The Climate Minute

Should towns in MA prohibit the use of natural gas in new construction? “Yes!” says an MCAN Board member. Heat pumps are reliable, inexpensive and greatly reduce carbon pollution, so their installation in new buildings can provide a cozy home and a clean environment. Listen in and then head to "MassClimateAction-dot-org-slash-blog" for the hot links to what we talked about!

Hidden by continuous media coverage of the pandemic, the current administration is pushing environmental rollbacks. The latest is about fine pollution (PM2.5) that makes coronavirus worse! We review some of the rollbacks, so you can remember later, when you have to make a decision on which leaders you will choose. Listen in and then head to "MassClimateAction-dot-org-slash-blog" for the hot links to what we talked about!

The logic is simple: A free election is critical to climate progress. A free election, in the age of pandemic, should be mail-in. An honest mail-in election requires a functioning, public institution like the Post Office. The USPS is under siege by the forces of authoritarianism. Defend the Post Office. Listen in and then head to "MassClimateAction-dot-org-slash-blog" for the hot links to what we talked about!

Reaching across political and cultural divides to address the root causes of climate change requires thoughtful planning and careful word choices. We talk with a Citizen’s Climate Lobby Fellow, based in Kansas, whose task is to make Conservative Outreach to people on all points of the political spectrum in the Sunflower State. Listen in and then head to "MassClimateAction-dot-org-slash-blog" for the hot links to what we talked about!

Listen to a Citizen Climate Lobby Fellow discuss what it takes to attract support for climate legislation from people with very different ideas about how the world works. Then head to "MassClimateAction-dot-org-slash-blog" for the hot links to what we talked about!

The silence of conservative politicians on the deficit impact of spending two trillion dollars is, in itself, very revealing. It shows that we can spend money on important issues, despite all the previous prophesies of doom. New economic understandings show that we can afford to spend money on big social programs, like the Green New Deal. Listen in so that you can throw the term “sovereign currency’” into the conversation at your next ZOOM cocktail party. Then head to "MassClimateAction-dot-org-slash-blog" for the hot links to what we talked about!

In theses times, what once seemed impossible suddenly seems obvious. What if the US simply bought the coal industry, retired the factories, protected the workers, preserved the communities, kept the coal in the ground and saved the planet. For less than $2B! Listen in and then head to "MassClimateAction-dot-org-slash-blog" for the hot links to what we talked about!

COVID-19 is reshaping our lives in real time, revealing the same old tricks Fox uses to misinform and raising questions about how to take climate action if the streets are closed. Speaking of streets, do we want to return to cities crowded with cars, or should we retain the calm of walk-able cities? Asking the easy question is the first step to finding the hard answers. Listen in and then head to "MassClimateAction-dot-org-slash-blog" for the hot links to what we talked about!

As the triple issues of pandemic, inequality and climate change bear down on us, it is clear that a #GreenStimulus is a path to a better future. Listen in. Then head to "MassClimateAction-dot-org-slash-blog" for the hot links to what we talked about!

Columbia Gas has had a rough run after blowing up South Lawrence. Now it is on the block to be sold. Should the towns north of Boston band together to buy Columbia Gas? A recent article in Commonwealth Magazine posed just this question, so we discussed the pros and cons with the author.