protocol that reduced ozone-depleting gasses. The Post noted that “The treaty, which had to win support of at least two-thirds of the Senate, brought together an unusual coalition of supporters including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers as well as the Natural Resources Defense Council.” Book Review by Mark Neely Thane Gustafson, Klimat: Russia in the Age of Climate Change (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2021). 321 pages. Maps. If you are travelling to Russia anytime soon (and I realize that you most likely are not), do not expect to see houses with solar panels on their roofs in the cities or electric cars on the roads. Russia has very few of either. Most people live in apartment blocks and there are few intercity roads for cars or trucks to travel on. Trains are standard modes of intercity transportation. If you are visiting family or friends, you’ll likely find their houses stuffy and overheated, as though burning fuels was a matter of little concern. Your first impression would be the correct one: Russia is a country little concerned about climate change and even less active in mitigating it. As is often the case, the irony is that Russians should be more concerned than most of us. The country is warming “two-and-a-half times faster than . . . the rest of the world (p. 14).” “Two-thirds of Russian territory is founded on permafrost,” which is “an unstable mixture of sand, ice, and methane” (pp. 5, 160). Melting would release great volumes of methane and have an effect on towns somewhat like an earthquake. This fact-filled and vivid book reveals exactly what Russia’s problem is: it is a petrostate with an economy utterly dependent on the demand for hydrocarbons in the rest of the world. This economic situation overwhelms serious considerations of climate threat in Russia, and it is out of the country’s control. (To read the rest of the review click here) |
| If you have ideas, comments, or just want to talk about climate, please feel free to contact Sylvia Neely (PaStateCollege@citizensclimatelobby.org) or Lisa Richardson (twitter@statecollegeccl.org). We would love to hear from you. |