Bill McKibben, speaking to a large crowd at the First Methodist Church in Seattle on July 2, where PSARA had a table, was reminding everyone that throughout human history, we humans have burned wood and then coal and then oil and gas for energy and warmth. Then, after using the fuel, we had to go get more, chopping down more forests, removing mountain tops, and digging for more oil and gas and spewing greenhouse gasses. His central message was: we need to change what we use for energy and the energy of the sun, our own thermonuclear star, will produce the power we need. No more burning up precious resources.
He reminded us about where all of this burning has got us – to a planet Earth that is fast becoming unlivable. We are way out of “normal”. It is no longer a future threat. Thousands are dying from heat right now all around the globe. We had the first category 5 hurricane to ever develop in June. The world’s oceans are heating and sea life is suffocating. The list could go on and time is short; we have to act fast.
And, we are also facing an election that could turn our world to ash.
First, some good news: wind and solar power is rapidly increasing round the world. These renewable energy sources are now growing faster than any energy sources in history and they will keep growing rapidly because the costs are falling dramatically. Batteries are improving and batteries made with sodium are being developed to rival batteries made with lithium. At the current pace we will more than double renewable capacity by 2030! But, to limit global warming to 1.50 C, or even 2.0 C we need to triple the rate of the build-out of renewables.
Meanwhile, because of the power of the fossil fuel oligarchs, governments are still pouring trillions of dollars into fossil fuels. The oil and gas industries ferociously resist any attempt to cut back on their profits and make their assets worthless. For instance, when Biden called a pause on LNG exports in January of this year, the gas corporations screeched loudly, and it only took until July for a federal judge to overturn this restriction and allow these climate-killing exports.
Scientists tell us we have about 5 years to turn this around. We are all aware that we are about to vote for who will lead the country during those same years. The choice could not be more stark – a government where there is some chance, if we work together, to make progress on a long list including economic and racial equality, universal health care, free education, and a clean environment, just to bring up a few things on our list of need-to-have for a real democracy. OR, a government which sweeps aside any right to speak out, to criticize, to organize unions, and to NOT be white, male, and cis-gendered.
We have to gear up for the next four months and take an active role in this coming election up and down the ballot. Here is a partial list of what we can do as the older generation:
- Work hard to defeat the three initiatives I-2117, I-2109, I-2124 (and soon a 4th , I-2066 re natural gas) sponsored by billionaire Brian Heywood that will undo progress made in the past Washington legislative session.
- Knock on doors. Many older folks are taking part in talking at doors and listening to the concerns of people. It is very effective.
- Write postcards and letters to voters in other states. Bill McKibben spoke about a program called “Senior to Senior”, where older folks write to high school seniors and encourage them to register and to vote. https://thirdact.org/act/senior-to-senior-signup/ Call voters in swing states.
- Keep the pressure on banks – join with the hundreds of elders who joined in “The Summer of Heat” to demand banks end funding of fossil fuels.
- Write a letter to the editor about your concerns and why you think it is important to protect and expand our democracy. Here is a video from Bill about how to write effective LTEs: https://vimeo.com/664545421
- Work on divestment from our state pension funds.
Bill McKibben organized “The Third Act” focusing on people over 60. There are over 70 million of us in the country and we vote. When we work as a group we are powerful.
We retirees are nearing the end of our lifetimes, and like the crises we are facing, we have no time to waste! Let’s get going and leave the world a better place.
NOTE: You can see and hear Bill McKibben’s July 2 talk on the PSARA website and the Third Act Washington website.
Author note: Bobby is a retired community college instructor and is a co-chair of the PSARA Climate and Environmental Justice Committee. She was a Peace Corps volunteer in the mid 1960s and worked as a teacher and an organizer in the south of the U.S. in the 1970s. She is a member of AFT retiree chapter in Washington.
This article was originally posted in the PSARA newsletter.