 Governments must respond to the climate emergency with the scale and speed that science demands. We need special political leaders who are up to that task… So WE, the majority, must do the hard work to elect them. This is our political reality, and then there is the reality of physics. Nature, the physical world, the most basic infrastructure on which all life depends, is teetering on the brink. You can’t quibble about the 2025 numbers:
GIVEN THE POLITICS AND THE CLIMATE NUMBERS OF THIS MOMENT, WE MUST:
WHAT CAN YOU DO? There’s a lot locally we can do right now. Read on. We Need the Roadless Area Conservation Rule Our public lands are under attack, again. The federal Roadless Area Conservation Rule protects America’s last-standing, undisturbed undeveloped backcountry forestland. In June, bureaucrats in D.C. decided to let the highest bidders bulldoze roads through them by rescinding the popular 2001 rule. They’ve given the public until September 21st to go on the record opposing the plan. If the Roadless Area Conservation Rule is rescinded, 45 million acres of protected areas would be open for construction and logging, affecting drinking water, raising water bills and imperiling the home of many threatened and endangered species, including grizzly bears, wolves and salmon and much more. Once commercially exploited, these lands would likely never recover. TAKE ACTION! MAKE A PUBLIC COMMENT! ONE MILLION IS OUR GOAL You can type your unique comment directly into the US Forest Service comment portal or attach a text file with your comment. Here’s the link. You may also use the comment tools that Cascadia Wildlands, Oregon Wild and / or Saveroadlessforests.com created. Better yet, USE ALL OF THEM! IMPORTANT: Key talking points can be found here. These messages come from the National Forest Coalition and are an excellent resource. Please use them. When enacted, the original rule got over one million public comments in favor. Let’s blow them away with one million public comments before September 21st!  We have until September 21st at 9:00 pm to say that we won’t let the federal government bulldoze roads through America’s protected wild forests. Take 1 minute of your day now to go on the record defending the Roadless Area Conservation Rule. Forests are our best climate solution!  (Roadless Area Conservation Rule Map) Stand Up for Forests - Road Trip to PDX Forest Over Profits 2026 September 12th & 13th – 11-5:00 pm Hear from ongoing land-defense campaigns against extractive logging, data center development, and mining from across the PNW. Learn and share skills and practices for fighting back, connect with ongoing struggles for land & justice, and deepen ties between movements. Located at the 350PDX Climate Justice Warehouse at the Rebuilding Center 3625 N Mississippi Ave, Portland Lunch will be provided. Space is limited, RSVP today! More into at forestoverprofits.org Citizens Want the Eugene Clean Energy Fund Climate action is on the ballot in November and we need to build support for our big win! That means letting Eugenians know what ECEF is and what it will do for our community. This is phase two: Educating the public and getting out the vote! Knocking doors is one of the most important ways you can help pass this initiative so we can make billion-dollar corporations pay their fair share and invest in our community and future. Sign up for TODAY’s canvas (starts at 10:00 am at Washburn Park, 21st & Agate) ECEF will provide: a short training, drinks and snacks RSVP Here: https://forms.gle/rkUVtSaJPXC2dm9V8 When Eugenians know what ECEF is and what it will do for our community, we are confident they will vote YES. Come be a part of the movement to turn corporate profits into community power. Find out more about this vital campaign here. Election ProtectionThursday, September 10th from 6:00 to 7:30 pm at the Unitarian Universalist Church - 1685 W 13th Ave. Eugene Sign up here for a hopeful and energizing training with Common Cause to ensure a free, fair and highly participatory election in November. Let’s create massive and safe voter turnout to defend against attempts to deceive, disrupt and deny our elections. Sponsored by Indivisible Eugene Springfield, NAACP Eugene Springfield, Lane County United for Immigrant Justice network, League of Women Voters of Lane County and 350 Eugene. Save the Dates Join In! Join Indivisible Eugene Springfield’s Weekly Protest (bring your favorite signs & banners)   Did you know that we have 125 factory farms here in Oregon? Want to know more about industrialized agriculture here in the South Willamette Valley? Northern Lane County’s families are living with unsafe levels of nitrate contamination in their groundwater, and without action, the problem could get worse. This is an opportunity to learn about the causes of nitrate pollution, the role of factory farms, resources for community members concerned about their water’s safety, and our local fight for clean water here in Lane County. What: Clean Water for Lane County When: Wednesday, September 2, 6:30 p.m. Where: 1420 Kalmia St, Junction City, OR, 97448 Host: Junction City Grange RSVP for the event here. Bring 1/2 a cup of well water in a clean cup to be tested. Testing takes about 10 minutes. Nitrate has been linked to various health conditions, including blue-baby syndrome.  You Were There - Thanks for Coming to the GOTV Card Party!If you missed the card party and want to write cards, contact Deb at [email protected]. The UK Nation Emergency Briefing Documentary is Here!In November 2025, in London, leading experts briefed political and civic leaders on the national threats posed by the climate and nature crisis. A 50 minute documentary film has been produced that distills that evidence, designed for public engagement. Over 3,500 screenings in the UK and Europe have been shown or scheduled. Now it has come to Eugene. When: Saturday, October 3rd - 6 to 8:00 pm Where: Unitarian Universalist Church, 1685 W. 13th St., Eugene Free and open to the public. Suggested audience over 16 years of age.  (National Emergency Briefing screenings world wide as of 8/27/26) It’s not easy, but it’s simple: a swift and total conversion from fossil fuels to electricity generated by solar and wind. We’re going for big solutions that will make all our lives better. Together we will do this. We created this, we can change it. Let’s put people in office who are pro-transition and will do the right thing: put people over profits. TAKE ACTION TODAY. IT’S UP TO US. LET’S BE FIERCE!
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Protect what we love. Preserve what we can. We can make the state of the earth and life on it better if we act. The reports on the climate and nature crisis this week have been especially bleak. Records for ocean and terrestrial heat, droughts, floods and sea level rise are being broken year on year. (Including our fire on Skinner’s Butte!) But the future is not yet written and we must hold to the vision that we can stop the damage and restore balance. Not immediately, but over time. We cannot save everything but that does not mean we cannot save anything, and that is exactly what we must do.  The vast majority of Americans want policies that prioritize people over profits. (Like health care for all, a decent minimum wage, excellent public education, strong regulations and action on the climate and nature crises.) We need bold action from the government, and we want it now! Write postcards and urge fellow citizens to vote! Studies show it increases voter turnout by up to 8%!  In a democracy, your vote is one of your most important super powers. Let’s help others exercise this power for the 2026 midterm elections! Everything is provided. Casual, fun and effective. No host food & drinks.  We’re turning corporate profits into community power by creating clean energy, green jobs and climate resilience! The ECEF (Eugene Clean Energy Fund) needs your support!  Please join in the fundraising party! Let’s get this important initiative over the finish line in November.  (Credit Lookout Eugene Springfield) Connect the legacy of the epic Warner Creek protest to today’s forest, wildfire, and climate justice struggles. Meet the heroes and get inspired for our ongoing fight to protect our best and simplest climate solution - our forests.  Tickets by donation ($0 – $50 suggested donation). No one turned away for lack of funds. Buy tickets at https://donorbox.org/events/942945/steps/choose_tickets Election Protection Training Thursday, September 10th from 6:00 to 7:30 pm at the Unitarian Universalist Church - 1685 W 13th Ave. Eugene Let’s create massive and safe voter turnout to defend against attempts to deceive, disrupt and deny our elections. Sign up here for a hopeful and energizing call to action to ensure a free, fair and highly participatory election in November. You can help to:
Sponsored by Indivisible Eugene Springfield, NAACP Eugene Springfield, Lane County United for Immigrant Justice network, League of Women Voters of Lane County and 350 Eugene.  Sign the petition opposing a data center in Eugene HERE Save the date to come to Eugene City Council on Monday, September 14th at 7:30 pm to let our city officials know our community doesn’t want a data center. In other Forest Defense news… The bad policy to rescind the 2001 Roadless Rule is coming out this week. We will have until September 21st to flood the US Forest Service with massive public comments. Please stay tuned.  The UK has a massively expanding campaign to demand their government televise a nationwide briefing on the climate and nature crises. Officials are lining up to support. You can learn more at the National Emergency Briefing website. It’s spreading quickly across Europe with over 3,000 screenings, and they are now popping up in the US and Oregon. Stay tuned.  No one solution alone can work. There are multiple solutions and we must pull together and demand mandates to pursue them. The capitalist markets will not get us there in time. We need governments to act. We are the people. We are the government. This is the work we were born to do.
 (Mount Hood and the Milky Way) Our spirits are deeply challenged to find peace in these daunting times, even surrounded as we are by the magical, mysterious wonder of our gorgeous Earth. Dr. Katharine K. Wilkinson, author, strategist, and teacher working to heal the planet we call home, explains: We live and learn, labor and love, in a brief and decisive chapter of human history. (Climate Wayfinding (2026)) It’s the temperature… it’s rising, even faster than predicted. The latest data show the steep rise over the last few years, and how much more it’s going to jump in the next 18 months.  2024 holds the record for hottest and 2026 may break that. Experts say we certainly will in 2027. Our problematic historic wealth and privilege may spare us, but there are fires everywhere you look, record heat in Europe, epic and repeating floods in Asia, spreading famine, war and migration across the globe. Warming is feeding on itself, causing ever more serious disruptions in daily lives - a polycrisis. Terrifying.  At the same time, reliable, clean, low-cost, low-barrier renewable energy is accelerating much faster than predicted… with eye-popping cost savings & innovations in batteries, transmission enhancements, distributed energy technology, plug-in home solar and more! The days of fossil fuels are numbered. The transition is underway. Exciting.  ELECTIONS: Record numbers of people are getting engaged. Enthusiasm and engagement are erupting around progressive candidates. We’re building a big public movement that will set the ground on which politicians must operate. This is where YOU come in. State and local governments are composed of actual people we know, neighbors and friends. Let’s get to work and demand they respond to this climate emergency and let’s pitch in to help them. Donate, knock doors and communicate with the decision-makers. It’s too late to stop the climate crisis, but we can protect a lot of what we love and need to survive. There’s a lot of good work to be done! Read on and take action today! Let's Drive Voter Turn-Out in NovemberThe pen is mightier than the sword! Come meet your buddies who are defending democracy! (The only thing more uplifting than fighting for a good cause, is fighting for it with friends!)  A brief introduction, followed by lots of postcard writing. Everything is provided. Friendly and casual. Everyone is welcome. Tell your friends. (No host foods and drinks.) Stay-tuned to hit the streets in October with 350 Eugene to wave and talk to people about the importance of voting. (Can’t come to the party but you’re willing to write cards? Contact Debby at [email protected].) Thanks.  The Eugene Clean Energy Fund ballot initiative qualified for the November ballot, thanks to the insanely smart and energetic work of the leaders and community volunteers! This marks the beginning of our push to reach and mobilize every registered voter in Eugene to vote YES in November.  Let’s expand the local green economy, create union jobs and community resiliency through innovative and long-overdue renewable energy projects, starting with our most vulnerable neighbors. Learn more about ECEF here. Next Steps… Come to the kick-off fundraiser for the Eugene Clean Energy Fund on Saturday, August 22nd! Learn more about the campaign, support efforts to pass the ECEF ballot measure, and get to know other like-minded folks over snacks and drinks. Fun & casual. What: Fundraiser for the Eugene Clean Energy Fund ballot measure When: Saturday, August 22nd, from 4-6pm Where: Address shared upon RSVP It’s time the billion-dollar corporations pay their fair share! RSVP for the fundraiser here. Pledge to vote yes. Sign up to volunteer! Encourage local businesses/organizations/community leaders to endorse. And donate if you can. More Reasons to Celebrate & Join the Fight Meet the people who fought and won this historic battle at nearby Warner Creek. They have a lot to teach us at this moment! Forest defense is climate defense! Grassroots Organizing Gets the Goods - Plug In!Join Us for Street Messaging with the Climate Emergency Theme When: Fri., Aug. 14th at 2:00 - 3:30 pm Where: 18th Ave. near Chambers (NE corner of BiMart parking lot). Come animate the banners & signs! Fresh air & friendly conversations. Stay for free pizza at Hey Neighbors! at 19th & Jefferson afterward! Election Protection Common Cause Oregon is hosting an Election Protection training with 350 Eugene, NAACP, Indivisible, Lane County United for Immigrant Justice Network and the League of Women Voters and we'd love to have you join us! Thur., Sept 10th from 6 to 7:30 pm at UUCE 13th & Chambers More info and registration at this mobilize.us link. Everyone is welcome!  Check out the new Views from the Bike Lane substack: A Eugene-Springfield group passionate about cycling as a means of transportation and working to grow a culture of cycling in our community. HOME ENERGY SCORE: Local climate policy progress: Tune in to the Home Energy Score City of Eugene Public Hearing on Sept. 21st at 5:30 pm (using this link). Contact your City Councilor and tell them to support it. Here’s the Sierra Club's press release. A Data Center in Eugene? What, what? SAVE THE DATE - MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD Monday, September 14th at 7:30 pm - Eugene City Council public testimony opposing data centers. The Testimony Guide is here. Come at 7:15 to sign up to speak. Much more to come. Opposition to DATA CENTERS is exploding nationwide for a very long list of reasons. In Eugene, a group has begun to meet to organize a local campaign. If you are interested in joining, email Debby at [email protected] and you’ll receive info on how to connect. TAKE ACTION NOW: Sign-on in Opposition to Data Center Development in Eugene - Click here to sign-on. Did You Know?THIS IS HAPPENING IN THE UK… Last November, ten of the UK’s leading experts briefed an invited audience of over 1,200 politicians and leaders from business, culture, faith, sport and the media. The briefing set out the implications of climate and nature breakdown for health, food systems, national security and the economy. Now communities and organizations in Europe are using a free-to-screen 50-minute film, based on the event, to brief the UK public about the climate and nature crisis and call for a wartime-scale response to the climate and nature crisis. There have been hundreds of screenings in village halls, cinemas, faith spaces and workplaces, bringing constituents, civic leaders and members of Parliament together to hear the evidence - and consider what an emergency response should look like. This week a group met to plan bringing the presentation to our community. Learn more about this unifying movement. This is one of the tools in the toolbox to galvanize action in this terrifying and exciting time. More info and a teaser of the film go to nebriefing.org. You should see it.  The only way is through. Let’s be fierce.
A country is only as good… only as strong as the people who make it up and the country turns into what the people want it to become… I don’t believe any longer that we can afford to say that it is entirely out of our hands. We made the world we’re living in and we have to make it over. James Baldwin |
