Solutions

“United we stand, divided we fall!”

Below is a list of conscious choices we can all make.

10 Necessary Actions for the Making of a Regenerative Future that we hope you will choose. By Figueres and Tom Rivett-Carnac book: The Future We Choose: The Stubborn Optimist’s Guide to the Climate Crisis.

1. Accept Change–Honor the past, but then let it go. Fossil fuels helped build the country, but now have to be replaced by renewables, solar, & wind power. Focus on where we are going, not on where we’ve been. 

2.  Face your Grief, but Hold a Vision of the Future–We must feel the full force of the losses we have and will have more of. But the vision of a regenerative world where humans and nature can thrive is essential, even if it changes as we go. Stubborn optimism needs to motivate us daily. 

3.  Defend the Truth–Lies spread 6x faster than the truth.  No one tells the truth at all times, but now we have a very different level of lying in the political arena. There is no ‘different truth’. Facts are facts, esp. with climate change. We have to agree on the Big Stuff! And climate change is HUGE! And treat climate deniers with care, love, and attention to every individual, so we can counter the forces pulling us apart!

4.  See yourself as a citizen, not as a Consumer--Our relationship with consumption is trapping us.  Buying stuff is linked with our identity very strongly and is getting stronger all the time. The average UK person consumes more than 65 pounds of clothes each year.  Textile production is second only to the oil industry for pollution, as high as 10% of global CO2 emissions. Amazon, the largest marketplace online earned $10 billion in 2018. Reclaim your idea of a good life to be that of stewardship, being with friends and family, relaxing instead of chasing after goods that don’t make us happy.  

5. Move Beyond Fossil Fuels.–We must stop subsidizing fossil fuels. Stand up for 100% renewable energy and vote for leaders who support this. Solar panels  have dropped 90% in cost, making them as cheap as coal in most places.  We need 50% reduction in the next 10 years. Take one step at a time. Reduce flying to have the greatest impact. Only 6% of the world’s people have ever set foot on a plane!  Make a plan to cut back or even if you can, eliminate most flying. Take a train or do videoconferencing.  

6.  Reforest the Earth–We need to find the sweet spot of regenerating Nature for its own and taking from it only what we need to support our lives. Almost all deforestation has been for 4 commodities: beef, soy, palm oil, and wood. And beef cattle is responsible for twice the other 3 combined.  Industrial agriculture and the food industry is almost as big a cause of emissions as all the fossil fuels.  We can get to food security for all of Earth’s people just by reducing food waste, & changing our diets without destroying another square inch of nature! If we would all plant trees, whether one, 10 or 20 trees, we could return the climate to what it was decades ago justly doing that!  (PS we have about 50 trees on our half acre lot!) And trees can cool cities and clean the air too! Eat less meat, (esp. beef), & dairy!  Beans are good for us, and plentiful, Inexpensive and full of fiber!

7.  Invest in a Clean Economy. –In 2012 Bill McKibben and 350.org started a grassroots program to divest from fossil fuels. We can all do this with our own investments.  You can invest in anything else, and in renewables too, but just not in fossil fuel companies. Economists increasingly endorse the Sustainable Development Goals as a way to make it possible to achieve sustainable growth.

8.  Use Technology Sustainably.–AI has tremendous potential to help solve climate change but also could be used to control our movements.  Automation takes away more jobs from citizens than immigrants do.  AI algorithms can help improve and decentralize our energy grids. And it can be used in many decarbonization needs like methane detection and in improving battery storage too. 

9.  Build Gender Equality.–We know now that when women lead, more decisions are based on longer range views, and perspective, all essential for climate based decisions.  Women are pioneers of innovative climate solutions in their communities. And educating women means they will not be stuck in continuing pregnancy, which will decrease the ever-increasing numbers of people on earth.

10.  Engage in Politics.–Finally the most important activity to get involved in is political.  Transitioning to a renewable energy world will require a stable political system.  Climate change is an existential threat and and will likely proceed faster than our democracies can change to adapt.  It is time to participate in nonviolent political movements whenever possible. The rise to prominence of Greta Thunberg and Fridays for the Future shows we are rising to direct action. History shows that when only 3.5% participate in nonviolent actions, success will come. Now is the time for us to rise to action in our schools, communities, churches, businesses, and countries and make sure this biggest problem comes to the front of our political awareness.  If not survival is not assured. All the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) reports that changes are happening faster than ever thought would occur!  It’s in our generation that changes are already seen in severe weather and storms. 

Solutions Flyer –If you would like copy(s) to distribute, please contact us.

“City green energy aggregation”: If Elgin passes this proposal, citizens do not need to sign up for community solar or have solar panels installed on rooftops, unless they want to have their own. The City contract will be for 2-3 years.

Mind Map

Check out this creative path of solutions to global warming:

Sustainable Grant

As EGG350 first reported on Facebook here, the City of Elgin has launched a new Sustainable Community Grant Program! This aims to provide financial assistance to non-profit organizations, businesses, institutions, associations or individuals for projects that increase the community’s sustainability. The efforts must include a component of community engagement and/or education. For complete details (including grant amount, funding request availability and timelines, and grant guidelines-criteria-scoring), check out the dedicated Sustainable Elgin Community Grant page HERE.

Plant Sales

Purchasing native plants for your home’s lawn or garden is an excellent way to begin doing your part in climate change and bring back insects, birds, and many other animals. Our friends at Chicago Living Corridors have put together a listing of sales. Check out the deals available across northern Illinois via this link. The list is organized by county to help you determine which location is best for you.

Family Farms

One way to help the climate is by supporting family-run farms. In doing so, the added bonus is helping local businesses and our economy. Read more in an opinion article “Family Farms Can Help Solve Climate Change” HERE.

Healthy Soil

Dr. Donovan C. Wilkin discusses this in a document dated 03/06/2021. He writes about soil as an educator, ecosystem health as a product of evolution, what specifically is healthy soil, the magic of microorganisms, the magic of biodiversity, and the magic of post-carbon agroecosystems. Read his entire letter, entitled “The Magic Of Healthy Soil”, HERE.

Renewable Energy

According to an article featuring eye-catching graphs-charts to put power sources in perspective, 20.4% of United States electricity generation came from renewable energy sources in the first 10 months of 2020. That signifies an increase in a couple years; the same time period in 2018 saw only 17.5%.

Natural Climate

In a less than 4 minutes, Greta and George Monbiot explain in the video below what needs to be done to repair broken Earth. As Greta says, “Everything counts. What you do counts.” Check out the Natural Climate Solutions website for more information.

Environmental News

Want to keep up-to-date on all types of energy-related news across the United States and world? Check out sources like CleanTechnica and Renewables Now!

IEA Statement

On May 18, 2021, the International Energy Agency announced in recommendation form that investment in new fossil fuel supply is no longer needed. Read more about this statement, including perspective in context with prior developments in the climate era, in this The New Yorker article. The writer is Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org.

Myths Debunked

Saving the earth is not a selfless act, explains National Geographic ecologist Enric Sala. He debunks 5 myths about protecting the planet. Click the downloadable PDF below to read about these myths:
Conservation is an altruistic, bleeding-heart pursuit.
Conservation costs too much money.
Ending deforestation is at odds with meeting humanity’s needs.
We cannot protect more of the ocean because we need to fish more.
Humans are separate from nature.

Climate Solutions

Project Drawdown offers 6 short videos explaining what has to be done to implement climate change solutions identified by over 90 scientists and engineers. Check out the videos, starting with the trailer, via this link. Then, take action to start your climate solutions journey.

Recycling Solution

Ever wonder what to do with food storage containers that have surpassed their prime? Check out the program offered by Rubbermaid via this link and TerraCycle via this link as part of their commitment to sustainability. When it is time to upgrade to new containers, recycle the old via this option!

Bottles Back

The ad below might be familiar to you; it aired during Super Bowl LV (Sunday, 02/07/2021). America’s beverage companies are committed to getting every bottle back to help reduce waste and increase recycling efforts. To see what you can do to help their efforts, check out the dedicated Every Bottle Back website via this link.

Solutions Card

If you would like copy(s) of this to distribute, please contact us.

Note about the “city green energy aggregation”: If Elgin passes this proposal, citizens do not need to sign up for community solar or have solar panels installed on rooftops.