Thursday, Oct. 24, is the International Day of Climate Action.
The non-profit dedicated to advancing climate change policies Evergreen Action released a plan to tackle the climate crisis.
The organization’s Executive Director Lena Moffitt said it’s a roadmap lawmakers can use to address climate change in a way that promotes both the economy and the environment.
She calls it a “common sense” way to enhance and build on legislation like the Inflation Reduction Act, which she said has made “incredible progress in helping us solve this issue.”
“With these kinds of win-win policies, we can both cut pollution to ensure that extreme weather doesn’t just keep getting worse and worse, but we can also protect our economy,” she said.
Moffitt said these climate-focused laws are especially important for people in Florida, who are experiencing climate change “firsthand.”
“I want to acknowledge the extreme weather that you all and Tampa have really borne the brunt of recently and that I know the community is still reeling from Hurricanes Milton and Helene, which broke records and devastated communities,” she said. “This is climate change in action, and I don’t have to tell you all what a toll it is taking on people’s lives and people’s communities.”
The roadmap suggests policies like investing in domestic manufacturing so the U.S. can lead the way in building clean energy and clean technology. Also, investing more than $500 million in Florida to help with flood reduction programs.
“Invest in resilience so that people have housing and clean, safe places that they can go during these, extreme weather events,” Moffitt said.
However, even with the Inflation Reduction Act, she said more work can be done. One of the biggest ways people can help is to get out and vote.
“We can attack problems like climate change and tackle them effectively with good policy,” she said. “But who’s in office determines what kind of policies we’re going to get. And your voice and your vote really matters.”
Climate Action Day started in 2009 and was organized by 350.org. It was created to influence the delegates at a United Nations convention on climate change. Moffitt said she thinks the special day has brought more attention to the climate crisis.
Some shifts in weather patterns can be natural, but “human activities have been the main driver of climate change” since the 1800s, according to the United Nations Climate Action.
The burning of fossil fuels creates greenhouse gas emissions that can trap the sun’s heat and raise temperatures. The National Centers for Environmental Information from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released a study that found the Gulf of Mexico had “significant warming” over the past 50 years.
“Warming also increases the intensity of hurricanes, escalating the damage to coastal communities and the loss of wetlands,” NOAA said.
Meanwhile, people living on the Gulf Coast are still recovering from Hurricanes Helene and Milton, storms that experts said reshaped coastlines.
“Scientists say that we still can take action to avoid the absolute worst of the climate of the climate crisis,” Moffitt said. “But we do need to take action.”
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