We will be viewing a talk by Dr. Katharine Hayhoe about how Christians should think about Climate Change.  Katherine Hayhoe is a well-known climate scientist and professor at Texas Tech University who encourages everyone to talk about climate change; she is gifted with the ability to talk to non-scientists about scientific concepts in a way that is engaging, informative and makes a lasting impression.  While recent reports on Climate Change can be discouraging, Katherine finds a way to nourish hope and positivity.  Will it make a difference if we all try to emulate these attitudes? 
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Katherine was named the UN Champion of the Earth in 2019 for her commitment to quantifying the effects of climate change and her “tireless efforts to transform public attitudes.”  The UN recognized her as “one of the world’s most influential communicators on the reality of climate change and (noted that she) is widely respected for her ability to help people connect the dots between what they already care about and how they will be affected by a changing climate.”
Katherine’s views are in alignment with Pope Francis’ and she often acknowledges how unfair it is that the harshest effects of climate change are felt by the poor who have the least responsibility for creating the problem.
 
Please join us on Thursday, November 4 when we meet to hear and discuss Dr. Katherine Hayhoe’s comments.  
 
Watch this space for future programs on the first Thursday of the month.

We have to realize that a true ecological approach always becomes a social approach; it must integrate questions of justice in debates on the environment, so as to hear both the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor.
Pope Francis – Laudato Si’ #49

COP 26, the Major UN Global meeting on Climate Change, will be held in Glasgow, Scotland between October 31 and November 12.  We have a unique opportunity to let our voices be heard at this important gathering. Pope Francis has been an ardent supporter and we have a chance to join with the Pope and let the world hear as we lift our voices on behalf of the most vulnerable and urge nations to take bold action on the Paris agreement goals.
The Laudato Si’ Movement (formerly Global Catholic Climate Movement) has prepared the Healthy Planet, Healthy People Petition addressed to Leaders participating in these UN meetings and this is our opportunity to sign the petition and let our voices join others around the world as we advocate for nations to:

1) Tackle the climate emergency and biodiversity crisis together

2) Limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius and promise no more biodiversity loss 

3) Ensure equitable global action, including support for those most affected 

4) Protect and respect human rights, including the rights of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities in climate and biodiversity action.​

The devastation wrought by Hurricane Ida when it hit New Orleans on August 29 and then roared across the East and up to New England reminds us that severe storms are more frequent, larger and less predictable due to climate change.  
 
The value of wetlands and marshes in slowing and absorbing storm surge is well known, but Professor Siddarth Narayan of East Carolina University’s Department of Coastal Studies says policy makers need to be convinced to take action and invest in nature-based solutions. The work of Professor Narayan and other scientists brings hope that the value of wetlands will receive the spotlight it deserves. 
 
After Hurricane Sandy devastated the East Coast of the U.S. in 2012, Professor Narayan worked with the insurance industry to calculate the benefits of marshes along the coast and according to the models they developed, wetlands prevented $625 million in damages.
 
Work by engineers, planners and policy makers with organizations such as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change shows that using nature-based solutions that protect the environment and allow coastal wetlands and marshes to protect us needs to receive funding and action in our changing climate.
 
For a story on action being taken locally to preserve and protect the wetlands at Roaches Run, search John Kelly’s column in the Washington Post published September 11-12.
 
When we visit stream, river, lake or pond shorelines or explore wetlands in our area, can we think about what actions we can take to protect and preserve them so that the plants, grasses and reeds, as well as the birds, aquatic life, insects and other mammals can do their work to protect us and all of creation?
 
Pope Francis reminds us that we cannot care for each other without caring for our common home.  In Laudato Si’ (#8), he says: “stripping the earth of its natural forests or destroying its wetlands; for human beings to contaminate the earth’s waters, its land, its air, and its life – these are sins”.

Wondering what you can do now to make a significant difference in reducing personal household energy consumption (and thereby lowering greenhouse gas emissions from natural gas or fossil-fired electricity)? John Jimison, Saint Luke’s Care for Creation Committee Chair, offers five cost-effective, proven means to improve home energy efficiency.  They are:
 
#1) Obtain a whole-house evaluation by a professional energy contractor – This evaluation by a professional identifies leaks of heated (or cooled) air, walls and roofs with little or no insulation, and can advise on the full range of potential mitigation measures and their costs.  Weather-stripping and crack sealing is a low-cost, high-payback mitigation measure that is guided by such evaluations.  Increased insulation is possible where needed and is affordable relative to the otherwise wasted energy in most situations.  Replacement of windows can be effective in saving energy, but is a major investment; storm-window installation is somewhat less effective but typically much less expensive.  You can find a certified contractor at www.resnet.us.   

#2) Upgrade your HVAC System – The heating, ventilation and cooling system in your house is likely your single largest energy user, and may also be the least efficient.  .  (See www.dmme.virginia.gov/de/LinkDocuments/HandbookHeatingCooling.pdf). Today’s state-of-the-art systems are dramatically more efficient than historic ones, offering a reasonable payback through energy savings on what is admittedly a major investment, but is a no-brainer if the old system breaks down.  The current generation of high-efficiency air-source electric heat-pumps, ground-source heat-pumps, and high-efficiency gas furnaces all operate on a fraction of the input energy their 20-year-old models did. 

#3) Upgrade your water heater – The second largest energy consumer in a typical house, water heaters typically use energy around the clock to provide hot water needed for mere minutes per day.  State of the art heat-pump water heaters or tankless water heaters, while more expensive than storage-tank water heaters, typically save their additional cost in a fraction of their working lives by lowered energy bills.   Adding outer insulation to an existing water heater may be possible and beneficial if it is not ready for replacement. .  
(www.dmme.virginia.gov/de/LinkDocuments/HandbookHeatingCooling.pdf) 

#4) Upgrade your home lighting – LED light bulbs typically use one-fifth of the energy of traditional incandescent, offer a range of lighting tone, don’t shed excess heat, contain no mercury or other toxics, and are likely to last 10 times longer, after saving any incremental cost in a matter of weeks.  This is the ultimate no-brainer. See for yourself. https://www.takecontrolandsave.coop/calculators/lighting-calculator/ 

​#5) Upgrading to Energy-Star Appliances and Electronics – Take advantage of the research available on the Environmental Protection Agency website (www.energystar.gov) to learn about the energy performance of most appliances (refrigerators, dishwashers, and clothes washers and dryers are major energy users) and electronics (which typically use 12% of a home’s energy).  But don’t settle for any model with the blue Energy-Star label.  The best of the 715 or so Energy-Star dishwashers uses one-third the energy of the worst; do your own research among the appliances, TVs and other electronics before you buy. 
Good luck with your home energy efficiency project!