Climate Action Shoreline: Supportive Saturday

Shoreline Farmers Market at the 192nd Park n Ride
Photo by Steven H. Robinson

By Diane Lobaugh

I started my weekend by taking a neighbor to the Shoreline Farmers Market. There I saw two old friends, a few Shoreline activists, some great vendors, and some folks we know from the neighborhood and dancing. Then once home, I walked around our circle and visited with more neighbors, as the sun came out. It was a day rich with contact and hope.

Building relationships and connections is key to growing the climate change movement. When people come together as friends, neighbors, allies, and listen to each other, incredible things can happen. We can have fun and figure things out. We can have all of our minds thinking about the future.

Photo by Diane Lobaugh

Climate Action Shoreline began when my neighbor and I started talking together about the climate crisis. We gathered a few more friends, then started to meet regularly, talking and listening to each other.

Together we developed a brochure about the climate emergency and daily actions we can take from our own home, like “Supportive Saturday.” Hopefully last month you read about and tried “Fossil Fuel Free Friday.”

As climate change and other crises worsen, many of us may be feeling stressed, maybe doubting our minds and questioning whether we can find solutions. Some of us are grieving or feeling discouraged. To move forward we need each other. Going it alone does not build resource. But connecting with others does.

Our minds are good, and the act of listening is very powerful. We can each build a network of people listening to each other, and thinking about solutions, organizing, learning and supporting each other. We can be the listener, hearing the successes and the struggles of the people around us. And we can ask to be listened to. All of us can think about our goals and next steps in our lives, our community and world. Listening to each other will keep us thinking and working together.

Photo by Diane Lobaugh

Certain groups of people in our society have not been listened to well and have much to say and teach about the present and the future. Indigenous people, who saw this climate crisis a long time ago, are leading us here and throughout the world. Young people are leading us. They care deeply about the future and have lots of good ideas and dreams.

It is also so important to listen to the people already deeply impacted by climate change. Many are facing extreme effects of climate change, such as heat, drought, hunger, flooding, extreme weather, war and loss of their homelands. Hearing these stories has helped me understand the impact of my actions, as contributing to the crisis, or as part of the solution.

We belong to the earth. For many of us in this corner of the world, facing the climate crisis is still a choice. For those of us with a lot of resource, and access to so much, we can consume less, especially less fossil fuels. There are many people working to protect and heal the earth, including here at home. Let’s join them and support each other--together.

See you next month, and maybe at the Farmers Market.