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Climate Change

  • Meredith Miller Vostrejs posted an article
    The injustice of climate change is that people least responsible for it are the most affected by it. see more

    By Brady Fergusson

    The injustice of climate change is that the people least responsible for it are the people being most negatively impacted by it. People around the world who have lower incomes and fewer resources have contributed far less to the greenhouse gas emissions driving climate change, yet they are the ones forced to deal with the harshest effects of our changing climate. For many people, migration is becoming the most effective way to adapt to climate change. To achieve climate justice, we must facilitate this migration.

    The people of the Republic of Kiribati are some of many around the world who deserve the option to emigrate from their country to adapt to the impacts of climate change. As a Peace Corps Health and Community Development Volunteer in Kiribati from 2006 to 2008, I observed how climate change is already harming these islands and their people. One project I worked on with medical workers in our village of Ewena was a household water and sanitation survey. After visiting every household and collecting various information, we were alarmed to find that half of the households had brackish wells.

    Across the 33 islands of Kiribati, brackish wells are becoming more common, as the rising ocean leads to saltwater intrusion into the freshwater lens. Sea level rise is also decreasing the production of foods that people depend on: taro root, breadfruit, and coconut. And the king tide floods that happen twice a year cause increasing damage to people’s homes. Meanwhile, the ocean continues to rise.

    According to the August 2021 report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, countries like Kiribati could be lost completely due to the impacts of climate change. When I think about Kiribati and its future, I feel scared. After living there for two years and forming the bonds that I did, Kiribati is another home to me. The I-Kiribati family who adopted me is my family. The relatives of the I-Kiribati woman who I married are my relatives. The I-Kiribati are the friendliest, most welcoming, and most generous people I have ever met. And they burn the least amount of fossil fuels in Kiribati than anywhere I have ever seen. Yet these are the people whose country could be lost completely due to the impacts of climate change. This is climate injustice.

     

    The I-Kiribati are the friendliest, most welcoming, and most generous people I have ever met.

    And they burn the least amount of fossil fuels in Kiribati than anywhere I have ever seen.

    Yet these are the people whose country could be lost completely due to the impacts of climate change.

    This is climate injustice.

     

    To achieve climate justice, we must mitigate greenhouse gas emissions so that entire countries are not lost. To achieve climate justice, we must also help people adapt to the impacts of climate change that are already happening. It should not be a question of mitigation or adaptation - we must do both. Climate justice is recognizing that we contributed more to climate change and taking responsibility to support people who contributed less. Climate justice is doing all we can to ensure that more people can safely remain in their homes. Climate justice is also facilitating the movement of people for whom migration is the best form of adaptation.

    Although no one deserves to be displaced by the impacts of climate change, we must recognize that some people will have to move (and many are already moving). We must have national and international policies that facilitate climate migration. We must facilitate migration that is safe and orderly, which will benefit both the migrants and the places they are migrating to. We must support climate migration if we want to achieve climate justice.

     

    Brady's family in Kiribati during a visit in 2018

     

    Brady Fergusson (RPCV Kiribati 2006-2008) is a member of the RPCV4EA Leadership Team and co-leads the RPCV4EA Peace Corps Action Team.

     

     

     August 30, 2021
  • xx xx posted an article
    World Wildlife Fund's Brittany Williams shares suggestions to curb deforestation and climate change. see more

    Cover photo: Brittany Williams views one of many breathtaking waterfalls in the Fouta Djallon region of Guinea.

    by Maureen Smith Martindale

    When it comes to slowing deforestation in tropical woodlands around the planet, you might say Brittany Williams of World Wildlife Fund (WWF) helps others see the forest for the trees.

    A former Peace Corps agroforestry extension agent in Guinea, Williams is now a forests and climate senior program officer for WWF, an international nonprofit that helps communities conserve needed natural resources, build sustainable markets and policies, and protect and restore species and habitats. Although her focus is international policy, she shared many ideas for how ordinary citizens can help.

    “Deforestation needs to be stopped as quickly as possible,” said Williams. “Cutting down those trees and emitting those gases is irreversible in terms of climate change.” This destruction has had a huge impact since forests help regulate climate and water, and along with oceans absorb most of the carbon dioxide produced on the planet.

    Taking action means slowing the alarming statistics about the stripping of trees and timber from the Amazon and other tropical forests that serve as home to much of the worlds’ biodiversity. Every six seconds, a swath of primary rainforest equivalent to about one soccer field was destroyed during 2019, according to Conservation International, and more than half the world’s tropical forests have been wiped out since the 1960s.

    In the forests of Guinea, Brittany Williams crosses a suspension bridge.

    “One of the biggest reasons for deforestation worldwide is commodity production” for international and domestic markets, Williams said. But on an individual level, ordinary citizens can make personal choices to join a growing movement to combat deforestation, “through your wallet and the ballot box,” she said.

    The major commodities causing deforestation include palm oil, soy, timber, paper, beef and leather, which are present in over half of products in supermarkets, according to Forest 500, a project of Global Canopy, which tracks financing of commodities linked to deforestation and creates company rankings to hold them accountable. 

    Much palm oil comes from Indonesia and Malaysia, where producers create plantations in destroyed rainforest--host to orangutans, big cats, rhinos and elephants, Williams said. Other big contributors to deforestation are cocoa, largely grown in West Africa, often with human and labor rights issues, and coffee as well. 

    Curbing your consumption of red meat and these other products can help, said Willams. So can petitioning or writing to companies, as some are starting to listen. “Do as much due diligence as possible and demand that if I’m going to keep buying this, I want zero deforestation in your supply chain,” she said. 

    In the Kokoulo River valley in Guinea, Brittany Williams hiked with a local guide.

    On a larger political level, a sea change is still needed, Williams said. Fortunately, the United States has laws to prevent import of illegally logged timber, but lacks legislation to stop import of other commodities produced through deforestation. Williams suggests “being really vocal and demanding change in all spheres of our society, telling your rep that you support forest and ecosystem protection around the world and here.” 

    On the international level, Williams helps develop guidance and strategies for countries around the world to reduce deforestation, to restore degraded forest landscapes, and to quantify and reduce emissions caused by land use change. 

    At United Nations headquarters for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, Brittany Williams worked on a climate change project.

    In a report last year written by staff from United Nations, WWF, and Climate Focus, an international advisory company and think tank, she contributed to work assessing these targets, which will likely be discussed at the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow in November. She also recently co-authored a blog about how the 2015 Paris Agreement can continue to guide countries on climate actions.  

    Before joining World Wildlife Fund in 2019, Williams worked on an international agricultural development program under the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Foreign Agricultural Service, and was a climate policy intern for the United Nations Development Program. She holds a master’s degree in environmental management from Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, and bachelor’s degrees in environmental policy, and international development and economics, from University of California, Berkeley. 

    Brittany Williams hikes near the active Pacaya Volcano in Guatemala while working for USDA Foreign Agricultural Service.

    Growing up in Northern California, Williams said she always had an appreciation for nature, animals, and travel, and wanted to fuse those interests.  She said that her Peace Corps service in agriculture and environmental education from 2011 to 2014 helped deepen her passion and give her practical experience in sustainable development.

    “We are part of this ecosystem,” she said. “Sometimes our systems have destructive results, but being able to go out for a walk, hike, bike ride, or (visit a) park and support that system of land stewardship is a great way to remind ourselves of what we’re all fighting for.”

     

  • Kate Schachter posted an article
    Climate Change and Social Issues: Expanding the RPCV community framework see more

    Global Issues Survey Background

    In late January, NPCA asked the RPCV community to respond to a Global Issues Survey to determine the level of interest in strategic actions. The consultant working on this project, Mike Kiernan, presented the results and discussed at a meeting of the RPCVs for Environmental Action (RPCV4EA) on May 7, 2020. Why? Because 62% of the >3,000 respondents felt that Climate Change was the #1 concern. That towered over the next three issues of Access to Clean Water, Women’s Empowerment/Girl’s Education, and Food Security, all at 28%. It was generally agreed that climate change is the overarching threat to all other social issues. Since then, we have been actively working with Mike to build our capacity.

    Because of the skewed representation of the population (more than half >age 65, and overwhelmingly white) and the new global issue of COVID-19, Mike organized four Global Issues Forums during May 2020, covering each time zone (plus Hawaii…six!) with the intent of expanding the diversity of the audience. Each Forum had 8-9 participants. He shared these results at the June RPCV4EA meeting.

    Phase III of the analysis was an NPCA Town Hall on Social Action & Climate Change on Monday, June 15, with an expected participation of 75+ RPCVs. We looked at the conclusions that came out of the Forum and engaged in discussion around whether these provide the framework for the right goals.

    And next? RPCV4EA will hold a smaller strategic planning session in July to identify goals and action steps to accompany our Mission and Vision statements. We expect to work with the RPCV network to engage more deeply in work on climate change issues.

    RPCV4EA Next Steps

    And then? RPCV4EA will hold a smaller strategic planning session in July to identify goals and action steps to accompany our Mission and Vision statements. We work with the RPCV network to engage more deeply in work on climate change issues. Our success depends on involvement and participation from the community.

    Since we started this process in January, both a global pandemic and a worldwide social outcry around #BlackLivesMatter have rocked our world. Our work has taken on a stronger meaning of Environmental Justice and Environmental Action.

    What does the RPCV4EA do?

    One of our current key initiatives is our partnership with the Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL). We have formed a Peace Corps Action Team (PCAT) to reach out and activate the community in advocacy on Capitol Hill for legislation to reverse climate change. It is highly likely that many RPCVs an engaged community like PCIA, dedicated to advocacy, are involved in or at least familiar with CCL, which has hundreds of local chapters and action teams worldwide, especially in the U.S. If so, we welcome your participation in the PCAT. Please consider joining that as well (CCL membership required…both are free). Brady Fergusson (RPCV Kiribati 2006-2008) and Mike Roman (RPCV Kiribati 2000-2002) are co-leaders of the PCAT.

    Brady and Mike have prepared a movie screening of Anote’s Ark followed by Q&A. Details are evolving, but will be kept updated here. You will be able to watch the movie between July 10-12, in advance of the Q&A panel on Sunday, July 12 at 7:30 pm EST. Their familiarity of the real impact of climate change in the South Pacific low-lying islands has made them passionate about doing whatever possible to draw attention to the perils of climate change, and make sure that the story of the i-Kiribati is told and never forgotten.

    Join Us

    The RPCV4EA affiliate group invites input and participation, whether as an interested member who is standing by and responding to the information flow, or as an involved team member. Join us with“Add Affiliate” to your NPCA membership. There are no dues. We also have a Twitter feed and a Facebook group.

    Why?

    Here’s a quick look at the issue. The CO2 level in the atmosphere the year I was born was 310.7 parts per million. Today it is 416.7; 106 ppm higher. The safe level of CO2 is 350 ppm. Test it against your birthdate at Data sourceco2levels.org/.

    We are…for the planet

    Contact us: info@rpcv4ea.org 

  • Caitlin Dickson posted an article
    Read how RPCVs celebrate Earth Day today and everyday, and learn about our involvement with CCL! see more

    History and ideas from RPCVs for Environmental Action

    By Kate Schachter

    It began as a teach-in on the environment. After years of attempting to influence Congress to take action for environmental reforms, Gaylord Nelson, a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, turned to the American public: With actions nationwide, it was time to raise awareness of environmental crises across the country. 

    On April 22, 1970, more than 20 million people across the nation took part in events large and small: students and teachers, mothers and children, scientists and farmers, labor union members and politicians of all stripes. The day was supposed to be a one-off. Instead, it became known as Earth Day—and it marked the beginning of what became known as the “Environmental Decade.” It was a grassroots movement—with some key organizers offering guidance, including RPCV Bryce Hamilton (Guatemala 63–65).

    Read more...

    Bryce Hamilton, 1970. Photo courtesy Bryce Hamilton.

     

     April 09, 2020
  • Caitlin Dickson posted an article
    What happens when your country is expected to disappear this century? How can we help Kiribati? see more

    This article was originally published in WorldView magazine, a publication of the National Peace Corps Association.


    Day Begins Here

    KIRIBATI: Land is tied to identity. But the land is vanishing.

    BY MICHAEL ROMAN

     

    Kiribati is the center of the world. Here the international dateline crosses the equator. It is the only country to have territory in all four hemispheres—north, south, east, west—and the first nation to see the sunrise of each new day. It is also predicted to be one of the first nations to vanish because of global climate change: summoning powerful king tides, devastating cyclones, and prolonged droughts. In the face of all this, how does a people stay resolute and try to preserve land—and a deeply intertwined culture and identity?

    Read more...

     

    Photo courtesy Peace Corps

    Aftermath of a king tide: ocean water in the back yard—and flooding freshwater wells

     April 11, 2020
  • "It’s really frightening. They say that we’re going to be swallowed by water." see more

    Though the process will be gradual, Kiribati can expect to become uninhabitable due to coastal erosion and fresh water contamination as early as 2050. More than 60% of Kiribati’s population is under the age of 30 and young people like Rupee, who make up the vast majority of Kiribati’s population, may be the last generation to live on these islands.

    For the Island Nation of Kiribati, the time to act on climate change is now. In as little as 50 years Kiribati may be entirely submerged under water. Hear from the last generation to be raised on these islands as they reflect on their hopes and fears for the fate of their home, their culture, and their survival as a people.

    The video is  available for free on Vimeo.

    A compelling photo-essay is available, also for free, at Mashable.

     

     December 04, 2014
  • Lila Holzman posted an article
    RPCV4EA leadership member, Lila Holzman, responds to the reporter in Spanish and makes news in Spain see more

    [This article by Pablo Linde was originally published online in El Pais.]

    More than 900 marches in 100 countries have called for action against global warming.

    Practice your Spanish here! The key quote from RPCV4EA team leader, Lila Holzman, is “We want to see action. We know that climate change is important and now is the time to act. Since national level politics won’t step up, there are others that should, like companies and investors.”


    No es casualidad que San Francisco sea estos días el epicentro mundial de la lucha por el clima. Tres años después del histórico acuerdo de París para poner coto al calentamiento global, a dos de que entre en vigor y de que Estados Unidos lo abandone oficialmente, la Cumbre de Acción contra el Cambio Climático, que comienza la semana que viene, será un espaldarazo de la sociedad civil a los gobiernos para que se muevan en la dirección correcta. Y, ya de paso, un tirón de orejas al presidente Donald Trump en casa. Como aperitivo, este sábado más de 900 marchas en casi un centenar de países han reclamado un liderazgo real contra el calentamiento global.

    Miles de personas procedentes de medio mundo se movilizaron en el corazón de San Francisco bajo el lema Levántate por el clima, los empleos y la justicia. Indígenas guardianes de los bosques amazónicos, nativos norteamericanos, abuelas preocupadas por el mundo que le dejan a sus nietos, jóvenes que se querellan contra la Administración, veganos, naturistas, partidos verdes estadounidenses y del extranjero y, sobre todo, muchos ciudadanos concernidos por el problema se sumaron a una marcha festiva que terminó junto al Ayuntamiento de la ciudad.

    Trump nos pide que nos retiremos, nosotros contraatacamos; Hagamos América verde de nuevo; Hagamos la paz y no el cambio climático; Los combustibles fósiles nos están matando; No al fracking; El cambio climático es un problema racial; No a Trump, no al carbón. Solo son algunas de las decenas de consignas y cánticos que se leían y oían en la marcha de California.

    “Ojalá Trump nos vea, pero tenemos que buscar soluciones que trasciendan a nuestro presidente, porque no se toma el problema muy en serio”, explicaba Seneca Wolmen, de la organización californiana Amazon Watch. Lila Holzman, activista de los Cuerpos de Paz de EE UU, profundizaba en esta idea: “Esperamos ver acción. Casi todos sabemos que el cambio climático es importante y ahora es tiempo de hacer cosas. Si a nivel nacional la política no reacciona, hay otros que sí pueden hacerlo, así como las empresas y los inversores”.

    Precisamente, uno de los motivos de la cumbre, que se celebrará del 10 al 12 de septiembre, es unir a sociedad civil, empresas y gobiernos regionales y locales para que tomen su parte de responsabilidad, impulsen acciones y muestren lo que están haciendo para luchar contra el cambio climático. En una semana que estará llena de reuniones y anuncios, saldrán a la luz numerosos estudios que aportarán más datos científicos para hora de abordar el problema del calentamiento global; está previsto que grandes empresas hagan públicas medidas de calado, inversiones verdes; ciudades de todo el mundo compartirán sus logros y desafíos.

    Los actores Harrison Ford y Alec Baldwin, el músico Rocky Dawuni, el exvicepresidente de Estados Unidos Al Gore, el exsecretario de Estado John Kerry y la conservacionista Jane Goodall serán algunas de las caras conocidas que se sumarán a este llamado a tomar acción por el clima.

     September 09, 2018
  • Info RPCV4EA posted an article
    Presidential Candidate Joe Biden's coalition for the planet moves us all forward see more

    [The linked article by Zoya Teirstein was published online at Grist on May 15, 2020 at 3:59 am]

    While Presidential candidate Joe Biden has been quiet for an election year candidate since the pandemic hit in mid-March, he and his team have been busy building coalitions, at least six to date.

    This climate coalition is dynamic and promising. It's agenda? "...it aims to accomplish the dual tasks of galvanizing the growing bloc of American voters who care about climate and furnishing Democrats with a workable offensive strategy on the issue of climate change."

    "The climate task force will be co-chaired by [John] Kerry and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and will also include [Varshini] Prakash of the Sunrise Movement. The idea is to find the common ground underlying the policy themes that fractured the party in the primary."

    Read the article here...

     

     

  • Info RPCV4EA posted an article
    Findings from a nationally representative survey on climate change in the era of a pandemic see more

    This was first published online by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication on May 19, 2020


    I find this to be a survey of particular interest, that proves the point on a broader scale of the National Peace Corps Association Global Issues Survey conducted in January -  February, 2020. As we know, these results showed 62% of respondents felt Climate Change was the #1 issue facing the world, with the next three concerns at 28%.  

    From the introduction to the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication:

    "Our latest national survey finds that, in the midst of the COVID-19 epidemic, American public opinion about climate change has remained steady and, in some cases, reached all-time highs. For example, Americans’ understanding that climate change is happening has tied the prior all-time high, and public understanding that global warming is human-caused has reached an all-time high. The report includes many other interesting findings, including how often Americans hear and talk about global warming."

    This survey was conducted during early April 2020, at a time when people sheltering at home due to COVID-19 was at a high. The Executive Summary of suggests that public engagement in the issue of climate change remains at or near historic high levels. We are increasingly worried about global warming and global health.

    Download the full report here...