April Chapter Meeting – “Double Feature on Climate and Health”

“Climate Health is Public Health: A Night at The Museum of the Earth” – Susan Harris (EdD), NYSPHA and “Gas Stoves: The fracking tailpipe in kitchens creating harmful indoor air” – Carmi Orenstein (MPH), CHPNY

Susan Harris is founder and chair of the New York State Public Health Association’s Climate Committee. She will talk about the effects of climate change on public health. Note that the NYSPHA is holding their annual convention in Ithaca this year. Susan will also discuss this special event held Ithaca as a lead-in to the meeting, Climate Health is Public Health: A Night at the Museum of the Earth. As the inaugural leader of the Climate Committee, Susan has spearheaded significant accomplishments, including: Mobilizing key external partners, such as the New York State Children’s Environmental Health Centers, the Climate and Resiliency Education Task Force, NY RENEWS, The Wild Center, and Third Act; advocating and lobbying alongside students for the passage of a climate change education bill; and creating an engaging and informative Youth Climate Resource Guide.

Carmi Orenstein is co-founder and director of Concerned Health Professionals of New York (CHPNY), now a program of the Science and Environmental Health Network. She will discuss the hazards of gas-fired appliances in the home, focusing on gas stoves, which the group has come to consider the “fracking tailpipe in our kitchens.” She will touch on the contents of the most recent edition of the group’s Compendium, a compilation of scientific studies, reports, and investigative journalism addressing the risks and harms of fracking and its infrastructure. CHPNY played a significant role in the campaign to ban fracking in New York State and continues its work compiling and amplifying the science for our region and beyond, with the aim of informing energy policymaking that is truly protective of health and climate.

Zoom Link

Meeting ID: 958 6631 3240
Passcode: NYRocks

Finger Lakes Book Group – “Regenesis” by George Monbiot

The CRP Finger Lakes Book Group will meet on Thursday, April 3, 2025, at 7 pm. We will be discussing “Regenesis: Feeding the World Without Devouring the Planet” by George Monbiot (Penguin Random House, 2022).

Book description from Penguin Random House:

Farming is the world’s greatest cause of environmental destruction—and the one we are least prepared to talk about. We criticize urban sprawl, but farming sprawls across thirty times as much land. We have plowed, fenced, and grazed great tracts of the planet, felling forests, killing wildlife, and poisoning rivers and oceans to feed ourselves. Yet millions still go hungry and the price of food is rising faster than ever.

Now the food system itself is beginning to falter. But, as George Monbiot shows us in this brilliant, bracingly original new book, we can resolve the biggest of our dilemmas and feed the world without devouring the planet.

Regenesis is a breathtaking vision of a new future for food and for humanity. Drawing on astonishing advances in soil ecology, Monbiot reveals how our changing understanding of the world beneath our feet could allow us to grow more food with less farming. He meets the people who are unlocking these methods, from the fruit and vegetable grower revolutionizing our understanding of fertility; through breeders of perennial grains, liberating the land from plows and poisons; to the scientists pioneering new ways to grow protein and fat. Together, they show how the tiniest life forms could help us make peace with the planet, restore its living systems, and replace the age of extinction with an age of regenesis.

George Monbiot is interviewed about the book on 5X15 Stories.

More information about George Monbiot can be found in Wikipedia. For some additional background on the topic, this TED Talk by Jonathan Foley is recommended.

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Meeting ID: 926 2795 7489

February Joint Chapter Meeting: FLGR and WNY Chapters – Combating Climate Disinformation

Guest Presenters: Tom Coleman and Bruce Mainzer, Co-Chairs, Chicago Metro Chapter, The Climate Reality Project

Since passage of the IRA Act in 2022, significant progress has been made to address the climate crisis. However, fossil fuel interests and climate deniers have intensified their efforts to hinder adoption of effective climate solutions by households and businesses and to delay and derail local legislative efforts in the more progressive states such as New York and California.

From auto manufacturers, attributing the slowdown in new EV purchases to consumer markets instead of their own delays in introducing lower-cost EVs, to political leaders avoiding climate initiatives during an election year, 2024 saw a surge in disinformation on social media and the mainstream news. This has made it more challenging to effectively communicate how the average citizen can reduce their carbon footprint.

With the incoming President and Congress, the current climate crisis has become increasingly urgent with greater challenges expected for 2025. We will summarize the top actions individuals can take to decrease their carbon footprint. Breakout groups will allow us to brainstorm ways to counter the current wave of climate disinformation.

Learn to equip yourself with the latest information to combat climate denial!

About Our Presenters

A native of Boston, Tom Coleman has worked at many organizational levels in manufacturing, information technology, and in process improvement disciplines. In 2018, he retired as chief information officer and now works in the field of environmental, social, and governmental education and activism He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration, is a Certified Business Process Master, and is Certified as a Change Management Professional. Tom has rooftop solar panels and two electric vehicles.

With degrees from Cornell and Northwestern, Bruce Mainzer has worked in public transportation sector, followed by work for several large companies in the consumer travel sector including airlines, cruise lines, hotels and resorts. Bruce retired in 2019, after serving for the last 13 years of his career as a travel marketing and pricing consultant. After owning a convertible foreign sports car, he is now a big fan of his EV. He and his wife love to travel, especially to Paris, which is his second favorite city after Chicago.

Zoom Link

Meeting ID: 958 6631 3240
Passcode: NYRocks

FLGR-NY January Chapter Meeting – Connecting the Dots Between the Waste Crisis and the Climate Crisis

Few understand the connections between the waste and the climate crises. In this presentation, Chris W. Burger will discuss how addressing the waste crisis helps to address the climate crisis. Three areas will be featured:

Reducing energy use by creating the circular use of material. The energy saved through reuse and recycling is roughly equivalent to the amount of energy used for providing us with food and rivals the energy used for transportation.
Curtailing the use of plastic along with increasing the recyclability of plastic. Plastics are of particular concern given the that 99% of all plastics are derived from fossil fuels and generate their own emissions in the process.
Eliminating organics in landfills. Anthropogenic production of methane represents a close second to CO2 in its effect on our climate, especially when its increased potency is factored in. Despite our best efforts, methane from our landfills is still a large contributing factor

Chris is a trained Climate Reality Leader and member of our Chapter. His accomplishments include developing the first Weatherization program in the country in 1977. In 1985, he developed a County-wide recycling program. He has co-founded and/or led a number of organizations focused on sustainability including the New York Sustainable Business Council. He also walks the talk, achieving zero waste along with his family since 1992 and designed and built a home that has been fossil free since 1998.

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Meeting ID: 958 6631 3240
Passcode: NYRocks

Finger Lakes Book Group Meeting – “How to Prepare for Climate Change,” David Pogue

The Finger Lakes Book Group will meet on Thursday, February 6, 2025, at 7 pm. We will be discussing “How to Prepare for Climate Change: A Practical Guide to Surviving the Chaos” by David Pogue (Simon & Schuster, 2021).

Book description from Simon & Schuster:

You might not realize it, but we’re already living through the beginnings of climate chaos. In Arizona, laborers now start their day at 3 a.m. because it’s too hot to work past noon. Chinese investors are snapping up real estate in Canada. Millennials have evacuation plans. Moguls are building bunkers. Retirees in Miami are moving inland.

In How to Prepare for Climate Change, bestselling self-help author David Pogue offers sensible, deeply researched advice for how the rest of us should start to ready ourselves for the years ahead. Pogue walks readers through what to grow, what to eat, how to build, how to insure, where to invest, how to prepare your children and pets, and even where to consider relocating when the time comes. (Two areas of the country, in particular, have the requisite cool temperatures, good hospitals, reliable access to water, and resilient infrastructure to serve as climate havens in the years ahead.) He also provides wise tips for managing your anxiety, as well as action plans for riding out every climate catastrophe, from superstorms and wildfires to ticks and epidemics.

Timely and enlightening, How to Prepare for Climate Change is an indispensable guide for anyone who read The Uninhabitable Earth or The Sixth Extinction and wants to know how to make smart choices for the upheaval ahead.

More information about David Pogue can be found on his website. He is a trained Climate Reality Leader. He was featured at a meeting of the Bay Area Local Chapter discussing this book.

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Meeting ID: 926 2795 7489

December Informal Meeting

Thursday, December 5, 2024, 7:00-8:00 pm EST (on Zoom)

No agenda. Join us for informal conversation and an opportunity to get to know your fellow Chapter members. This month, we have the NYS Coalition Joint Meeting on December 10. This meeting will give us a chance to gather as a Chapter prior to the end-of the-year holidays. We can chat informally about possible initiatives for next year.

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Meeting ID: 958 6631 3240
Passcode: NYRocks

NYS Chapters Coalition December Joint Meeting – Green Schools Campaign

Tuesday, December 10, 2024, 7:00-8:30 pm EST (On Zoom)

Hosted by Hudson Valley/Catskills Chapter

Register HERE

Climate Reality recently relaunched the Green Schools Campaign, a program focused on seeding local campaign teams of students, teachers, parents, and community members to call for the transition of their schools, school transportation, and school districts to 100% clean energy. In addition, efforts are underway to advance climate education and professional learning opportunities in New York’s P-12 Schools.

Learn how students, teachers, parents, and community members can get involved in our statewide efforts in New York. Hear about upcoming programs to train and mobilize our chapter and community members to promote green schools in our state.

Our speakers will be:

Sidney Miralao, Climate Reality Project Youth Engagement Manager who will share plans for an upcoming full day green schools training program in New York, as well as share resources for mobilizing students and citizens in the effort.

Rachel Arbor, CEO & Founder of Gaia Scholastic, NY State Lead for Subject to Climate and presidential innovation award winner for environmental educators from the White House and EPA to share educational resources for integrating climate into the classroom curriculum.

Emily Fano, Director, Climate Resilience Education at National Wildlife Federation, convener of an intergenerational coalition of high school students, education professionals and NGOs that are partnering with the New York State Education Department, unions, and lawmakers to advance climate education and teacher training in New York through policy, advocacy and public education.

Register to Attend the Zoom Meeting HERE.

Finger Lakes Book Group Meeting – “Unfracked,” Richard Buttny

The Finger Lakes Book Group will meet on Wednesday, December 18, 2024 at 7 pm. We will be discussing “Unfracked: The Struggle to Ban Fracking in New York” by Richard Buttny (UMass Press, 2024). Richard, who is a trained Climate Reality Leader and a member of Finger Lakes Chapter, will attend the meeting to help facilitate the discussion.

Book description from University of Massachusetts Press:

Since fracking emerged as a way of extracting natural gas, through intense deep drilling and the use of millions of gallons of water and chemicals to fracture shale, it has been controversial. It is perceived in different ways by different people—by some as an opportunity for increased resources and possibly jobs and other income; by others as a public health and environmental threat; and for many, an unknown. Richard Buttny, a scholar who works on rhetoric and discursive practices, read a story in his local paper in New York about hydrofracking coming to his area and had to research what it was, and what it could mean for his community. Soon he joined neighbors in fighting to have the practice banned state-wide. At the same time, he turned his scholarly eye to the messaging from both sides of the fight, using first-person accounts, interviews, and media coverage.

The activists fighting fracking won. New York is now the only state in the US with sizable deposits of natural gas that has banned hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. Unfracked explains the competing rhetoric and discourses on fracking among New York-based advocates, experts, the grassroots, and political officials. Buttny examines how these positions evolved over time and how eventually the state arrived at a decision to ban this extractive technology. His accessible approach provides both a historical recounting of the key events of this seven-year conflict, along with four in-depth case studies: a grassroots citizen group, a public hearing with medical physicians, a key intergovernmental hearing, and a formal debate among experts. The result is a look at a very recent, important historical moment and a useful examination of environmental activist and fossil fuel advocate rhetoric around an issue that continues to cause debate nationwide.

Richard Buttny is professor emeritus of communication & rhetorical studies at Syracuse University. He is the author of Talking Problems: Studies on Discursive Construction and Social Accountability in Communication.

Note: “Unfracked” is available at: umasspress.com (use code UMASS20 to save 20%).

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Meeting ID: 926 2795 7489

Passcode: NYRocks

FLGR-NY November Chapter Meeting – The Dryden Miracle: Climate Change, The Energy Transition, and Local Municipalities

Dan Lamb, Deputy Supervisor for the Town of Dryden, will be presenting elements of what could be called “The Dryden Miracle.” This small town located east of Ithaca completed several noteworthy accomplishments. Dryden was the first town in New York State to ban fracking. It has also been successful in building community solar, multi-town rail trails and municipal broadband. It is a Bronze level Climate Smart Community. In its permitting process, the town has managed to discourage any new commercial gas hookups over the past 8 years. Most recently Dryden passed a moratorium on cryptomining and data centers. Dan will provide an overview of how the Town of Dryden has implemented these changes, thus providing a model for other local municipalities.

In addition to his Deputy Supervisor position, Dan is a senior lecturer at Cornell’s Brooks School of Public Policy and a member of the steering committee for Tompkins County Climate Protection Initiative (TCCPI). More info about Dan can be found on the Cornell Brooks Public Policy website.

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Meeting ID: 831 3844 2680

Finger Lakes Book Group Meeting – “No Miracles Needed,” Mark Z. Jacobson, Part 2

The Finger Lakes Book Group will meet on Monday, October 28, 2024 at 7 pm. This will be the second session for “No Miracles Needed: How today’s technology can save our climate and clean our air” – Mark Z. Jacobson (Stanford University), Cambridge University Press, 2023. Part 1 covered the beginning through Chapter 7; Part 2 (this session) will cover Chapter 8 through the end. We hope that the revised schedule is allowing more folks to read a part of the book during this busy period (upcoming election and Climate Reality Leadership training).

Book description from Cambridge University Press:

The world needs to turn away from fossil fuels and use clean, renewable sources of energy as soon as we can. Failure to do so will cause catastrophic climate damage sooner than you might think, leading to loss of biodiversity and economic and political instability. But all is not lost! We still have time to save the planet without resorting to ‘miracle’ technologies. We need to wave goodbye to outdated technologies, such as natural gas and carbon capture, and repurpose the technologies that we already have at our disposal. We can use existing technologies to harness, store, and transmit energy from wind, water, and solar sources to ensure reliable electricity, heat supplies, and energy security. Find out what you can do to improve the health, climate, and economic state of our planet. Together, we can solve the climate crisis, eliminate air pollution and safely secure energy supplies for everyone.

Here is a recording of Prof. Jacobson discussing the book with Ken Cook of Environmental Working Group and the following discussion (webinar starts 14:40 minutes into the recording).

Note also that the book can serve as a reference – use the Table of Contents to find the topic of interest and go directly there.

For those interested in learning more about the nuclear power option, here is a TED debate from February 2010 with Prof. Jacobson and Stewart Brand, “Does the world need nuclear energy?”

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Meeting ID: 926 2795 7489

Passcode: NYRocks