Audience: Frontline Communities

My grandfather, Chester Barnett, grew up on a corn farm in southern Indiana in the early 1900s. He lived in rural communities for most of his life, including the tiny town of Yreka, CA where my Mom was raised. I thought about him (and my family’s “rural roots”) a lot when I was back in Indiana recently for a conference — which, in addition to lots of great discussions, included a tour of several “rural climate solutions” sites.

At the Lab, we believe that multiracial, cross-class (MRXC) coalition-building is essential if the climate movement is serious about tackling the climate crisis at the scale it demands. However, a historical lack of collaboration, trust, or healthy mechanisms to deal with conflict often impair these collective efforts. Our new Blueprint for a Multiracial, Cross-Class Climate Movement provides an analysis of the difficulties MRXC climate coalitions are likely to face and offers recommendations for a proposed path forward. Our intention is that these insights help advocates fighting for a livable climate and communities grounded in justice and shared prosperity.

Severe thunderstorms hit my hometown of Durham, NC last week, bringing 80 mph winds and flash flooding across our community. Around half the county was without power for more than 24 hours– presenting serious health risks for our most vulnerable neighbors, as temperatures (and humidity levels) climbed into the mid-90s. 
96% of people in the United States have faced extreme weather risks this summer (from flooding, storms, heat, or fire) according to the new “Danger Season” tool from the Union of Concerned Scientists that tracks county-level alerts.