It’s not a stretch to say that we live in an age of extremes. 2023 was – by far – the hottest year since humans have been keeping records; scientists say it was the hottest in 100,000 years. The signs are everywhere: from the Southwestern heat dome that smashed 2,300 temperature records over the summer, to the hellish wildfire in that incinerated Maui in August. We have entered what UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres calls “the era of global boiling.”
Our politics are boiling, as well. Extremist ideologies are on the rise, and American democracy faces nearly unprecedented threats. Governing bodies are paralyzed as Americans sort themselves into not just different political parties, but separate realities.
And yet, in this dire and polarized moment, so many people are rising to the great environmental and moral challenges of our time. They are working to mitigate climate change by bending the curve of greenhouse emissions downward. They are adapting to the warming that is now inevitable, by safeguarding human health and communities. And they are fighting to make sure that no one is left behind -- that the ravages of climate change do not worsen existing inequities. Some of that hopeful, life-affirming work is captured in the pages of a new, and free, e-book Resilience Matters: Flourishing in an Era of Extremes.
In this free resource, you can see how the Biden administration’s historic climate investments are making their way to communities hit hardest by inequity and climate change. You can learn how one nonprofit is helping grassroots groups navigate the bureaucracy and land federal dollars, and how foundations are bringing solar to lower-income communities.
Much of this inspiring work is led by residents of low-income communities of color on the frontlines of the climate crisis. Community groups in Miami, for example, are taking the lead in addressing extreme heat and flooding – shaping policy to serve the most vulnerable. Other hard-hit communities are turning to “unbuilding” and green infrastructure to protect residents from rising floodwaters.
Solutions are not in short supply. We already know how to build homes that conserve water, how to protect the elderly from climate change impacts, and how to rebuild more resilient communities after disaster. What we need is the will to deploy these solutions at scale, and fast.
African Americans have long spoken of the need to “make a way out of no way.” Born of painful necessity, the phrase reminds us that there is always room for constructive action. Read on to see how others are “making a way” in this challenging moment.
Visit islandpress.org/resilience to download a free copy of Resilience Matters.
