I have been thinking a lot lately about the pace of change. I think about how quickly the world shifted to wearing face masks to reduce the risk of COVID-19, about the speed at which a clever meme travels the internet.
There is a lot of talk about the ‘new normal’ as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic. That “new normal” terminology is deliberate, recognizing that whatever happens next will be different from the pre-pandemic normal, the “old normal”.
Creating a science-based county-wide, economy-wide Climate Action Plan (CAP) that can get us on a path to deep decarbonization is a big task. Really. It's the sort of thing that can keep you up at night--trust me, I know. Luckily I didn't have to do this task alone. One of the great things about Dane County is the people and A LOT of people contributed to our soon-to-be-released CAP. In so many ways the CAP already belongs to the people of Dane County because so many people helped to create the CAP
If every day is Earth Day then every day is an EV (electric vehicle) day in Dane County. Indeed, Dane County is home to more EVs than any other county in Wisconsin. And the local array of EVs were on full display at the Second Annual Earth Day EV Parade in Madison on April 22, 2021.
This Earth Day let’s embrace the numerous tools and activities available to address climate change. Yes, numerous. I’ve been thinking a lot about how some climate advocates are one-solution advocates.
In February Dane County and the City of Madison hosted a virtual meeting of the Sustainability Leadership Collaborative (SLC). Created in 2019 the SLC brings together local governments from across Dane County.
Of the various chores that come with adulthood, I like shoveling snow. I appreciate the sense of accomplishment I get when I look back at a clean sidewalk. Shoveling is a good form of exercise. I also appreciate that I can think about other stuff while I shovel without jeopardizing the quality of my efforts; whereas cooking means I have to be attentive, nobody complains if I daydream while I shovel the driveway.
Dane County’s Climate Action Plan (CAP) is enormously ambitious and profoundly practical. As a private citizen, I was delighted to play a small role in helping to create some of the recommendations in the CAP and I was proud of Dane County’s outstanding leadership on climate action. Today I am even more delighted to be the Dane County staff person leading efforts to implement the CAP.
Amid all of the election news this week, it is plausible that you might have missed the important climate milestone. On November 4, 2020 the United States officially withdrew from the Paris Climate Agreement.
“Adaptation and Resiliency” is one of the six guiding principles of the Dane County Climate Action Plan. But what do these words really mean? From an ecological perspective, adaptation and resilience are a natural system’s ability to adjust to change and bounce back from a disturbance.
