It’s real. It’s us. It’s bad. We can fix it.
Here on Cape Cod, a growing coalition of municipal boards, civic groups, faith groups and businesses are uniting to bring about an accelerated transition to renewable energy, starting at the local level. In 2020, twelve of the 15 towns on Cape Cod have declared a Climate Emergency at at their Town Meeting, signaling a commitment to take the necessary steps to reach net zero emissions in the earliest technologically and economically feasible time.
This is an all-hands on deck moment in the truest sense. Here’s how you can get involved in the Cape Cod Climate Emergency Initiative:
Attend at the next monthly 350CapeCod meeting. Email 350Cape@gmail.com for a Zoom link.
Join a Climate Action group or “CAN” in your town:
Barnstable: Michelle Sgarlat, msgarlat36@gmail.com, BarnstableCAN@gmail.com.
Bourne: Barry Margolin, Barrymargolin1@comcast.netBrewster: Chris Powicki, cpowicki@weeinfo.com
Chatham: Tom Farkas, tom@capecodpermaculture.org Janet Williams, janet.williams27@gmail.com
Dennis: Nancy Davison, nancy.d1007@gmail.com, Wayne Bergeron, waynea.bergeron@comcast.net
Eastham: Elaine Conners, erconners@aol.com; Charlie Sullivan, csblaze1@gmail.com,
Falmouth: Contact: FalmouthCAN@gmail.com. Contact: David Leslie; Steering Team: Rosemary Carey, Mike Fogarty, David Leslie, Eleanor Ling, David Mark-Welch, Susan Richman, and Lyn Schad. More info: https://capecodclimate.org/falmouth-can/
Harwich: Roseanne Shapiro, lunaseacreation@comcast.net; Deborah Ennis, deborah.ennis@healingtherapiescapecod.com; Maureen Condon, maureen.condon@comcast.net
Mashpee: Mary Waygan, waygan@hotmail.com; Kathy Jacobsen, kathrynalice@comcast.net
Orleans: Contact: Walter North, walterenorth@yahoo.com
Provincetown: Brian O’Malley, ptown.doc@verizon.net
Sandwich: Lee Burns, Lee Burns110@gmail.com
Truro: Michael Holt, pianotroubador@gmail.com
Wellfleet: John Cumbler, john.cumbler@louisville.edu
Yarmouth: Barry Margolin, bmargolin@paintedscreen.net; Sheila Place, sbplace583@gmail.com, Susan Starkey, starkey.susan@gmail.com
Write to your town leadership (using resources below) and ask for their endorsement, starting with the Select Board, Energy Committee, Conservation Committee, Affordable Housing, Health Department, etc. Report your endorsements to: 350Cape@gmail.com.
Use these Resources:
Here is a list of endorsements as of May 4, 2020.
Here is a sample letter to request endorsements.
Below is a Sample Climate Emergency Petition (From Falmouth - Approved June 2020):
ARTICLE 37: To see if the Town will vote to adopt the following resolution: Be it resolved that the Town of Falmouth recognizes that the climate emergency, driven by human activity including energy consumption and land use practices and leading to global warming, rising seas, deadly storms, dangerous heat waves, acidifying oceans, and melting ice sheets, poses a threat to the health, safety and economic security of the residents of the Town. The Town of Falmouth therefore adopts as its policy the objective of reducing net greenhouse gas emissions from human activity within and by the Town to zero at the earliest technically and economically feasible time, and requests the Board of Selectmen to direct all officers and departments of the Town to take such measures within the scope of their respective responsibilities and authority as may be necessary and prudent to facilitate such policy and objective. On petition of Rosemary Carey.