Don't get discouraged, get active

(Photo of StepItUp demonstration in Santa Monica, Calif., Earth Day 2007 from Flickr and Step It Up 2007)

(Author’s note: I know many of my readers work on this issue every day of their lives. For some it’s a job. Others are volunteers. This isn’t targeted at you, but rather the many, many people who are concerned about global warming but feel helpless to do much about it. This is a pep talk for them.)

Weekly angst: A relative told me she no longer reads my blog on a regular basis because “I get too discouraged.” That wasn’t the point, but maybe others feel the same way. The point was to help you all:
* get informed,
* get motivated,
* get involved.
Perhaps I've fallen short helping you with the last item.

Just as the civil rights and anti-Vietnam war movements bubbled up from the people, so too must the global warming movement, if we are to accomplish what we need to in … well, a couple of years ago we were told we had just a decade to make big changes and avoid disaster.

What you can do
There are endless opportunities for individuals to get involved and help push the movement forward (quickly!).
* You can lobby your elected reps and you can vote.
* You can join forces with one or more environmental groups (see partial list in right column).
* You can reduce your own carbon footprint.

The League of Conservation Voters and Sierra Club are both very active in promoting global warming legislation and in endorsing candidates. The upcoming election is especially important at the national level. We need a president in the White House who will lead and reps in the House and Senate who will vote for cutting greenhouse gases sharply and quickly. LCV is also developing a “dirty dozen” list of those who need to be defeated.

Join and sign up for action alerts from those two and other environmental groups, so you can sign petitions, make phone calls and send e-mails about important votes. For example, extension of tax credits for renewable energy sources, like wind and solar, keeps falling one vote short of the 60 it needs in the Senate. (Yo, John McCain) Those extensions are needed to keep the alternative energy business healthy and reduce reliance on fossil fuels.

States and cities matter
The states are important too, because that’s where much of the trail-blazing is happening in the absence of federal action. So find out who your state reps are (if you don’t know now) and who is running in November. Work for the “good guys,” donate to their campaigns, lobby them in their district offices when they are home. Their vote or sponsorship of a clean-car or global warming bill could be critical. The local chapters of either LCV or Sierra Club can tell you what you need to know. Environment Illinois is also active in Illinois and the Environmental Law and Policy Center in the Midwest.

At the city level, urge your mayor and city council (or village board and president) to sign on to be a “cool city” with the 800 others across the country, and cut back on greenhouse emissions to meet Kyoto Protocol goals. Sierra Club has active volunteers working in their own communities to do just that.

With Earth Day coming up, there will be plenty of activities you can join this spring. One is Earth Hour, where businesses and individuals pledge to turn out their lights from 8-9 p.m. (regardless of time zone) on March 29. This is a worldwide event, with Chicago, San Francisco, Phoenix and Atlanta among the leading cities in the U.S. Learn more from a video at Earth Hour and sign up. (Thanks for the tip, Cara W.)

This is only one of many events you can participate in. I’ll do more to keep you informed of others.

Reduce your carbon footprint
At home, you can get rid of incandescent light bulbs, switching to CFLs or LEDs; bike, walk or take mass transit much more instead of driving; stop using plastic bags and water bottles; turn down the heat or air conditioning; and recycle. Check out “One Easy Thing” on The Daily Green for a lot more tips, or buy “The Low-Carbon Diet,” which I plan to review next month.

Many of you are already doing some of these things. But we need you to do more, to join forces with others to make things happen big and happen soon. You can make a difference. We're all part of the problem -- because of the way we live. We need to be part of the solution.