We have all been gripped by the weather this past month with hurricanes causing extreme flooding on the Gulf Coast and wind damage in the Caribbean. Right here at home in California many are in harm's way of unprecedented wildfires, watching them burn right through their neighborhoods and much-loved wild places. These types of extreme weather and changes in temperature, precipitation levels, and soil moisture are consistent with what scientists predict to occur under climate change. While it's difficult to parse out the various causes of any specific storm or fire, these types of extreme events have and will continue to become both more likely and more severe by mid-century as the global rate of fossil fuel consumption continues to climb exponentially.
In response, California Naturalist is developing an advanced training on climate change with a focus on local civic engagement. We want to share the most recent science on the topic with the growing naturalist community and others as well as discuss ways to communicate effectively about the subject and take concrete action. New information on climate change is coming out all the time, so the goal is to learn what we can together and continue to stay in touch and share the latest science, best practices, inspirational stories, and opportunities to engage through our CalNat community.
Many of you are already making changes to help reduce your carbon footprint, working with your community to adapt to ongoing and anticipated change, or making preparations to minimize your vulnerability to change and maximize your ability to bounce back when changes do occur. Maybe you have made changes to your commute, diet, residence, gardening or landscaping practices, purchasing or consumption habits, job, or how you volunteer. Please take a few minutes to tell us your story!
UC California Naturalist is working with the Governor's Office of Planning and Research to help populate the new Climate Adaptation Clearinghouse by capturing authentic experiences of all Californians as they deal with a changing climate. We hope to share the diversity of people, places, and their own personal responses – no matter how large or small – that make climate stories inherently unique and at the same time universal.
Each story answers three simple questions:
1) What motivated you to act?
2) What was your individual or group action/response or change in behavior/practice? and
3) What has your experience been since initiating this change?