NO to Oil “Bomb” Trains, Unsafe Fossil Fuel Infrastructure & Yes to Our Livable Future

As a parent, life is hectic. Running to and from work, both in and outside of our homes; keeping up with our kid’s schedules; getting food on the table; and also hoping to sit down once in a while, together as a family to decompress and catch up. I know we can all relate. When I was single, younger and before I had kids, I didn’t take time to think through about who was watching out for us and ensuring that things like safe water, clean air and a secure and safe future were being thought about carefully and acted on. I assumed that foresight and planning was there, and someone was making sure that those things I couldn’t directly take care of, were being looked after.

Both as I have gotten older and as I live parenthood, life seems to be traveling at warp speed. Most of my friends, those that are parents, those that are not, those who are younger, older, and also my age, all seem to share this sentiment..life on overdrive. Regardless, I know for myself and for some of my friends there is and has been an awakening of sorts. We have become more and more aware that no one is in fact “minding the store” and we have an important role to play in ensuring our safe future. Sadly, I still see many of my friends too caught up in the craziness of their lives. I see that they haven’t realized or have chosen to close their eyes to the fact that no one is really looking out for the best interests of us all.

Once you slow down long enough to see the truth in front of us, it’s obvious that too many things are unraveling, and there is not a clear and well thought out plan. This is particularly and acutely clear with climate disruption and the lack of real solutions and policies, and therefore all the chaos that can and is already unfolding.

Here in the United States of America partisanship and influence through money and lobbying seems to be getting in the way of our greater good and the public good. This is a long story to tell, with many sides and side stories, so for now, we want to keep it short, sweet and to a particular point.

If we don’t immediately address climate change with policies and programs that will slow down the pace we are moving forward on, the myriad of “other things” that we care and want action on, will never be addressed, accomplished, nor fixed.

So, in order to say YES to a renewable and sustainable future, we must say NO to a future and now that relies and expands our use of fossil fuels. This is crystal clear.

We must all STAND UP for our children. We must SPEAK out, and we must make sure that others – our neighbors, family, friends, and elected officials – hear us and STAND UP too.

So, if you are in New Jersey and/or the New York metropolitan area this weekend I hope that you will join me, as I speak up and speak out at the following events:

1. 48 Hours of Action For Safe Clean Energy (May 16-18), including Sunday, May 17th, Walk and Rally to Ban Unsafe Oil Trains, Teaneck, NJ 1pm Walk, 2:30pm Rally Join US

2. Monday, May 18th, Mama Summit, New Jersey State House, Trenton, NJ 9:30-1pm, Join US

If you can come to Washington DC, join us as well, May 21-29th, at the FERCus, Beyond Extreme Energy events. Learn more about the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and why it must be about regulating energy choices and not only about advancing fossil fuel energy.

Many of us feel that we must leave these types of events for our friends who are “activists, for our children, our youth;” for those willing to march and make a “scene.” Who knew, that we would all be called upon to be activists, young, old and in-between. I have this conversation with friends all the time, each of us can and does play a different role, and that role changes over time and space. But when there is an event in your neighborhood and our neighbors need us to stand with them for the greater good of us all, we need to step out of our comfort zone, join them and help make all voices heard. If we don’t stand up for our future and now, we may not have a future at all….

I hope to see you at some point this month in New Jersey, New York, DC and beyond…

If you can’t join us in person, and even if you can, consider also joining us “virtually” through a campaign lead by our friends at NoPlanetaB. Sign our Parent Declaration and “CUT THE RED TAPE;” lets get busy on solutions and actions.

Yours,

Climate Mama