BRATTLEBORO — In a conversation about politics, a liberal acquaintance recently said to me that we can't do anything right now; we just have to wait for a more favorable political climate and then try to make change.
I was flabbergasted. Waiting is exactly what we shouldn't do. Now more than ever, people want change, and we're working to make it happen.
I recently joined 350 Brattleboro, the local branch of the climate-change-fighting organization 350.org. We are collecting signatures to put a resolution for renewable energy on the Town Meeting Day ballot.
The resolution calls on the state of Vermont to step up its efforts to meet the goal of 90-percent renewable energy by 2050, and it calls on the town of Brattleboro to do its part by weatherizing town buildings, installing solar panels, and phasing out the use of fossil fuels to heat buildings and power vehicles.
All over Vermont, citizens are working to pass these resolutions in their towns, their many small voices combining into one big voice: We want a sustainable future! We want to live well without destroying the planet!
The transition to renewable energy is possible - it's happening in communities around the world. And the more work I do toward creating the future I want us to have, the more hope I find to balance out the awful news we're all steeped in these days.
I encourage everyone to come find hope with me.