Our next meeting will be on Thursday, November 2nd, at 7:00 pm. This will be a hybrid meeting: attend in-person at First Universalist Society in Franklin, 262 Chestnut Street, Franklin; or join on Zoom. We will send the details a few days ahead of the meeting.
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| 350 Mass Greater Franklin Node Meeting |
For now, please consider helping 350 Mass and our climate allies with our campaigns and legislative priorities. Here are some ongoing issues and upcoming events.
Campaign: Make Polluters Pay. Make Polluters Pay is a campaign supporting legislation that will create a climate superfund, penalizing the worst polluters of greenhouse gasses, and funding resilience and adaptation projects in communities most impacted by climate change. 350 Mass joins Better Future Project and other groups like Communities Responding to Extreme Weather (CREW), Mass Youth Climate Coalition (MYCC), and Mass Power Forward – with more partners on the way – to drive a grassroots campaign to hold polluters accountable. The fund will raise an estimated $75 billion over 25 years from the largest polluting companies. This influx of funds will enable the commonwealth to prepare for the coming climate impacts, guided by the vision of the communities with most at stake. This campaign is part of a national push to Make Polluters Pay, as we are campaigning alongside political leaders and activists in Vermont, Maryland, and New York. Learn more here.
Sign up to join our legislative sponsors, experts, and activists from across Massachusetts in an online webinar, this Sunday, October 22, 5-6 PM. Register here. You can read the legislation we filed in the House H.872 and in the Senate S.481.
Campaign: the Zero Carbon Renovation Fund (ZCRF). The ZCRF is a bold proposal to allocate $300 million from the Massachusetts State Legislature for a Fund to jumpstart the market for zero carbon renovations in existing buildings in Massachusetts. Renovations supported by the ZCRF will include improvements and renovations that are aligned with a zero carbon future and incorporates one or more of the following: (1) maximizing energy efficiency through building envelope upgrades; (2) electrification of building systems; (3) maximizing usage of on-site renewable energy, wherever possible; and (4) consideration of building retrofit materials that are low embodied carbon. The ZCRF will prioritize affordable housing, public housing, low- and moderate-income homes, schools, BIPOC and women businesses, and buildings located in Environmental Justice communities.
Hearing and Testimony: The Legislature's Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy will hold a hearing on an Act to establish the ZCRF, H.3232, on Tuesday October 31, starting at 10 AM. The public can advocate for the legislation through written, virtual or in-person testimonies. The toolkit describes the logistics of the hearings, key messages of the ZCRF, structure of comments, recommendations, and social media advocacy. Please consider submitting oral or written testimony.
Massachusetts utility companies' electric-sector modernization plans. The state's electric distribution companies (including Eversource and National Grid) recently submitted their five-year plans: how they intend to keep the grid reliable, their forecasts of future power needs, and strategies to make sure the grid can support more electric vehicles and electrified buildings. These plans are now being reviewed by the Grid Modernization Advisory Council (GMAC) within the Department of Energy Resources. GMAC is an integral part of increasing transparency and stakeholder engagement in the grid planning process.
The public is invited to submit written comments, or to speak at two Public Listening Sessions, October 30 and November 1. Information, links to the plans, and instructions for comments can be found here.
Action: Take Back Our Energy Grid. ISO (independent system operator)-New England is a not-for-profit corporation responsible for keeping electricity flowing across the six New England states. The goal statements include the transition to clean energy, but ISO-NE is too heavily influenced by the fossil fuel industry. The Board of Directors will hold their annual open Board meeting in Boston's Seaport Hotel on November 1.
350 Mass’s Climate Courage, Fix the Grid, and Third Act are inviting you to participate in a lively street action that will send a clear message to ISO-NE, the press, the governor, and the people of this region. Join us at noon, November 1, at the nearby South Boston Maritime Park for the rally, speakers, music, and "street theater." (This is not a civil disobedience event, no arrests, just fun.) Information and registration here.
350 Mass' Climate Cafe. Climate Cafe is a monthly Zoom event offering a supportive place to talk over your reactions to climate change, possible solutions, or climate activism. You can share with others who are experiencing a wide range of emotions, learning nurturing ways to deal with them, and finding hope. The Cafés are facilitated by two experienced volunteer/activists.
Register here for the next Climate Cafe, Tuesday, October 24th, 7 pm.
Clearly there is no lack of opportunities to learn, participate, and add your voice to these important issues. We hope you will consider these activities, and join us at our Node meetings.
We hope to see you at our next meeting, Thursday, November 2.
Thank you.
Node Co-coordinators,
Carolyn Barthel
Ralph Halpern
Ralph Halpern
ralph.halpern@comcast.net
781-784-3839 (h)
339-203-5017
