News Archives - Climate Ready Communities

Climate Action in the States – Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi

Written on July 22, 2022. Posted in News.

The theme this month is Mississippi River states. These states are good examples of why each state needs the ability to direct its own climate work. Arkansas, Tennessee, and Mississippi share borders but have very different circumstances that affect how climate issues are seen and addressed by both residents and policy makers.

Arkansas is moving forward with building an electric vehicle charging network, fostering a solar power industry, while also requiring the coal fired power plants to be evaluated every three years. There are municipal and university climate programs, and a business association for non-fossil fuel energy. Despite a lack of formal state level support, there are people on the ground working to move climate action forward.
Tennessee has a strong cohort of people taking action on mitigation, including developing a statewide electric vehicle charging network, solar propagation, and wind power development. Universities in the state are teaching about sustainability and climate mitigation. Unfortunately, there is not much work yet on climate adaptation.
Mississippi focuses on issues of climate resilience like sea level rise, storm impacts on the coast, oil spill recovery, and impacts to inhabitants of coastal areas. Despite no legislative interest in climate action, there is a very strong cohort comprised of MS State University, the MS-AL Sea Grant, Cooperative Extension, and the NOAA Gulf of Mexico Regional Collaboration. There is also growing momentum for solar power and electric vehicle charging across the state.

Climate Action Across the Country: Nevada, Utah, Colorado

Written on May 31, 2022. Posted in News.

In this update we are focusing on three western states: Nevada, Utah, and Colorado. These three states are all taking action on climate change and working hard to protect their communities.

In one of his first actions as Nevada’s Governor, Steve Sisolak launched a strong climate agenda with a 2019 Executive Order. The state has been busy working to address climate change ever since.
Leaders and voters in Utah are supporting climate action, even if it’s not always identified as such in the legislation. Both the University of Utah and Utah State University Cooperative Extension have very strong climate programs. There is also a dedicated network of nonprofits across the state working on climate issues.
With strong economic interests in oil, gas, and coal industries, Colorado is an interesting state for climate action. Since 2015 government leaders, universities, nonprofits, and local communities have all worked to move the needle on climate change.

Climate Action Across the Country – Maine, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island

Written on February 25, 2022. Posted in News.

This month we are looking at the eastern seaboard. Maine, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island provide examples of effective climate action, including both mitigation and adaptation, and social equity. These states are also members of the Transportation & Climate Initiative, launched in 2010, along with 10 other eastern states.

Climate Action Across the Country – North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota

Written on January 21, 2022. Posted in News.

To kick off the New Year in our series looking at climate action at the state level, we are looking at 3 states that are neighbors, share many of the same climate issues and yet have different approaches to climate work: North Dakota, South Dakota, and Minnesota

Climate Action Across the Country – California, Oregon, Washington

Written on October 18, 2021. Posted in News.

This month we are looking at the western states of California, Oregon, and Washington. All are generally progressive states and have embraced climate change both socially and legislatively with policy, funding, and political will. Despite working on climate issues for many years, there is more to do. Fortunately all three are positioned to make real headway.

Climate Resilience Planning in Lane County, Oregon

Written on October 15, 2021. Posted in News.

Lane County, Oregon is located on the western side of Oregon and stretches from the Three Sisters mountains to the Pacific Ocean. It is home to a diverse population in both rural and urban settings. In mid-2020 Beyond Toxics and NAACP Eugene/Springfield established a Climate Equity and Resilience Task Force comprised of community representatives and stakeholders who live and work with diverse and underrepresented communities in Lane County. The role of this Task Force is to ensure that the actions developed by the County in their Climate Action Plan are equitable.

Our team produced a Climate Trends Primer and helped Beyond Toxics develop a Vulnerability Assessment report, important steps to developing equitable and effective climate actions. We also helped facilitate a 2-session virtual vulnerability assessment workshop attended by community members, county staff, and other stakeholders.

Climate Action Across the Country – Nebraska, Iowa, and Illinois

Written on September 15, 2021. Posted in News.

Our research into climate action in states across the country continues with Nebraska, Iowa, and Illinois. These 3 neighboring states share similar geography, economy, politics, and culture. Yet they have very different responses to climate change. These differences highlight the need for state-level climate leadership that can adapt and flex to the unique circumstances on the ground.

In Nebraska, the farming community is driving change, fueled by their pain from drought and other extreme weather. In Iowa, there is a growing movement to pressure the legislature to take action and a strong Green Iowa Americorps with real boots on the ground. Illinois has been struggling with corruption in politics and their energy sector for years, but it looks like Governor Pritzker is breaking new ground with comprehensive clean energy legislation.

EPA Report Shows Disproportionate Impacts of Climate Change on Vulnerable Populations

Written on September 13, 2021. Posted in News.

The US Environmental Protection Agency has recently released an in-depth report on how climate change disproportionally impacts the 4 most socially vulnerable groups people in our communities, as identified by the EPA.

The report reinforces a well-known factor in the field of climate resilience planning, and it provides useful insights and evidence that you can use to drive home the importance of focusing on vulnerable populations in your own community’s climate resilience development.

EPA Category	EPA Definition
Low Income	Individuals living in households with income that is at or below 200% of the poverty level.
Minority	Individuals identifying as Black or African American; American Indian or Alaska Native; Asian; Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander; and/or Hispanic or Latino.
No High School Diploma	Individuals ages 25 and older with a maximum educational attainment of less than a high school diploma or equivalent.
65 and Older	Individuals ages 65 and older.

“A new EPA analysis released today shows that the most severe harms from climate change fall disproportionately upon underserved communities who are least able to prepare for, and recover from, heat waves, poor air quality, flooding, and other impacts.  EPA’s analysis indicates that racial and ethnic minority communities are particularly vulnerable to the greatest impacts of climate change. Climate Change and Social Vulnerability in the United States: A Focus on Six Impact Sectors is one of the most advanced environmental justice studies to date that looks at how projected climate change impacts may be distributed across the American public.”

“The impacts of climate change that we are feeling today, from extreme heat to flooding to severe storms, are expected to get worse, and people least able to prepare and cope are disproportionately exposed,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan

Download the report here: https://www.epa.gov/cira/social-vulnerability-report

Climate Action Across the Country – Alaska, Alabama, Florida

Written on August 16, 2021. Posted in News.

We continue our review of climate action in states across the country (read Part 1: NC, WI, MT and Part 2: VT, LA, MI). This month we are highlighting three very different states where Republicans dominate local government: Alabama, Alaska, and Florida. The impression that Republicans aren’t concerned about climate (a legacy of Donald Trump) has recently been re-examined by Pew Research. Their findings show that while this is generally true, there are some Republicans who are very concerned and ready to act.

Alabama’s Republican majority legislature is not addressing climate change, while the small but valiant climate concerned community is trying to talk about the issues in a way that can be heard. Alaska is caught between the state government backers of an economy currently founded on oil and gas, and the communities who are threatened by the rising sea. Florida is also besieged by sea level rise and flooding, and despite a majority of Republicans in charge of government, the state is moving forward decisively, with bipartisan support, to both mitigate and adapt to climate change.

Practical Guide to Building Climate Resilience a key resource for Resilient Methow

Written on August 12, 2021. Posted in News.

The Methow Valley in Washington state includes several small towns and unincorporated areas within Okanogan County and has suffered substantial impacts of a changing climate, including increased wildfires and smoke and decreased winter snowpack with faster spring melt cycles. The Methow Valley Citizens Council (MVCC) is a local non-profit that works to protect the Methow Valley’s natural environment and rural character, and within this mission, climate change is a key focus area. In 2018 MVCC engaged a broad set of local stakeholders including 45 local organizations, agencies, and community leaders in a watershed level approach to developing a Climate Action Plan.