In anticipation of Tu B’Shevat, the Jewish New Year of the Trees, Rabbi Steven spoke with Hans Detweiler, a member of the Mishkan Sustainability Team with an impressive environmental activism resume, for a conversation about small things you can do to decarbonize your life. Check out the show notes below for links to resources about decarbonization curated by the Mishkan Sustainability Team.

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So you are ready to work on decarbonizing your home? Here’s a great consumer guide to think through all the pieces:

https://www.buildingdecarb.org/store/p194/A_Pocket_Guide_to_All-Electric_Retrofits_of_Single-Family_Homes.html

What is next for decarbonization in Chicago? Chicago is exempt from Illinois’ building code, and is entirely responsible to develop its own code. This is a great opportunity, as the current code needs a lot of help! Learn more about Chicago’s decarbonization plan here:
https://www.chicago.gov/content/dam/city/progs/env/2022/Final-2022-Building-Decarb-City-Document.pdf

Why is Mishkan’s Sustainability team excited about “electrify everything?” Read this great explanation from energy guru Saul Griffith. Pour a cup of coffee first: this article from Vox is intense and captures the big picture and the urgency.

https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/21349200/climate-change-fossil-fuels-rewiring-america-electrify

If you read the Vox article above, you understand the importance of switching from gas furnaces to heat pumps. Heat pumps that work well throughout a Chicago winter are now available! Consumer Reports asks the question of how well they work in cold climates in the article below, and finds they work well. By the way, if your HVAC contractor says “no,” they are wrong! The sustainability committee can recommend up-to-date firms.

https://www.consumerreports.org/heat-pumps/can-heat-pumps-actually-work-in-cold-climates-a4929629430/

Decarbonization is a great challenge. How can we do it with equity? To finish you reading list, here is a moving case study from Pembroke IL about equity and the Heat Pump Revolution in Illinois:

https://rmi.org/from-poverty-to-power-in-pembroke/

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Produced by Mishkan Chicago. Music composed, produced, and performed by Kalman Strauss.