Vox Pop - Climate change is an issue that impacts everyone

Vox Pop

During the campaign of 2024, we were reminded by some candidates that there is more that we have in common with each other than what separates us. For instance, take the climate chaos that the world, even our immediate world, is experiencing. When these events affect us, or someone we know, it becomes very important in our daily lives. But even if the weather is not a threat to us, we tune in every day to see what the weather will bring. We pay attention to what the weather person tells us as we plan our daily, weekly, even monthly activities: the farmer who makes planting and harvesting timelines; the hunter who plans for hunting season; the fisherman who goes out on Lake Superior to fish; the vacationer who hopes for the best weather; local gardeners who keep track of early frost warnings and rainfall forecasts; and who can forget as children when we hoped for a huge snowfall that would cancel school! We all depend on our climate’s weather cycles to give us the best outcomes for our plans.

Over the past year, more and more climate catastrophes are being explained, in part, because of climate change. Even our trusted weather men and women on our local television stations are using the “climate change” phrase! We need to understand why weather patterns are changing, and what we might do to help deal with this reality. My advice is to search out responsible sources and organizations that are focused on this issue. Use the internet to find a wealth of well researched articles and responsible organizations. Find those that you trust to give you truthful information and ideas on how you can become involved, and then do something! In our area, there is a very active Citizens Climate Lobby, a nonpartisan group that keeps its members and our elected representatives informed of the latest ways to remediate, hopefully, the causes for our climate chaos.

I do this because: “Mother Nature Always Bats Last.”

— Charlotte Calhoun, Bayfield