Rest and Reboot, COP29 Is Coming, NYC Tree Map, and More!

Hey climate heroes! Welcome to The Climate Roundup, where we round up the change, er the news about climate and the environment. As part of the Gen E community, we thank you for making climate action part of everyday life. (Reading this newsletter counts!)

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Election Thoughts:

As devastating and infuriating the outcome of the election was and is on many fronts, with the fight to reverse climate change being a huge one, there seems to be a calm stillness in the climate world, or at least from my view of it. I don’t mean a stillness in the mission, but rather a collective, yet unspoken moment of pause for processing and self care. We’ve been through this before. Perhaps many of us have learned that spiraling or dwelling in negativity does not serve us or the mission. It happened. Take some time to rest, reflect, and realign. And then we move forward once again.

This doesn’t stop us. If anything it will re-energize the climate and other movements with a renewed sense of urgency. No time to waste. Starting with ourselves, and then locally, we dig in and get creative. Because just like last time, the cities and states can and will continue their climate work. In terms of how this election will impact overall progress in the US and the world in regards to decarbonizing the global economy, we don’t yet know. We can make informed assumptions, and we must brace for and prepare to battle off the worst. But anything can happen. This week I’ve felt comforted from the strength shown from the environmental nonprofits. They’ve been preparing for this outcome and they are ready to live in the courts over the next four years if they have to, defending environmental laws. That’s what they do – they look out for the health of our planet and its biodiversity, and that work will continue with a vengeance.

Read the full essay here.

A Few More Climate Things:

🤑 Ajay Banga, head of the World Bank, which the US is the largest shareholder of, is optimistic he can convince Trump that by helping developing nations fund their transition to clean energy and climate adaptation projects, these nations will be well positioned to purchase US goods and services. And money talks.

👍 Local climate initiatives on the ballot did well. An example: in Colorado, more tax revenue from sports betting will go towards water conservation projects.

🧑‍🏭 Next week kicks off the 29th Conference of the Parties, or COP29, where world leaders, government officials, activistists, academics, and business people will come together yet again for the annual global talks on climate change. This year it’s being held in Baku, Azerbaijan, and there is an air of uncertainty and low energy surrounding this year’s meeting, now emphasized by the results of the US election. It’s been known for months that this COP will be less attended than recent years, as many corporates and heads of state are sitting this one out. Hmm, it couldn’t possibly be because this is dubbed ‘Finance COP’, where world leaders are supposed to figure out who’s paying and how much, could it? Add to that the looming assumption that the US will drop out of the Paris Agreement and go dark on climate action, and well, you get the mood. We’ll be watching what happens. Here’s what to expect.

🤔 Lastly, a question to ponder: Was it a huge, election-losing mistake for Kamala’s campaign to avoid talking directly about climate change?

Just Breathe

🌳 Did you know that New York City has a tree map, where you can find and learn about every single tree in all the boroughs?! It’s pretty amazing. So whether you live here or come to visit, if you pass a tree you love, look it up and learn its name from this map.