Maldives underwater? Maryland's Smith Island will go first!

Yes I’m very concerned about the drowning nations of the South Pacific and Indian Ocean. But Maryland’s Smith Island — population 300, eighty miles from the White House — will be totally gone before any of these island nations disappear. See below my op-ed in today’s Baltimore Sun and watch a quick video about how global warming is ALREADY drowning AMERICAN islands right now.

Please join me and hundreds of thousands of other human beings worldwide this Saturday for the “International Day of Climate Action.” Visit www.350.org for an event near you, including a big one at Meridian Hill Park in Washington, DC from noon-5pm.

Rising seas, rising awareness
Climate change threatens to drown Maryland’s coasts and islands, but it’s not too late to act

By Mike Tidwell
Baltimore Sun
October 22, 2009

Here’s an idea: Why don’t the residents of Smith Island – at the fragile center of the Chesapeake Bay – rent a few scuba-diving suits and hold a town hall meeting under water?

Scientists say a huge part of the Chesapeake region could be below water in a few decades due to rapid global warming. So why not practice up? Just grab a few wetsuits and goggles and rehearse for the aquatic life to come.

A similar rehearsal took place last week in another island area: the archipelago nation of the Maldives in the Indian Ocean. Sitting at underwater tables, atop underwater chairs with fish darting about, the country’s president and Cabinet ministers held a “global warming summit” to ask the world to stop the rising seas that could eventually submerge their entire country.

But as TV networks broadcast this bizarre meeting back to the U.S., you could almost hear the “tsk, tsk.” We comfortable Americans tend to view really big catastrophes – things like famines and tsunamis – as far-away matters involving people usually too poor or under-educated to plan better.

This mindset helped blind us to the pre-Hurricane Katrina dangers of New Orleans. And it’s blinding us today to the shared threat of climate change in places like Smith Island, not to mention Manhattan Island and most of south Florida. Continue reading

Oct 24, 2009- A Turning Point in Human History- Be There

If you’re still looking for a good reason to come out and join our big International Day of Climate Action rally and march in DC on Saturday try this on for size: the day of action won’t simply be the biggest day in the history of the global climate movement; it could very well be one of the biggest days in human history. And that’s not an exaggeration.

The truly wonderful thing about Saturday’s action is that it will be much bigger than just a single rally, or a single march on a single location in a single city in the world. It will be a truly global event. In fact, I’d go so far as to say it will be the first truly “global event” in history. For while there have been global days of action for this and other causes before, as far as I know none of them have ever included more than 4000 actions taking place in almost every single country on the planet. And while any given world cup final or Olympic opening ceremony may draw a global viewing audience of hundreds of millions, the ultimate measure of any “global” event lies not in its scale but in its spirit. And in terms of its global spirit I’d say our Day of Action on Saturday will beat even the Olympics hands down.

As the first truly global-scale crisis humanity has ever faced, the climate crisis is forcing us for the very first time to start perceiving ourselves as a true global community, facing a common threat as a species, as a global civilization. It’s forcing us to act globally, and seek solutions globally, as a true global community rather than as a collection of competing nations negotiating our way towards compromises that preserve our individual interests. By its very nature the global climate movement is leading us all through a door to a new era of global consciousness, to a transformation not just of the way that we consume energy, but of the way that we perceive ourselves, and our relations and responsibilities to each other.

So, considering that the Day of Action on Saturday will be the first truly global-scale expression of the movement that is driving us toward that new era of global consciousness and solidarity, I think it’s safe to say that it will be the first truly global event in human history. And those of us who participate in it won’t just be helping to usher in a new stage in the global climate movement; we’ll helping to usher in a new era of human history, a new era of global community.

And come snow or rain or heat or gloom, I’d say that’s definitely something to show up for. Go to www.350.org/dc today to RSVP today and claim your place in the vanguard of our global future.

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In Richmond? Join the Clean Energy Parade this Sat.

For those of you who can’t make the trip for the history-making rally in DC this Saturday, I just got word of another rally on Saturday in Richmond. The Clean Energy Works campaign, a coalition of environmental, labor, faith, and national security organizations working to pass national clean energy legislation, will be marching in Virginia Union University’s homecoming parade! VUU is a historically black university in the City of Richmond. This year their parade will include a group marching in support of less pollution, more jobs, and greater security.

Everyone loves a parade. They’re an American institution. Plus clean energy will make us more secure and independent. What could more American than that?

Clean Energy Works is looking for folks who are excited about clean energy and green jobs in Virginia to march in VUU’s homecoming parade with them. They’ll be walking with beautiful, bright signs, t-shirts, flags and green hard hats. It should be fun!

If you’re interested, meet at the corner of 10th and Leigh streets at 9am on Saturday the 24th, continue down Broad St. and then right on Lombardy to the campus.

You can contact Antigone Ambrose if you have questions!
804-225-9113 ext. 112
Antigone.ambrose@sierraclub.org. More details below the fold. Continue reading

Everyone's talking about it…

In 11 days, thousands of people will rally in Meridian Hill/Malcolm X Park for a clean, green economy that affirmatively improves the lives of all of humanity.

Now is the time to shine a spotlight on the urgent need for President Obama and Congress to take action on global warming and clean energy jobs

Landmark Op-Ed Means Climate Legislation

Cross-Posted from: here

**These are not necessarily the views of CCAN**

I knew as soon as I read the Op-Ed in the NY Times Sunday co-authored by South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham and John Kerry.

As Energy Smart Now concludes “Let us hope that that “legitimate bipartisan effort” emerges and is reality-based. If it does, again, this might well go down as the most important OPED to appear in an American newspaper in 2009 Continue reading

Sen. Cardin Deserves Our Praise

As I’m sure you’ve heard, Senators Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and John Kerry (D-MA) introduced their climate bill last week. The “Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act” puts the U.S. on the right path, although it doesn’t go far enough (Read CCAN’s statement here). The bill is an improvement over what the House passed in June and Maryland Senator Ben Cardin, who helped draft the bill, deserves our sincere thanks for his hard work – and encouragement for the tough fight ahead. The release of this bill was covered extensively in the media, which gives you the opportunity to respond quickly and get your letters to the editor printed in your local paper.

Please, take a moment to respond and write a letter to the editor. Here are some talking points:

1. The Boxer-Kerry Clean Energy Bill is Good for Maryland: The Boxer-Kerry Clean Energy bill, released last week, would put the U.S. on the right path toward a new clean energy economy and create millions of jobs nationwide. Recent studies have shown that such a bill would create 35,000 jobs in Maryland alone.

2. Thanks for Protecting the Clean Air Act: The Boxer-Kerry “Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act” restores the Environmental Protection Agency’s authority under the Clean Air Act to regulate global warming pollution from coal plants. This critical authority was threatened in the House version of the bill and we thank Senator Cardin for his leadership in helping draft a bill that allows the EPA to continue to do its job.

3. Continue reading

Sales Tax Holiday on Energy Efficient Products (this Fri-Mon)

This weekend marks Virginia’s annual sales tax holiday on energy efficient products — items like Energy Star dishwashers, clothes washers, refrigerators, air conditioners, ceiling fans, compact fluorescent light bulbs, programmable thermostats, or Water Sense rated faucets and toilets. So if you’ve been thinking about making a purchase, this weekend is the time to do it.

More on the sales tax holiday

New Rebates for Efficiency Products
A number of new rebates for energy efficient products will also be available as part of the stimulus package –rebates on items such as insulation, window replacements, water heaters and more. In Virginia, homeowners will be eligible for rebates for 20% of the costs of eligible products (up to $2,000), and commercial consumers will be eligible for 20% of their costs (up to $4,000). The rebates will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis.

More on the Rebates

Becoming more energy efficient is a great way to lessen your home’s impact on the environment, save money, and to reduce the need for new power plants or transmission lines in the future.

350 in Times Square

This just in from 350.org‘s Jamie Henn

(drumroll please…)

The 350.org team has just secured permission to display the 350 photos from around the world on the MASSIVE screens in the heart of New York City, with global media standing by to broadcast the story worldwide! That means that your photo can appear 30 feet tall for the world to see. We’ve always said that we want to inject this number deep into the information consciousness of the planet, and Times Square is about as close to the the mainstream as you can get.

The photos from the big day will all have the number 350 depicted in them somehow, and will act as a huge visual petition that we’ll send to world leaders. On the Monday after October 24th, the 350.org crew will be visiting UN headquarters to hand-deliver the photos to diplomats and delegates the world over.

As if you needed another reason to sign up for the blowout event in DC. Join CCAN, the Hip Hop Caucus, DC’s own go-go band “Backyard Band” and thousands of your closest friends. 350.org/dc!
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