The Climate Action and Outreach Division is partnering with the Department of Equity and Human Rights to host "Climate Action and Communities of Color," a virtual conversation with Richard Mabion and Ayman Sharif on Thursday, Feb. 25, from 6-7 pm.
Mabion is the founder and CEO of Building A Sustainable Earth Community, a Kansas City-based organization focused on supporting and fostering leaders of color in the climate movement.
Through his organization and its annual Breaking The Silence Conference, Mabion has committed his life to addressing the absence of people of color in climate organizations by building multi-racial partnerships and movements at home, and by spreading his message and methodology to other communities.
Mabion also serves on the board for the J Gordon Community Development Corps and Kansas Sierra Club; is president of the Kansas City, Kansas NAACP; and was a featured speaker at the 2019 Growing Sustainable Cities Conference.
Mabion will be joined by Iowa City resident and founder of Global Food Project, Ayman Sharif, who will speak about climate action and his work promoting food justice at the local level. Sharif is a member of the Johnson County Food Policy Council and was the featured spotlight in the November 2020 Sustainability newsletter.
To sign up for the event, visit the Webinar Registration page.
Youth Environmental Education | Feb. 9-27
Learn about owl pellets, art in nature, and endangered Pangolins and Blanding's Turtles! Green Iowa AmeriCorps is offering educational video lessons geared towards elementary students, but available to all ages, on a number of environmental topics this month.
To register for a lesson, visit the team's sign-up page.
Eco Film & Book Discussions | Feb. 3-20
Green Iowa AmeriCorps is partnering with Iowa City Public Library to host the following sustainability-focused film and book discussions:
"Deep Green: Solutions to Stop Global Warming Now" Film Discussion | Feb. 3, 7pm
"The Omnivore’s Dilemma" Book Discussion | Feb. 20, 4pm
To participate in either discussion, visit the Iowa City Public Library's events page.
Eva Sileo, leader of Sunrise Movement Iowa City
What do you do for climate action?
I’m a leader of the Iowa City chapter of Sunrise Movement, which formed two years ago and has been the primary driving force behind popularizing the Green New Deal nationally.
We work at all levels of government to compel elected officials to prioritize meaningful legislation on climate issues, particularly surrounding infrastructure that could address the systemic roots of the climate crisis. Through Sunrise, I’ve helped to elect climate-friendly candidates up and down the ballot and pressured resistant leadership that’s already in place.
We are currently working on a digital public education campaign, wherein we’re making short informative videos about local climate issues that we will broadcast on YouTube and Facebook.
Topics will include the negative impacts of concentrated animal feeding operations on rural communities and small family farmers, the potential for local electric buses and regional high speed rail, and the severity and frequency of storms, such as the Derecho this fall.
What can others do to take climate action?
The best thing you can do is attend a local organization's meetings, contact one of their members, or go to one of their events. Of course, we’d love to have you with Sunrise. You can follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
We’re also happy to get you plugged in with other active organizations in the area. This fall, we helped form a coalition of 25 climate-focused organizations in SE Iowa that all can now regularly coordinate. The membership of the coalition spans all ages and nearly all types of advocacy, so there’s something for anyone.
Why does climate action matter to you?
As a lifetime citizen of Iowa, I’ve seen firsthand how much damage increasing natural disasters can cause, how widespread an issue poisoned wells have become, and how bitterly cold these winters are becoming as the ice sheets that typically block Arctic winds from reaching us have melted. Climate action matters to me because I want the place I live in and love to remain healthy and livable!
What excites me about imagining infrastructure is the feeling of hope it inspires - the world is mutable. We can reach utopian goals if we imagine we can and work hard enough (here’s another - imagine a community-invested solar field where homeowners could purchase a few panels to power their houses year-round?).
Humanity can adapt to and solve crises such as this one. I have deeply enjoyed my time helping to get the ball rolling and I encourage others to join us ─ the faster you do, the faster it goes.
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