On September 8, 350 Fairfax will join with climate action groups across the globe to Rise For Climate. Together we will demand that our local leaders commit to building a fossil free world that puts people and justice before profits. We’ll let our leaders know that there is no more time for delays. We need a fast and fair transition to 100% renewable energy for all NOW.
At 350 Fairfax, we’ll participate in Rise For Climate by heading out into our communities to ask our neighbors to sign the Fossil Free Fairfax petition, which asks the Fairfax Board of Supervisors to adopt a resolution to set 100% renewable energy goals, oppose new fossil fuel infrastructure, and divest from fossil fuel companies. We’ll connect our petition drive efforts to the Global Rise For Climate Actions to show our legislators that there is an unstoppable wave of people’s climate leadership, right here in Fairfax and around the globe.
The more people we get involved the better, so click here to RSVP and make plans to join us as we Rise For Climate in Fairfax on September 8. We’ll collect petitions at locations across Fairfax County from 10 a.m. to noon, and then we’ll gather for lunch at the Lost Dog in Dunn Loring at 12:30 p.m.
Rise for Climate Action is a global moment organized by hundreds of local leaders and dozens of partners. It’s coordinated by a global steering group in conjunction with global and national partners. You can see the full list of groups involved here.
The Rise For Climate Action Day comes just four days before the Global Climate Action Summit, which is being held in San Francisco September 12–14. Delegates from states, regions, cities and businesses will be joined by global government leaders, scientists, students, nonprofits and others to raise the bar on climate action worldwide. They will share what they have achieved to date and commit to doing more to usher in the era of decarbonization, greater levels of sustainability and prosperity for the many rather than the few.
The summit’s goal is to gather momentum in advance of the 2020 Paris Climate Change meetings and to bend the curve of emissions down by in the next two years, since the latest science advises us that this gives the world the best opportunity to prevent the worst effects of climate change. The year 2018 therefore must be the beginning of a new phase of ambitious action on climate change.
The summit will underscore the urgency of the climate change threat by mobilizing the voices and experience of real people in real communities already facing real and stark threats. It will challenge and channel the energy and idealism of people everywhere to step up and overcome it.
From September 12 to 14, you can virtually attend the summit by streaming it live on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter. Additionally, Hundreds of Global Climate Action Summit affiliate events are taking place in the San Francisco Bay Area and throughout the world during the week of September 10, including climate action panels, workshops, tours, exhibits and other special events. Click here to view the affiliate events calendar.
Our collective action on September 8 will show these leaders that the people in their communities are behind them and that we stand ready to act to reach the goals of a fossil free world. The more people we get involved the better, so make plans now to join us on September 8!
–Bobby Monacella