Coronavirus. Protests. Police. Elections. Masks. There is a lot to be thinking about right now.
Add that pesky climate emergency back on the list:
“The world has only six months in which to change the course of the climate crisis and prevent a post-lockdown rebound in greenhouse gas emissions that would overwhelm efforts to stave off climate catastrophe, one of the world’s foremost energy experts has warned.
NOTICE OF BOARD MEETING
The Windham Southeast School District Board will meet remotely at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 17, 2020 via Zoom:
With tides higher than they have been in decades, many of south Florida’s drainage systems and seawalls are no longer sufficient. Here’s a photo of a King tide at a residential neighborhood in Miami Beach. Some of those cars are “toast”.
Miami has the most to lose in terms of financial assets of any coastal city in the world, just above Guangzhou, China and New York City.
NOTICE OF MEETING
The Windham Southeast School District Climate Crisis Task Force will meet remotely via Zoom at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, May 13.
The Windham Southeast School District Board will hold a Public Information Meeting on the Proposed FY ’21 Budget at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, March 10, 2020 in the Brattleboro Area Middle School’s Multi-Purpose Room, 109 Sunny Acres, Brattleboro. (Note: Childcare will be provided)
The Windham Southeast School District Climate Crisis Task Force will meet at 4:00 p.m. on Monday, February 3 in the Community Room at the Brooks Memorial Library, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro.
AGENDA
I. CALL TO ORDER – Thomas Nolan, Task Force Chair
Burlington, VT, January 23, 2020 – Some of Vermont’s most iconic companies gave employees time off today to lobby policy makers at the Statehouse in Montpelier. More than 100 employees met with elected officials and called on the Governor and the legislature to make climate change a priority in this legislative session and to pass a package of laws to ensure that Vermont meets its goals of a 40% reduction of GHG levels by 2030, and 80-95% reduction by 2050.
The employees warned that Vermont’s failure to reduce carbon emissions is damaging to the economy, environment, and their way of life.
Mr. President, Madam Speaker, Mr. Chief Justice, members of the General Assembly, honored guests and fellow Vermonters:
Today, I welcome the opening of the legislative session with the same optimism I had as a freshman senator from Washington County nearly two decades ago.
I come before you to report on the state of the state, to reflect on the work we’ve done and to share a vision and priorities for our future.
The Windham Southeast School District Climate Crisis Task Force will meet at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, December 12, 2019 in the Green Street School Library.
NOTICE OF MEETING
The Windham Southeast School District Climate Crisis Task Force will meet at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, October 23 in the Community Room at the Brooks Memorial Library, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro.
The Climate Strike. What an incredible outpouring of commitment, community, passion and determination.
Hundreds of people-( some counts are as many as 1000!) many of them elementary and high school students took to the streets to voice their fears and anger about the mess adults have made of this earth and the terrible legacy they are left with.
Today there is a world Climate Strike. It is amazing, and amazing that it took this long.
As kids almost 50 years ago, we were already concerned about the environment. Earth Day got started, we read Ranger Rick and National Geographic World, and we knew that littering made an old Native American by the side of the road cry. We knew about animals going extinct from hunting and pollution. We used to plant trees on Arbor Day each June. We read the Lorax.
The postponed Declaration of Climate Emergency will once again be on the agenda for the Brattleboro Selectboard, but the bigger focus for the board will be town finances. There will be a review of the Long Term Financial Plan, scheduling of FY20 budget meetings, yearly and monthly financial reports, and more.
Municipal self-governance, third class liquor licenses, renewable energy projects, grants, and committee appointments will round things out. You can bring up other items not on the agenda during public participation.
The Brattleboro Selectboard listened to a large crowd of concerned citizens before deciding by a split vote to create a new Sustainability Coordinator position for the Town. The length of this agenda item pushed back most other agenda items, which led to rushed discussions and decision making later in the evening.
Here is the full text and comments of the proposed “Declaration of Climate Emergency” from Brattleboro Common Sense. The issue is on the agenda for the next meeting of the Brattleboro Selectboard.
….
Whereas this article, to be known as the Declaration of Climate Emergency, is in accordance with a resolution promoted by the selectboard in 2003, and with resolutions on energy and climate change promoted by Brattleboro Common Sense through votes of the people in 2010, 2014, and of town representatives in 2018; and whereas the youth of Brattleboro are calling on today’s town leaders to formally acknowledge the truth of the emergency;
A climate emergency declaration, sustainability issues, and the celebration of the police are all on the next agenda of the Brattleboro Selectboard.
There will be a discussion of a Charter Review commission being re-formed, business loans, and talk of public art proposals. Continuing the focus on police, the board will approve a police carport, new fingerprint scanners, and new police vehicles. You can, as always, bring up other items not on the agenda during Public Participation.
Before the Brattleboro Selectboard could get to regular business, they heard from many agitated citizens on issues such as the homeless, flowers, and librarians getting paid less than homeless day work program employees. This was interrupted by a climate emergency protest, adding to the list of grievances.
Eventually the board got tho their scheduled business of updates on the DBA and Project CARE, approving of contracts, a short discussion of childcare at public meetings, and more. It was quite an outpouring of interest in local government, from many angles.
Eat Oysters!
Oysters are salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in brackish marine habitats. Shells are highly calcified and irregular in shape. Oysters are consumed cooked or raw and are commonly regarded as a delicacy.
After admonishing the school directors at the Windham South East School Union meeting Tuesday night June 25 for failing to educate students about climate change Kurt Daims of Brattleboro Common Sense (BCS) proposed an advisory resolution to include Climate Crisis in every regular meeting of the school directors. One person spoke against the resolution, and after an enthusiastic debate the resolution was approved.
Had it ever been suggested that the Strolling Fair would improve if it was squeezed onto the Common such a notion would have been summarily dismissed with a great guffaw. Not worth the effort even thinking about. Then the Retreat decided that it could no longer tolerate an entire day of tumult on its front lawn. Its residential denizens became too frazzled and distraught staring out between the iron bars at the frolicking crowd eating ice cream and dripping sausage, oblivious to the fate of those inside. The Strolling was booted. Like it or not it was going to be packed onto the Common. This produced one of the best Fairs ever!
