politics

Each day, we post one or two morsels of illuminating information or inspiration on The Green Spotlight’s Facebook Page. If you have a Facebook account, we hope you’ll Like or Follow our page, and also Share the page or some of its posts with friends sometimes. To make sure that Facebook will continue to show you our posts on your FB homepage/newsfeed, visit our page regularly and interact with (e.g., Like or comment on) a couple of your favorite posts. Otherwise, FB is unlikely to show you most of our posts, due to their unfortunate algorithm.

We now also have a Bluesky page, and we welcome you to join us there. We recommend this network, especially as a good alternative to X/Twitter/Xitter.

For now, we still have a Twitter page, and our topic-specific Twitter lists, which you can follow. But we are spending less time on that site and our account is often locked (so that only existing connections can interact with it).

Thank you for being a part of our online communities!

Share

September 27, 2024
[Click here to comment]

Photo by M. Landman (eagle wave cloud)Please share some of the links and info. below, e.g., on your social media pages, or by emailing or texting them to friends and family. At the end of this post, we also list some quotations (and graphics) that are relevant to voting; you also might want to share a few of those.

Sections:

  • the candidates’ climate/environmental records;
  • DT’s statements, deeds, and character;
  • JD Vance’s statements and character (and lack of experience);
  • the GOP’s Project 2025 agenda;
  • the GOP’s election interference and subversion plans;
  • third-party spoiler candidates;
  • pertinent quotations

The Candidates’ Climate/Environmental Records

Trump’s Statements, Deeds, and Character

Many people seem to have already forgotten about so many of the outrageous and heinous things that DT has said and done over the years (and how awful it was to live through the onslaught of his first term), and many people are too busy to pay much attention to what he’s saying and doing now. There are still so many daily outrages, it’s hard to keep up with all of them or to remember even a fraction of the past outrages. Most of us could use some periodic reminders:

J.D. Vance’s Statements and Character (and lack of experience)

GOP’s Project 2025 Agenda

GOP’s Election Interference & Subversion Plans

Third-party (Spoiler) Candidates

In the U.S. system (unlike some European, proportional-representation systems), third-party candidates are never viable at the national level. So a third-party vote is not only a wasted vote but, because of our undemocratic Electoral College system, a 3rd-party vote (particularly in swing states) quite often serves as a “spoiler” vote that enables the worst of the 2 viable candidates to win. There is evidence that the small margin of votes for third-party (e.g., Green Party) candidates in the past (e.g., Jill Stein and Ralph Nader) did contribute to Trump and Bush winning one of each of their elections (despite the fact that both of them lost the overall/popular vote to the Democratic candidate in those elections). If most of those 3rd party voters had instead voted for Hillary Clinton and Al Gore, those candidates would have won (and our country would be in a very different place now, especially the Supreme Court and their catastrophic rulings). This is why the GOP and Russian bots have been actively promoting third-party candidates in this election:

 

Also see our recent post: Election 2024: Ways to Support Voters and Protect Democracy

An important reminder for everyone:

 

 

And many young people don’t have a photo ID! Everyone should check their state’s official Elections site to find out what their state’s current voter ID requirements are (18 states have passed more stringent ID requirements since 2020!). Or go to VoteRiders.org, or call/text their hotline: 866-432-8683, for info on or assistance with getting voter ID before the election.

 

 

Pertinent Quotations

Voting and politics are not a game, and our decisions about candidates and issues on our ballots are not something to take lightly. Politics and elections (at federal, state, and local levels) matter a lot, because the resulting government policies affect all of our lives, every single day, in countless ways. Therefore, politics is personal, and the personal is unavoidably political.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“People often say, with pride, ‘I’m not interested in politics.’ They might as well say, ‘I’m not interested in my standard of living, my health, my job, my rights, my freedoms, my future or any future.’ …If we mean to keep any control over our world and lives, we must be interested in politics.”
– Martha Gellhorn

 “All progress is precarious.”
– Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Voting isn’t a valentine. It’s a chess move.”
– Rebecca Solnit

“Our job is not to elect a savior. Our job is to elect someone we can effectively pressure.”
– Bill McKibben

“The perfect is the enemy of the good.”
– Voltaire

“Democracy cannot succeed unless those who express their choice are prepared to choose wisely.”
– Franklin D. Roosevelt

 “Democracy is not a state. It is an act, and each generation must do its part.”
– John Lewis

 

Companion posts to read and share:

To find some good groups to volunteer with or donate to, see:

Election 2024: Ways to Support Voters and Protect Democracy

To find out about your state’s voter registration deadlines, mail/absentee voting options, voter ID requirements, and early voting options in your county, see:

State by State Voting Information and Links

For additional election and voting-related links, see:

Share

September 5, 2024
[Click here to comment]

This listing includes a wide variety of groups that focus on women’s issues. Most of the organizations that are listed here are based in the U.S. and have a U.S. focus, but some international groups are included, as well. We are not familiar with every group listed below, so inclusion in the listing does not constitute an endorsement.

We‘ve organized the groups into the following categories:

  • Environmental
  • General
  • Political action / representation
  • Health / reproductive health
  • Legal
  • Safety
  • BIPOC
  • Military / veterans
  • International
  • Media and films

A few organizations have been listed in more than one of these categories.

ENVIRONMENTAL

GENERAL (women’s rights, equality, empowerment, advocacy)

POLITICAL ACTION / REPRESENTATION

HEALTH / REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH

LEGAL

SAFETY (from violence / assault)

BIPOC women (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color)

WOMEN IN THE MILITARY / VETERANS 

INTERNATIONAL

MEDIA

Films  (this is just a small selection; we’ll add more to this list over time):

 

If there are other groups or websites that you think should be added to this listing, please mention them in the Comments.

If you’re on Twitter, also check out and follow our Women’s Rights/Advocacy Twitter list.

Related posts:

 

#womenslivesmatter #womenarepeople #WomensRightsAreHumanRights #personhood #liberty

Share

July 31, 2024
[Click here to comment]

BOOKS

Recently published books that you might want to check out, read, and/or share with others:

Saving Ourselves: From Climate Shocks to Climate Action, by Dana R. Fisher

What If We Get It Right? Visions of Climate Futures, by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson

Climate Action for Busy People, by Cate Mingoya-LaFortune

Invisible Ink: Writing from the Edge of Extinction, by Leo Joubert

The Language of Climate Politics: Fossil-Fuel Propaganda and How to Fight It, by Genevieve Guenther

The Solutionary Way: Tranform Your Life, Your Community, and the World for the Better, by Zoe Weil

Multisolving: Creating Systems Change in a Fractured World, by Elizabeth Sawin  (To be published November 2024)

The Weight of Nature: How a Changing Climate Changes Our Brains, by Clayton Page Aldern

Terrible Beauty: Reckoning with Climate Complicity and Rediscovering Our Soul, by Auden Schendler  (To be published November 2024)

Life as We Know It (Can Be): Stories of People, Climate, and Hope in a Changing World, by Bill Weir

Troubled Waters (fiction), by Mary Annaise Heglar

—————
Autocracy, Inc.: The Dictators Who Want to Run the World
, by Anne Applebaum

On Freedom, by Timothy Snyder

Kingdom of Rage: The Rise of Christian Extremism and the Path Back to Peace, by Elizabeth Neumann

Wild Faith: How the Christian Right Is Taking Over America, by Talia Lavin  (To be published October 2024)

The Conspiracy to End America: Five Ways My Old Party is Driving Our Democracy to Autocracy, by Stuart Stevens


FILMS

New documentary films that you might want to watch or mention to others:

Drama film (based on the real life of DT):  The Apprentice  (to be released in theaters Oct. 11)

 

I will add more books and films to this list as the year goes on and I learn about others that seem important and compelling.

Do you have favorite books or authors or films to recommend? Please mention them in the Comments.

Related posts:

Share

June 18, 2024
[Click here to comment]

So many life-and-death issues are on the line in the upcoming election: the speed and scale of climate/planetary breakdown (i.e. the habitability of our planet); protecting women’s lives, personhood, bodily autonomy, and medical privacy; protecting Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and affordable ACA health care plans; reducing gun violence massacres and tragedies; protecting marginalized and dehumanized groups of people; protecting and expanding workers’ rights and economic justice; the appointment of future Supreme Court justices and other judges whose decisions will have far-reaching impacts on our lives; the handling of future pandemics; and preventing the use of nuclear weapons, to name just a few.

I know it seems like people always say “This is the most important election of our lifetime.” In a sense, it’s almost always true, if you just add “…so far.” We can’t go back and change the outcome of past elections, and we don’t know what future elections will look like. But every election is extremely important and every outcome has serious and lasting consequences for our everyday lives—and many issues are becoming more dire over time—so the next election is always going to be the next best chance we have to influence the conditions we will be living under in the short term and the long term.

This election is different from previous elections in some important and disturbing ways:

1) New voter suppression laws and tactics are in effect: Since the last Presidential election, some states have passed laws instituting rules that will make it harder for certain groups of people to vote (especially young people and students, people with disabilities, poor and homeless people, and the elderly), which could disenfranchise many of them. For example, tens of millions of voting-age citizens don’t have the types of voter ID that are now required in their states, and many are not aware of the ID requirements.

2) Insurrectionists are in office and running for office: This is the first Presidential election since the January 6th insurrection (attempted coup) happened. A number of current elected officials at state, local, and federal levels (and other people who are now running for office) participated in that insurrection in one way or another, or are still actively denying the results of the 2020 presidential election (propagating the Big Lie); and many of them are already saying that they will not accept (or certify) the outcome of an election that does not go their way. We have a patriotic responsibility to vote against insurrectionists and election deniers; and

3) AI deepfakes and “cheap fakes” (video, audio, and images) can now easily be manipulated to impersonate candidates or others, or to show excerpted statements completely out of context, to confuse or misinform voters. It can be difficult to tell what is fake or real, and even if they are debunked, last-minute deepfakes before the election could have an effect on how people vote (or whether they vote at all). Intelligence officials are warning that Russia (as well as China and Iran) have been using fake accounts on social media to spread disinformation and sow division in the U.S.  They do this through many means, deepfakes being one of them.

If the U.S. allows a corrupt, sociopathic, Putin-backed, adjudicated rapist and defamer, convicted felon (with numerous other charges awaiting trial), compulsive liar, grifting conman, and wanna-be dictator (along with his criminal henchmen, “yes men,” and corrupt family) to take power for a second time, it will likely be the end of our long, admirable experiment with American democracy and it could be the last legitimate election we have for a generation or more.

Many people don’t realize how quickly a country can lose its freedoms and how far it can fall in the hands of an authoritarian. Our democracy is far from perfect now, but things can get much, much worse. Basic rights that we take for granted could suddenly be stripped away. We should learn from the recent experiences of countries like Hungary, Turkey, and Belarus. I cannot overstate or adequately express how much I don’t want to live out the rest of my life under that type—or any type—of anti-democratic, authoritarian, or theocratic rule—and how much you and almost everyone else would hate it and suffer because of it, as well.

Ways to help voters and Get Out the Vote

Elections are decided by those who show up to vote and who vote for one of the viable candidates (in the U.S. system, third-party candidates are not viable at the national level), and particularly by voters in “swing states,” which will determine the Electoral College outcome of the Presidential election (please click here to tell your state representatives to pass the National Popular Vote Law in your state; it has been passed in 18 states so far and is getting close to the threshold needed to go into effect).

Current “swing states” include: Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, New Hampshire, and Florida. Other “purple” states include: Ohio, Texas, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, Colorado, Virginia, Maine, Iowa, Kansas, Alaska, Nebraska, Missouri, South Carolina, and North Dakota, among others.

Here are some ways that each of us can make sure people are able to vote and to protect the election and democracy:

  1. Look up your state’s voter registration deadline and share that information with others you know, including anyone who might not yet be registered (or who has moved recently and might need to re-register). In some states, people must be registered more than a month before the election in order to vote in that election, while a few states allow people to register right up to or on Election Day.
  2. Remember to check your registration status to make sure it’s still Active, at least once a year (including just over a month before each election, when you should still have time to re-register) and remind others to do so, as well. Go to your state’s Elections/Secretary of State website, or contact your county’s Elections office to check your registration, or go to  Vote411.org. You should also make sure your registration has your correct, current address. Some states are doing overly aggressive purges of their voter registration rolls to “clean them up” but they often remove people who should not be removed.  If your name has been improperly removed from the list of voters, you should file a complaint with the Department of Justice (online at civilrights.justice.gov, or by calling 1-800-253-3931).
  3. Make sure people in your state (and people you know in battleground/swing states) know what types of ID are required for voting there now. In the last year or two, the requirements in some states have gotten much more stringent (for example, some states will not accept student IDs now). Did you know that 11% of American adults (26 million people, including many young people, elderly or disabled people, and low-income people) don’t have a current photo ID? If someone needs assistance with obtaining the required ID or getting it free of charge, they can call or text the VoteRiders hotline: 866-ID-2-VOTE (866-432-8683), or email info@voteriders.org (or contact Spread the Vote/Project ID).
  4. There is a much greater need for poll workers than ever before. Sign up to be a paid poll worker through Power the Polls. It’s important to sign up well before the election so you will have time to get the required training. Because the GOP is threatening to use voter intimidation tactics at some polling places, and because some new poll workers might not always provide correct information to voters, it’s also necessary to have fair-minded poll monitors, or “poll watchers” or “election observers” on hand. Sign up to be a nonpartisan Election Protection volunteer (you can also sign up via Common Cause); there are different roles you can choose from, to help on site or from home. (Alternatively you could sign up as a partisan poll watcher through your local or state Democratic Party office.) Those who have a legal background (lawyers, paralegals, and law students) can volunteer through WeTheAction.
  5. Support some voting/election-related organizations (or campaigns) now. Please don’t wait until the fall to start helping them; that could be too late to make a difference. Here are some groups to consider supporting (or volunteering for):
  1. There are many different ways you can volunteer to help Get Out the Vote, in your state or in one or more of the swing states that will determine the Electoral College outcome of the election. You could volunteer for a specific candidate or campaign, or with your state or local Democratic party. Or you can do postcarding (or writing letters), texting, or calling voters through groups like:

You can find other ways to be involved in expanding voting access and supporting democracy in the Americans of Conscience Checklist, or through many of the other organizations listed under item #5, above.

 

Also see our NEW companion post:  Vital Information to Share Before the Election
(That post includes info and links on the candidates’ climate/environmental records; DT’s statements, deeds, and character; JD Vance’s statements and character (and lack of experience); the GOP’s Project 2025 agenda; the GOP’s election interference and subversion plans; third-party spoiler candidates; plus pertinent graphics and quotations.)

Other related posts:

Twitter lists:

 

#VoteReady #GOTV #VotingMatters #ClimateVoter #YouthVote #VoteLikeYourLifeDependsOnIt #WomensLivesMatter #DemocracyMatters #DemocracyIsOnTheBallot

Share

May 9, 2024
[Click here to comment]

The climate movement has been growing much larger and building power in recent years. The vast majority of people in the U.S. and in the world are concerned about the climate and want to see more climate action. And there’s no shortage of climate-focused organizations. But we do need more people who’ve been sitting on the sidelines to join the existing efforts and turn their climate concern into action, so we can reach a critical mass. There is strength in numbers and in collective action.

strength in numbers

You don’t have to identify as an “activist” to amplify, support, or participate in the work of climate organizations, and you don’t need to wait for an invitation to join or to get involved—but if you’d like one, consider this your cordial, official invitation! All of us in the climate movement welcome you!

If you aren’t already familiar with a bunch of climate organizations, check out the list below. I recommend following at least a few of these (or other) climate organizations online (e.g., on social media) to get to know what they’re about and to get a sense of which ones have an approach or a tone that resonates with you the most. Then sign up to join—or get on the mailing list of—one or more of them. And start sharing their posts and actions with others in your social network.

This list of climate organizations is fairly comprehensive but it is not exhaustive. Most of the following groups are based in the U.S. and have a national or international scope, and most are non-profits. Many of these groups have regional or local chapters. (As I learn about other national/international groups over time, I will be adding more to this list.) Many other climate organizations exist, including local, grassroots groups and projects, all over the world. If you can’t find a local group, chapter, or committee in your town, you could start an informal climate group or project in your community, neighborhood, workplace, school, or religious congregation.

Note: In this first list, below, the organizations that are in bold type are the groups that I am most familiar with and feel most comfortable recommending, but all of these organizations have an important role to play. Are you familiar with some of these?

These are organizations for people in particular professions or demographics:

There are also a number of faith-based (religious) climate groups.

Also, many broad-based environmental organizations include climate issues among the spectrum of environmental issues they work on. After all, climate change affects and is affected by every other environmental (and social) issue.

And many other types of environmental organizations with a specific focus (e.g., environmental justice, youth/young people, health, land/forest conservation, animal/species protection, etc.) often also recognize and address climate impacts in their work.

If you would like assistance with identifying a few organizations that are the best fit for your particular interests or your preferred organizational strategies/approaches (e.g., legal, legislative/lobbying, direct action, education/awareness building, etc.), I’m a climate advisor and I can assist you with that.

If you would like to recommend a climate organization that isn’t on this list, please mention it in the Comments!

 

Climate Resources

The following are information sources—including some media/news sites—that provide science-based, fact-based information on the climate crisis and climate solutions. Most of these are based in the U.S.  These sites can help you get more informed or help you educate others about climate issues:

For other environmental and general news sources, see our post on Reputable and Fact-Based News and Information Sources.

For other types of climate resources, also see our post on Books, Films and TV, and TED Talks.

Other relevant posts:

Share

February 27, 2024
[Click here to comment]

So much is at stake in the next election (climate, democracy, Rule of Law, voting rights, women’s personhood, health and reproductive rights, etc.). Please double-check to make sure you’re registered to vote (and your registration information is accurate and up to date), then vote (early—in person or by mail, if those are options where you are), and encourage and help others you know to vote—and to make sure they have the required type of ID—especially young or first-time voters or people who have moved. (If you vote by mail, read all instructions very carefully, sign where indicated, and make sure your signature is representative of your official signature so it should closely match the signature they have on file and is not likely to be rejected. Drop it off at an official drop-off location, or mail it in well before the deadline so it will arrive in time. Make sure you use adequate postage, if postage is required. Then check for verification that it was received and counted.)

Here is a listing of our most recent posts related to voting, elections, and democracy (in the United States):

Key voting resources/websites:

On Twitter, please follow these lists of key groups and experts:

and our lists that are specific to:

Share

October 17, 2022
[Click here to comment]

photo by M. LandmanFor the love of all that is good; for the sake of a habitable planet with a survivable climate, for the sake of democracy and voting rights, for the sake of our personhood, bodily autonomy, self-determination, and fundamental rights and civil liberties, for the sake of reducing the threat of gun violence, for the sake of children and the future of humanity; to protect Social Security and Medicare for elders and people with disabilities; to protect LGBTQ people and immigrants/refugees and every marginalized and dehumanized group; and for so SO many other reasons I shouldn’t have to list here: PLEASE (yes, I’m begging), please vote, and also do something to help Get Out the Vote and get people you know to vote (Blue) in the upcoming elections and in all elections—especially young people or others who may not have voted before (or who have moved and need to re-register) and people who live in swing/”purple” or “red” states or districts. Help them get registered; they might just need a little nudge or a link or a form. Then take them with you to vote or to drop off your signed mail-in ballots.

Too often, many Democrats and young people sit out elections as if they don’t matter (especially when the presidency isn’t on the ballot), and as a result, progress gets significantly rolled back or obstructed (which has very real effects on people’s everyday lives, livelihoods, and their future), locally and nationally. If we don’t expand the Dem’s razor-thin Senate majority, secure the House majority, add more Dems to many state legislatures, and get more Dem Secretaries of State, Attorneys General, and Governors elected or re-elected in swing states (where Republicans are actively working to elect SOS’s and AG’s who will refuse to certify any voting result that doesn’t go their way), it is not an exaggeration to say that we are likely to lose our democracy and so many things we hold dear (or take for granted), including many of our basic rights and liberties.

Here are some groups I recommend joining or supporting (and amplifying); click on a few, and pick one or two!

 

Focused on state and local campaigns/races:
Environmental/climate voter groups:

On Twitter, please follow these lists:

Voting / Elections

State and Local Dem Groups

and our lists that are specific to:

We might add other state lists later this year, and we add more accounts (“members”) to our existing lists as we discover them.

 

Related blog posts with more information:

 

Please share a few of the links above with your friends and/or on social media, now and before October/November. Thank you!

Share

July 8, 2022
[Click here to comment]

The past 10 years or so, it’s felt like new, large-scale crises emerge almost every day. It’s hard to focus on or prioritize any one issue, as so many issues are of dire importance.

I wish we could live in a world without any traumatic crises or catastrophes. But given that that isn’t a realistic option: I wish we could focus almost all of our attention and efforts on climate action and environmental protection right now, since climate breakdown (and biodiversity loss) is an urgent and worsening crisis (with new climate-related disasters occurring around the world every week) and it requires a bold and immediate response. But this crisis keeps getting overshadowed and crowded out by other real crises and interconnected, existential threats: from the ongoing and ever-morphing COVID-19 pandemic, to the ongoing struggle between democracy/human rights vs. authoritarianism, extremism, and political violence (abroad and at home), to increasing attacks on women’s rights, civil rights, and voting rights in the United States, to war and violence—and all of its attendant issues, including senseless death, destruction, brutality, trauma, and suffering; war crimes, humanitarian crises, mass migration of refugees, nuclear security/safety risks (from threats of nuclear strikes to potentially catastrophic damage to active and inactive nuclear reactors/radioactive waste), environmental contamination (crimes against humanity and nature) and animal suffering, oil and gas supply/dependence, food supply risks, and the resulting economic effects. And this, of course, is only a partial list of significant current issues, the vast majority of which are human-caused.

None of us gets to choose which era we’re born into or what types of historical events and cataclysms we have to live through. But we should all try to rise to the moment we’re in and push for shifts in a more positive direction.

We all have so many personal responsibilities and daily struggles and stressors of our own that it can be very hard to take in what’s going on in other people’s lives and in other parts of the world. Many people turn away because they are already overwhelmed and are in survival mode, and simply can’t cope with or absorb any more sad or scary news or more problems that seem intractable; we all go through certain periods of our lives, or parts of our days, when our own problems (or our families’) are all (or more than) we can handle. Taking on the weight of the world can be crushing. Almost none of us are unscathed or truly OK these days, as most of us are facing numerous challenges at societal and individual levels. It’s important to “put your own oxygen mask on first, before helping others with theirs” because you can’t help others unless you are alive, relatively sane and healthy, and able to function. But whenever we do have the capacity, we should strive to be compassionate, stay aware of what is going on outside of our immediate lives and circumstances, and try to make a difference whenever and wherever we can, however small our efforts may seem, on whatever specific issue(s) we feel we can make an impact on. Helping others (and humanity at large) also gives our own lives a greater sense of meaning and purpose.

“I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do.” – Edward Everett Hale

To get updates, information, and expert insights on some of the important issues of our time, you may want to visit (and follow) a couple of my curated lists of Twitter accounts. Note: I created a few of these lists recently, and I regularly add new accounts to each list:

And these are some of The Green Spotlight’s blog posts that are related to current issues:

Posts Related to Democracy and Social Change 

Climate and Energy-Related Solutions, Tips, and Resources

COVID and Long COVID: Important Facts and New Findings [NEW]

COVID Response and Relief

Tips for Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response

Wildfire Prevention and Risk Reduction

Resilience: Disaster-Resistant and Adaptive Design and Planning

Animal Protection, Rescue, and Advocacy

Wisdom from Hope in the Dark

Great Quotations on Action, Activism, and Change

There are countless organizations doing important and noble work to address many of the issues mentioned above. It’s not easy for me to narrow down a list of only a few to highlight. But I will try. The following are just a few groups that address big, cross-cutting issues; I will be adding more to this list soon. Because so many of humanity’s issues and crises intersect and spring from the same or similar causes or contributors, it’s helpful to use systems thinking to see the big picture, connect the dots, and synthesize messages and actions; doing so can enable us to address multiple problems at once. (While the following are national and international organizations that have a broad scope, more local/regional, decentralized, grassroots groups and efforts are also extremely important and necessary, and big groups should partner up with small and local groups. There are just way too many grassroots groups in every area of the world to attempt to list them here.)

As for Russia’s war on Ukraine (and the many terrible consequences of it), here are a few things you can do to help or to show solidarity with Ukraine (as well as greater Europe, other countries facing conflicts, and our entire, interconnected world):

  1. Support Global Giving’s Ukraine Crisis Relief Fund, other humanitarian aid and disaster response groups, refugee assistance groups, the Clean Futures Fund, or other organizations in the region.
  2. Reduce your use of oil and gas, e.g. by flying less (or not at all), driving less, getting an electric or non-gas-guzzling car (or electric bicycle), supporting renewable energy (via your utility, city, and state), using solar power, switching from gas to electric furnaces and electric/induction stoves (and electric leaf blowers and mowers), getting a heat pump, not heating or cooling your home as much, etc.
  3. Lobby/educate against the use (and development) of nuclear power and nuclear weapons, locally, nationally, and globally. Support: the immediate decommissioning of existing nuclear plants and neutralization of nuclear materials, no-first-use nuke policies, nuclear disarmament and arms reduction policies, uranium mining bans, etc.
  4. Reduce your consumption of wheat/grain-based products, and never waste food. (Ukraine is an agricultural “bread basket” of the world, and its ability to grow grains and other foods will be severely impacted by the war, affecting the food supply and food prices everywhere.) If you have a little space and a little time, grow some food plants on your land/yard/windowsills—ideally enough that you can share some with others. Support local organic farmers and small farms, as well food banks/pantries, gleaning groups, and food security and hunger organizations, locally and globally.
  5. Support and amplify pro-democracy, anti-authoritarian groups and efforts, as well as pro-peace, anti-war groups and efforts.
  6. Plant some sunflowers this spring or summer.
Share

March 31, 2022
[Click here to comment]