Vote for the Climate

To mitigate the worst impacts of climate change by limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, scientists from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report that we need to cut our greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030, and get to net zero emissions by 2050. Part of the solution to this climate crisis is to have all levels of government implement policy changes to protect the climate.

It’s election season. It’s time to research candidates up and down the ballot to decide who you will vote for. I encourage you to find out which candidates will act to protect the climate and give them your support. To do the research you can read about policy positions on the candidates’ websites and email your questions to them. Emailing them about issues that are important to you, including climate change, not only gets you crucial answers on their positions, it lets the potential representative know what topics are important to you.

Once you have determined which candidate you will support, in addition to voting for them, you can donate to their campaigns and volunteer by canvassing, writing postcards, and phone banking. Showing your support via a lawn sign is also helpful. Doing so can spark conversations with visitors and neighbors about why you support that candidate.

After the election, it is important to remind elected officials that climate change is important to you. For our local City Council , you can write or call with your concerns and suggestions. Contact information is available on the Elected Officials page of the City of Alameda website. Speaking up at City Council meetings on climate-related agenda items also helps. Upcoming City Council agendas are also on the City website.

For contacting state and federal representatives there is a free app called Climate Action Now . Based on your zip code, the app determines your state and federal representatives. It has canned emails or scripts for sending or calling on climate-related topics and upcoming bills. There are also actions to send emails to corporations or news organizations, to make pledges to reduce emissions, and to learn more about climate change. The user earns points with each action taken and trees are planted after certain milestones are achieved.

Take action for a healthy environment.

Joyce Mercado is an author and member of Community Action for a Sustainable Alameda (CASA). Her columns are collected at alamedapost.com/Joyce-Mercado . She can be reached at jlmercado246@gmail.com .

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