A community-based workgroup released its final recommendations in a publicly available report detailing how to integrate climate considerations into County budgets. Planning for the County’s fiscal year 2022 budget began on July 1, 2020, and proposed recommendations are already informing that process. Budgeting with an eye toward climate impacts will help the County reach its zero greenhouse gas emissions goal by 2035. Read intern Julia McMurry’s full article here. 

The first in a series of climate-related StoryMaps is ready to view! StoryMaps complement climate planning documents by giving residents a more interactive medium to parse what climate work the County is doing and planning. Intern Alexander Gunnerson compiled information about the County’s climate planning efforts, its goals, and its current initiatives to show how the County plans to hit zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2035. View the StoryMap here.

We need YOUR photographs, drawings, videos, poems, digital art and memes (yes, we mean it, memes), to help make Montgomery County’s climate change plan more engaging and accessible. The Climate Change Plan Art Contest seeks to use art to educate the public about the connection between our daily lives, our communities, and a changing climate.  Entries in the art contest may be featured on Montgomery County’s climate change plan and other County materials. Winners of the Climate Change Plan Art Contest will receive $100! Deadline for the contest is January 31, 2021. Early submissions encouraged. More details here.

Registration is open for this year's Summit which will take place virtually over 3 days, Nov. 17-19. This year’s theme, “A Path to Zero,” will explore strategies, technologies and case studies on the commercial, multi-family, and residential-built environments moving the County toward its ambitious climate goal of carbon neutrality by 2035. The Summit will include breakout education sessions, networking salons featuring the latest in sustainable products and services, and a free virtual Energy Roadshow. Education sessions have been approved for GBCI CEs and AIA LUs. Full summit passes are $75, and scholarships are available for emerging professionals. View the full schedule of events and register today!

Two recent articles on My Green Montgomery highlight young peoples’ contributions to and benefits from climate action.

Climate Intern Sarah Kallgreen writes “In Defense of Gardens,” making the case for experiential environmental education. School Gardens have gained popularity over the last century, and now Montgomery County is getting in on the action. MCPS has invested in butterfly and pollinator gardens, as well as container gardens to give students this hands-on approach to learning. Gardens not only create homes for local wildlife but are also a key tool in nutrition education. Read more here.

Resilience Ambassador Omotola Fadeyi explains how to engage youth on environmental issues. Her “Dos and Don’ts” come from experience as a high school student and worker in Montgomery County’s Covid Corps. Find tips on social media, language, and content to make your message heard. “An interactive website is a must,” writes Fadeyi. Read more here.

November is the perfect time to curl up with a blanket, a hot cup a tea, and... a sewing needle? That’s right. Fiber arts are a great indoor activity for chilly days and can help shrink your carbon footprint to boot. Clothing production is a major contributor to CO2 emissions and water consumption. Instead of buying a new item to replace a damaged piece, check out some tutorials on how to sew on a button,  repair a split seam, or hem a pair of pants. You can also recycle textiles at the County’s Transfer Station. And if your garment is beyond repair, consider shredding rags to use in place of disposable paper towels and dish cloths. You might even have enough to make a braided rug!

Check out DEP’s Green Job Portal for new opportunities in and around Montgomery County. Several energy and climate focused positions are available at One Montgomery Green, Prince George’s County, and the Institute for Market Transformation. 

To watch and listen to:

• Sell Me Your Climate Bombs (Planet Money)
• How 2020 Became a Climate Election (How to Save a Planet)
• Energy Becomes a Hot Issue in the Final Days of the Election (The Energy Gang)
• North Carolina: A key swing state battered by climate change (PBS Newshour)

To read:

• The Insurance Industry Can Help States Act on Climate Change (Route Fifty)
• Homes Are Flooding Outside FEMA’s 100-Year Flood Zones and Racial Inequity is Showing Through (Route Fifty)
• Kill Your Gas Stove (Route Fifty)
• California’s Bay Area may require telecommuting, even after the pandemic wanes (NBC)
• Solar meets 100 per cent of South Australia demand for first time (Renew Economy)
• New Green Building Incentives: Working Together for Energy Efficiency (My Green Montgomery)
• Climate change: US formally withdraws from Paris agreement (BBC)
• Biden Pledges Ambitious Climate Action. Here’s What He Could Actually Do (NYTimes)