 Hello and welcome to senior moment. My name is David refson. I am your host for the show Senior moment is about seniors and for seniors. I am very honored and pleased to have my guest today Andra Rose and Felicia Mednick Who have been involved in organization called Mothers Out Front and Environmental Group here in the Pioneer Valley? Among other things. We're also going to talk about a girl Who appeared before the UN and it's a very very interesting Piece of tape that we're going to include in the show and we're going to talk about it further, but for now welcome Thank you. Okay, so Tell me a little bit about your involvement not only with Mothers Out Front But your overall involvement in the environmental movement. So Andrew if you want to start that'd be great. Okay well I've been an activist in a lot of different areas But it was really my son who Was doing a lot of activism in climate and said what are you doing? And I said I'm helping you and he said so It was really my sense of you know, we created this problem, you know our generations generations before us and So that's how I got involved in Mothers Out Front How long you've been involved with them? It has been Five years Now is that how long the organization has been? The organization started in Boston and Started out here about a year later. So it's about a six-year-old organization and now it's national in about eight or ten states All right, we're going to talk a little bit more about what they do. Felicia, how about yourself? I've been involved also in various Issues around the environment and around justice in the world since high school on and In college I got very involved in the anti nuclear power both in terms of weapons and in terms as a source of safe source of energy At the time was a big movement And it kind of opened my eyes to the power of a collective number of people making change and And So that was that was really influential to me and just Nature has always been such a big source of comfort to me I grew up on the beach and by the beach and it's an area of the world now, which is Threatening to be underwater. We don't do something. So, you know as I was, you know I have a young daughter who's now, you know, young adult He's growing up and I started hearing and realizing a lot of things We're doing to our environment. I'd always been involved To find an organization like mothers out front which just says Anybody male female mother not mother, but I think especially as a mother. I was called to it What are you going to do for the future generations? Where is our moral voice in the environment? You don't need to be an expert to have a say to have an input on what's going on It just felt like a really easy fit for me to start taking action about this issue that I care a lot about And that's the safety of the plan for our children or grandchildren. So tell me a little bit more about what? Mothers out front is doing what they're involved in Can you talk a little bit about that? So mothers out front is a grassroots organization and it really takes its strength from the local groups and Our group has done a number of different things. We've worked very closely with climate action now Which is a regional organization? and We work on issues of energy both local and regional fighting pipelines that we have had an influence on and Promoting renewable energy clean energy of and new structures for Energy like the community choice Aggregation which is a way for municipalities to take more control over their own electric use That was actually You folks were very involved in the recent election in our town Where we changed a new form of government from town meeting to a town council and you sent out a survey To all of the candidates among them was me and they asked some really wonderful Questions about the environment that you felt you needed to know to decide whether you were going to Back a candidate or not or just be involved with that whole process and that was a really Terrific thing that you did no question about it It really brought to the forefront that issue that yes people talked about it But it really brought it to the forefront which I thought was really terrific. Yeah I think we had been involved earlier and like helping not only us but helping I think we initiated at the town Counts the town meeting to think about approving a hundred percent renewable kind of resolution and a Zero energy by-law which screep by and got it approval and got in need some adaptation Maybe to be workable, but it's in the books now that we are going to be part of the solution About what's going on in our climate? Excuse me. I feel like We're not going to get the leadership from National government right now or maybe even state although the state is moving a little slower than hopefully we will but we're Making this movement go forward. So as we were moving from town meeting To a council a smaller council We thought it was really important that this kind of energy continued forward so that voters would be able to see if They care about this issue and and for candidates themselves to think about. Oh, what will I do about this? You know, well, how do I care about this? How can I let people know that this is an important issue? I think I think yeah I think you really had an impact on that too because when we had the The debates and stuff climate change came up as certainly an issue on there I wanted to talk a little bit about the environment is a global issue. Obviously. It's not confined to our local Population here the environment is a worldwide issue and potential problem Can you speak to that a little bit either one of you? about how you see that as a global issue and not just Well, even though all politics are local and we know all that but it's still a global issue Can you can you address that a little bit? Yeah, well the atmosphere has too much Commer dioxide in it and It really has to be a global solution our feeling is that Massachusetts has been a leader nationally on so many issues We had the first public parks State parks we had the first our constitutions based on us gay marriage We could lead and really make this the issue of the You know next ten years, which is really The most important ten years in the next hundred based on the United Nations report that came out in the fall and Saying, you know the scientists Keep being surprised at how much worse it is each time they look and They they say we've got to turn this around in the next 12 years and I also think we have an advantage in the state because There's so many universities and so many scientists who work together and talk to each other and with some You know monetary incentive for more development. We we are actually a hub of where change can happen So not only are we politically motivated or in a position to lead the rest of the country? We actually have resources to make a difference and Feel like in Massachusetts. We're kind of lucky We're like one of the areas that's going to be least impacted In some ways by the direct effects of climate disasters Especially in Western Massachusetts. We're not a coast. We're not already really hot But there's no way to separate what happens out in the rest of the world with what's going to happen to us if the Economy, you know, they're saying can really be affected by this. It's going to be a national issue and a local issue, too if You know we have friends in other areas of the country that are hurt That's going to affect us too. If you know if crops don't do well Because of climate changes that's going to impact the people near us who are growing them So it's it's both global and also very local and we have a lot at stake here I wanted to you brought up a very interesting point and maybe we can talk about a minute one of the people running for president I hope I get his Name right he was a governor and he's running on the environment as his major issue and one of the When he talked about it, he didn't talk about it just as an environmental issue He talked about how it affected the economy people's health jobs Crops you name it. Maybe we can get to that in a minute I Know about the Paris Accord that pretty much every country signed on to I'm not a hundred percent familiar with the content But I didn't know if it was a small step or rather a large step and it's unfortunate that we pulled out of that When we should be clearly part of it and probably taking a lead to some extent You think it's had an effect that we're not in it that the rest of the world is kind of signing on to that I mean, is it having a good impact that all these countries have signed on are they moving in a good direction here? it's the US leadership is critical in international agreements of any kind and the fact that the whole world signed on to limit emissions to two degrees centigrade limit the Yeah, it's The the lack of US leadership. It's absolutely affecting the rest of the country's commitments for a few it's increased their commitment, but the truth is that the Paris Accord was never enough and the countries even the ones, you know that most are motivated are not Keeping up to their part of the agreement anyway So, yeah, we'll have a lot of catch-up work to do after 2020 right to say the least I want to do a talk about as I was just mentioning something you kind of hit upon I was reading recently where they're expecting that the flooding in our country in the middle part of the state is going to be Coming up and be a total disaster So we're talking about people's health talk about jobs We're talking about the economy and how it's affected and the numbers are staggering This is not a very small event that's going on People's health are being affected and are getting sicker as a result of the Climate being what it is right now and if we don't attach ourselves to seeing what this is going on We're going to be in big trouble, but it's also jobs in the economy I want can we maybe talk about that a little bit about the health and that part of it, but I think it's a really critical issue here Yeah, I was hearing I think I listened to Senator Markey and Senator McGovern opening the Green New Deal last night in Northampton They said over the past two years. There's been about 400 billion dollars in property damage due to fires and floods and storms in the United States So it's a very very big issue and that's and this is the beginning at wave of what's coming so We're gonna have to deal with some of these effects for a while unless we pull back And then it'll start to add but we need to pull way back from what we're Producing because so it's not only the economic damage With rising temperatures and with you know increasing fossil fuels in different places there's more particulate matter in the air because the emissions that happen and in many cities asthma rates are increasing astronomically Springfield has the highest asthma rate of anywhere in the United States and Often the people who are affected most are poor people either because they have not as strong structures Or because where they're located is close to where some of these emissions are happening or Because they have other health compromises. So there are There's a really big reason to Think about all of us together and they're like the canary in the coal mine, but to start with Having people from all communities, especially people who are most impacted Think about what the solutions should be and how to start because they're telling us how what's gonna happen to all of us We don't start working with them. It's really crucially important to work together and also have a really large Group of people caring about this, you know, very very many people involved that somehow been sometimes cut off of this political solutions and they have to be a crucial part of it and Also is thinking about health, you know, even like around here. We have Lime disease, right? Yes. Well, they're saying because the winter's aren't as cold instead of these ticks having one life cycle throughout the year They're not gonna have to so, you know a lot of little things like that We don't even know about or going to increase we have a chance to take some action and to push our local politicians to do something in our local governments and from there to have an impact on state and From there nationally, I think The other thing is that if we start shifting to a greener economy Many jobs are gonna open. No question, you know both in Retrofitting houses so that they're more efficient in creating more solar and wind power There's a huge economy out there waiting to be exploited and what we want to make sure is that that stays kind of small business grassroots, you know effective, but No longer controlled by monopolies. We have a chance now to get in and make a huge difference for many people by training a lot of people to Be able to do this. So that's part of what the Green New Deal is about I also think and we haven't even talked about this how it's affecting our food source as well I think that's a really big issue here that the soil in a lot of places been contaminated by pesticides and whatever and even though the Soil has been turned over now. They're still there and it's definitely affecting Our food supply, which is in turn affecting our health and there's certainly as you probably know a big movement towards organic food as a result So people don't want this even though it's probably still in their food to some extent the other thing I recently read and this was kind of a pretty mind-blowing is that They figured out that there's probably 400 million tons of garbage in the ocean plastics and so on that are Floating not only floating, but the animals the fish and sea are eating these things dying If not the content of what some of these things are that's eventually getting into our food supply again So it's not just a minor issue with their food supply and things are dwindling here to say the least I think we're depressing your audience David I have good news though, so I was also thinking the environment is a solution like by keeping more beautiful forests around Which when we walk and we feel really good all those trees are made of carbon They are holding carbon from the atmosphere and bringing it back into the earth instead of into the sky and there Ways of farming that pull this carbon into the soil Enriching the soil making it healthier for us and we have to use those kinds of farming practices Which will both help farmers help people get better food and pull carbon in so a lot of the solutions are about making the world much healthier more livable and Without warming without giving the earth a fever On that note, I'm going to go to a positive note here Recently this is sometime in March There was a high school movement to walk out on Fridays about the environment and this Was all started by a girl from Sweden Her name is Greta Thernberg and maybe you can talk a little bit about that There is a video that we're going to show shortly But maybe you could talk about her and what she has done to allow this movement to happen But that's a very positive thing to say the least. Yeah, well Greta is this very very interesting girl. She started At age 14 Really getting out there on on climate she has Asperger so she says she sees things black and white and Clearly the adults are doing nothing and so she's out there saying You are doing nothing. She's just you know naming it and She's become a phenomenon If you look her up, you know, just look up Greta climate the internet you'll you'll see multiple interviews and and Places where she's spoken. She's been going Leaving school every Friday To protest in front of the Swedish Parliament And now around the world there are students College and high school who are leaving school every Friday and their communities are backing them to say this climate is affecting us for the rest of our lives and You better do something about it right now well, what's kind of interesting is that It seems like our youth are starting to sort of I don't want to say take over the movement But certainly getting more seriously involved and letting us adults know. Hey, what the heck are you doing out here? And I think that's really a very Positive thing to say the least We are going to show the video of her at the UN And she spoke for a few minutes there and it's it's quite moving to say the least so we're gonna go to that now My name is Greta Thunberg. I am 15 years old and I'm from Sweden I speak on behalf of climate justice now Many people say that Sweden is just a small country and it doesn't matter what we do But I've learned that you are never too small to make a difference And if a few children can get headlines all over the world just by not going to school Then imagine what we could all do together if we really wanted to But to do that we have to speak clearly No matter how uncomfortable that may be You only speak of the green eternal economic growth because you are too scared of being unpopular You only talk about moving forward with the same bad ideas that got us into this mess Even when the only sensible thing to do is pull the emergency break You are not mature enough To tell it like it is Even that burden you leave to us children But I don't care about being unpopular I care about climate justice and the living planet Our civilization is being sacrificed for the opportunity of a very small number of people To continue making enormous amounts of money Our biosphere is being sacrificed So that rich people in countries like mine Can live in luxury It is the sufferings of the many which pay for the luxuries of the few The year 2078 I will celebrate my 75th birthday If I have children, maybe they will spend that day with me Maybe they will ask me about you Maybe they will ask why you didn't do anything while there still was time to act You say you love your children above all else And yet you are stealing their future in front of their very eyes Until you start focusing on what needs to be done rather than what is politically possible There is no hope We cannot solve a crisis without treating it as a crisis We need to keep the fossil fuels in the ground and we need to focus on equity And the solutions within this system are so impossible to find Then maybe we should change the system itself We have not come here to beg world leaders to care You have ignored us in the past and you will ignore us again You have run out of excuses and we are running out of time We have come here to let you know that change is coming whether you like it or not The real power belongs to the people Well, that was quite something It's amazing, isn't it? I'm glad we are able to see that You had mentioned a little bit earlier about the UN report And I wanted to talk about that a little bit Maybe you could expand a little bit about what the report was about And what it really said Can you address that a little bit? Well, the UN scientists from around the world have been reporting on a regular basis I think we have gotten the IPCC report every three years Not sure And it just gets more and more dire Scientists are conservative by nature And so they will only say what they are pretty sure they have got strong evidence for And the evidence just gets stronger and stronger That the warming of the earth is increasing in rate The effects are more severe And the real fear is the tipping points Where you get an effect like the melting of the Arctic tundra And the release of methane from all of that formerly frozen carbon And the effect of that could be irreversible So what we are trying to do is stop the increase in emissions And then we are going to have to seriously reduce the amount of carbon There is going to have to be sequestration which is the capture of carbon Not just stopping using fossil fuels but reducing what we have already done to the atmosphere I would assume that the UN has come out with a position paper on climate change I am assuming at this point The most recent one Yeah, they have regular every year really the conventions And that is what the Paris Accord was It was one of the conventions of participants COP 21, 23, 24 Basically they have said we have about to not hit a tipping point Until 2030 to not just say what we are doing in the Paris Accord But pull even lower on our carbon emissions Really reduce them by I don't know how many gigatons But find ways to either sequester or reduce and or and reduce our use In order not to hit a first tipping point So we have a limited frame of time to do something You might say oh this is bad news Or you might say wow this is no longer in the distant future This is something we can have impact on right now and feel good about ourselves That we actually stopped something from happening Kind of like we closed up the ozone hole almost We took action around that We were able to in other times of the world take action We were able in World War II to totally change our economy around victory gardens Changing all factories so that we could have an impact on the world in a good way And you know this is another one of those times where we can get energies to say Yeah I'm going to be part of this I'm going to help something for my children, for my grandchildren Everybody can have a voice in this I'm not very good with remembering facts and figures You know but I can say out loud to my friends or to occasionally politicians I want you to keep doing something to make this change I'm going to stand up for this You're going to hear my voice So that's the kind of thing that will roll There was at one point where one of our legislature said You know like if I even get six calls from constituents I actually think I have to start doing something So we have a big impact You mentioned a group and that's the kind of grandparents here And being a grandfather myself And having four grandchildren I want to see them around and not sick Because the environment has sort of done them in at some point So I am hopeful giving what you said And I think the idea that they're talking about 2030 Which is obviously very very soon Is going to wake people up to the idea Whoa we better get started more than we are Doing this because time is really coming and running out To say the least So I'm hoping that there are some grandparents and mothers out front And they are And they understand this movement in terms of not only their own children But grandparents as well And there are grandfathers and grandmothers involved They never called mothers out front No I understand that Actually the grandmothers are really important New grandmas are one of the core You know group in mothers out front They're all poignant when you look at that baby And you think what's the world going to look like When that baby is my age I hope they make it that long And sometimes grandparents have a little bit more time Than working parents So it's something else that's really wonderful And it's a totally volunteer organization To have Sort of at the end here We're starting to run out of time What does the future hold I mean we've talked around it sort of But tell me what your own feelings are about What you think the future holds here For this movement and for Planet Earth Here a little bit If you want to address that for a minute Well we have seen In part thanks to the children But large part They're speaking for the scientists Saying listen We are seeing a change Bet you anything You're going to hear a lot about climate During the 2020 elections We've come up Once in the debates in 2016 So that's going to be a huge difference And I do See in surveys People are ready to Invest This is the most important investment We can make And there's technological Discoveries And roll out of new technology That really has to be done very fast And I think people are going to be supporting that Unfortunately we're going to have to end This has been a fascinating discussion I want to thank Andrew and Felicia For being on the show I want to thank you folks for watching And thanks to Amherst Media For sponsoring this And I hope to see you again soon Thank you