Time for Leagues to talk about the Climate Crisis

Everyone talks about the weather, but no one does anything…
 
Well, we now know that we have to do something about the climate, and that  we can start by talking about climate change and what it means to our lives, our environment and our children’s future.  (Did you notice that we said “climate change”?  Yes, climate is different from weather, and we need to both talk about it and do something!)
 
LWV Upper Mississippi River Region (LWV UMRR) has added a focus on climate change to our action portfolio.  We are urging our member Leagues to plan programs on the topic – and have an option to offer with prepared material to do it! 
 
LWV Dane County (Madison, WI) has made climate change their topic for action this year.  They are sponsoring four forums (link) that will be available for local Leagues to stream.  Materials packets are prepared for each forum so viewers will be able to learn about the topic in advance and have good discussion after the program.  These packets are rich with information and geared to help build understanding, not detailed scientific tomes.  LWV DC does an excellent job with both the packets and with finding a good range of speakers who bring broad expertise to the subject; this would be a great way for a local League to begin the conversation on climate change.  As a bonus, their website features a weekly column titled “Climate Corner”, featuring a medley of resources and information that highlight personal actions, diversity and equity perspectives, and additional learning opportunities, all related to climate change.
 
The first of the four forums took place on September 4 - you can watch the video here.  Titled “Why Climate Change is a Public Health Emergency”, the featured speakers were Ralph Petersen , Ph.D. (UW–Madison Space, Science and Engineering Center), Andrea Kaminski (Board Director and former Executive Director of LWVWI) and Dr. Claire Gervais , M.D., (UW Health Clinics).  Looking ahead, LWV DC is planning these additional forums:
•            November 6, 2019, focusing on government's role in combatting climate change,
•            February 5, 2020, focusing on agriculture as a solution and
•            April 1, 2020 focusing on water impacts.
 
LWV UMRR’s Co-Presidents, Mary and Steve Ploeser, are members of the LWV Dane County committee working on the forum.  We are proud to share their work with our member Leagues, and thank them for the commitment to LWV and the environment.  – Gretchen Sabel, Communications Director, LWV UMRR

---