What Happened at Climate Action Now?

Today in Amherst Massachusetts, leaders from environmental groups, government, universities, churches, and synagogues met for Climate Action Now.  The event was organized in a six-week time frame to coincide with Friday’s speech and rally in Amherst featuring Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org.  The event is an accelerator for the growing momentum of the movement to manage climate change.  After welcome by Vick Kemper, Pastor of First Congregational Church in Amherst, the 300-plus participants broke into working groups and plotted their plans to address climate change on these fronts:

-           Institutional divestiture in coal, oil, and gas industries

-           Legislative action to end subsidies to coal, oil, and gas industries

-           Organizational action and alignment with 350.org and 350MA.org

-           Alternatives to nuclear in the post-carbon-energy future

-           Community-based renewable energy

-           Technology for removing carbon from the atmosphere

One of the objectives of the conference was to create a model for mobilizing and organizing.  The model can now be repeated on a region-by-region basis to turn popular frustration with inaction on climate change into political and economic force.  The Climate Action Now conference’s leadership experience has come from established public action organizations:

-           350.org

-           Alliance for Peace and Justice

-           Connecticut River Valley Earth First!

-           MoveOn Councils of Western Massachusetts

-           Sierra Club of Massachusetts

-           Traprock Center for Peace and Justice

-           Campaign for Community Solar

The event closed with an address by Margaret Bullitt-Jones, Priest Associate at Grace Episcopal Church, Amherst, Massachusetts.

Advanced coverage of the event was carried by the Daily Hampshire Gazette.