Looking Past the Potholes: Citizens Climate Lobby

A long time ago in a junior college not-so-far-far-away, I took a motorcycle safety class. The instructor gave us some valuable advice - if you want to avoid running over something in the road (like a pothole) do not look at it. When you ride a motorcycle, you go where you look.

A still from the video (keep reading!)

One of the struggles in carbon-reductionist blogging is not focusing on the negative. There's a lot of dang potholes out there and it's really easy to hit them. The day I decided to start Mesquite Hugger I also decided to keep it a place where we look and work toward betterment rather than wallowing in the darkness.

Last week, I found something very encouraging and very much in line with the MH approach.

Another  still from the video (keep reading!)

 

I blogged last week about seeing Dr. Katharine Hayhoe speak at a meeting for the Citizens' Climate Lobby. I was very excited to see that the CCL is a group that looks past the potholes and focuses on ways to fix our obstacles. I have to admit that when I see the word "lobby" associated with politics, I think corruption and greed. So I had my doubts. But this meeting was not about that. It is a group that decided that small steps (like switching to more efficient lightbulbs and eating local) were a good start but would not have enough impact to slow climate change. They also decided that pointing fingers and calling names would not do the trick either. They realized there was a powerful singular force driving climate change - carbon release.

They went looking for a way to reduce the amount of carbon being extracted from the ground and subsequently being released into our atmosphere. And they have come up with a very good plan. And their plan involves working with (not against) the the US government to reduce carbon emissions, improve the health of the people, strengthen the economy, and give you (the US taxpayer) some money. For an overview, check out this video:

Citizen's Climate Lobby Intro Video

 

 

Yes, I am excited. Yes, I have joined and look forward to working with others who want to create a livable future for mesquite trees and the people who love them.

 

May you have a wonderful day and may you be excited about making things better for all.