{"id":17354,"date":"2022-12-06T14:04:35","date_gmt":"2022-12-06T19:04:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/?p=17354"},"modified":"2022-12-06T15:47:34","modified_gmt":"2022-12-06T20:47:34","slug":"december-climate-champions-update","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/december-climate-champions-update\/","title":{"rendered":"December Climate Champions Update"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.massaudubon.org\/our-conservation-work\/policy-advocacy\/climate-champions-program\" target=\"_blank\">Climate Champions<\/a> is a Mass Audubon grassroots volunteer program to advocate for policies that advance nature-based climate solutions. With training from policy experts, Climate Champions advocate for local and state policies that help achieve the state\u2019s goal to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 and\u202freverse negative health impacts of climate change for Environmental Justice communities.\u202f\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Meet a Champion, find out how it&#8217;s going and what&#8217;s next, and learn how you can get involved. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Climate Champion Spotlight: Kevin Izzo&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"704\" height=\"704\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/12\/Kevin-Izzo-sq.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-17355\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/12\/Kevin-Izzo-sq.jpg 704w, https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/12\/Kevin-Izzo-sq-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/12\/Kevin-Izzo-sq-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/12\/Kevin-Izzo-sq-144x144.jpg 144w, https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/12\/Kevin-Izzo-sq-624x624.jpg 624w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 704px) 100vw, 704px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cAs I became more climate aware, I realized that reducing my individual impact wasn&#8217;t enough and that I needed to do more. Not having previous advocacy experience I wasn&#8217;t sure where to start.\u202f<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.massaudubon.org\/our-conservation-work\/policy-advocacy\/climate-advocacy\/climate-champions-program\" target=\"_blank\">Climate Champions<\/a> has provided me a way to educate myself and become more active.\u202fIt is a thoughtful group with wide-ranging concerns.\u202fSince joining, I\u2019ve:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Researched local adoption of three climate initiatives,&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Written letters to influence building code design,&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Phone banked with the Environmental Voter Project,&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Participated in a Massachusetts solar siting survey,&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Helped to recruit new members, and&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Weighed in on legislative priorities.\u201d&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How It\u2019s Going&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Climate Champions celebrated the passage of a major Economic Development bill that included $540 million to support nature-based climate solutions, clean energy, and climate resiliency. Climate Champions pushed for these investments at our Beacon Hill Lobby Day in June, and the House and Senate responded.&nbsp;We hope this success inspires you as it has us!&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Champions were also briefed on the Community Preservation Act (CPA) that helps to preserve open space and cheered the passage of CPA in five towns at the mid-term election.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a way to grow the program, champions participated in recruitment workshops, where they learned about the variety of program recruitment materials available and brainstormed their own outreach to recruit more Climate Champions.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In addition, champions had the opportunity to:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Complete the MA Department of Energy Resources\u2019 Solar Siting Survey to advocate for solar projects that protect our natural and working lands&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Submit comments on proposed changes to the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) regulations to advocate for the reduction the time and costs involved with restoring wetlands&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What\u2019s Next&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Climate Champions will be trained by Mass Audubon\u2019s policy experts about local town government, how to take local climate action, and the resources available to facilitate that action. Champions will begin researching their local legislators, learning about their influences and interests, in preparation for future advocacy engagement.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mass Audubon\u2019s Policy and Advocacy staff will be finalizing the Legislative Agenda for the 2023-2024 legislative session after reviewing insightful feedback from both Climate Champions and <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.massaudubon.org\/our-conservation-work\/policy-advocacy\/climate-advocacy\/youth-climate-leadership-program\" target=\"_blank\">Youth Climate Leadership Program<\/a> (YCLP) volunteers.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Get Involved<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Become a Climate Champion, no matter your time constraints or experience level!&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.massaudubon.org\/our-conservation-work\/policy-advocacy\/climate-champions-program\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Find out more and sign up &gt;<\/a>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Climate Champions is a Mass Audubon grassroots volunteer program to advocate for policies that advance nature-based climate solutions. With training from policy experts, Climate Champions advocate for local and state policies that help achieve the state\u2019s goal to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 and\u202freverse negative health impacts of climate change for Environmental Justice communities.\u202f\u202f\u202f&nbsp; [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":17360,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2,178],"tags":[246,344,468,150],"class_list":["post-17354","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-advocacy-2","category-climate","tag-climate-action","tag-climate-champion","tag-climate-champions","tag-climate-change"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/12\/Kevin-Izzo-750.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3t87A-4vU","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":17282,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/november-climate-champions-update\/","url_meta":{"origin":17354,"position":0},"title":"November Climate Champions Update","author":"Mass Audubon","date":"November 7, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Climate Champions is a Mass Audubon grassroots volunteer program to advocate for policies that advance nature-based climate solutions. With training from policy experts, Climate Champions advocate for local and state policies that help achieve the state\u2019s goal to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 and\u202freverse negative health impacts of climate\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Advocacy&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Advocacy","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/advocacy-2\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/11\/Diane-Juhas750.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/11\/Diane-Juhas750.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/11\/Diane-Juhas750.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/11\/Diane-Juhas750.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":17459,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/february-climate-champions-update\/","url_meta":{"origin":17354,"position":1},"title":"February Climate Champions Update\u00a0","author":"Mass Audubon","date":"February 8, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Climate Champions\u202fis a Mass Audubon grassroots volunteer program to advocate for policies that advance nature-based climate solutions. With training from policy experts, Climate Champions advocate for local and state policies that help achieve the state\u2019s goal to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 and\u202freverse negative health impacts of climate change\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Advocacy&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Advocacy","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/advocacy-2\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/02\/Ipswich-River-750.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/02\/Ipswich-River-750.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/02\/Ipswich-River-750.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/02\/Ipswich-River-750.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":17221,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/climate-champions-fall-update\/","url_meta":{"origin":17354,"position":2},"title":"Climate Champions Fall Update","author":"Hillary T.","date":"October 10, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"This spring, we launched Climate Champions, a grassroots network of volunteers working together to speak with one collective, powerful voice. With training from policy experts, Climate Champions help advocate for town and state policies that help achieve the state\u2019s goal to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050 and\u00a0reverse negative\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Climate&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Climate","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/climate\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Climate Champions","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/10\/lobbyday.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/10\/lobbyday.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/10\/lobbyday.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/10\/lobbyday.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":17387,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/in-your-words-stephanie-kane\/","url_meta":{"origin":17354,"position":3},"title":"In Your Words: Stephanie Kane","author":"Kaylin D.","date":"December 16, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"I was first introduced to Mass Audubon when I attended the Field Naturalist Certificate Program in 2021 at Drumlin Farm in Lincoln. Then, my connections strengthened through the yearlong Birding Certificate Program. With my growing knowledge about the natural world from these two programs, and countless others, my understanding, experience,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;In Your Words&quot;","block_context":{"text":"In Your Words","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/in-your-words\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Stephanie standing in a forest, smiling with a green shirt and blue Mass Audubon hat.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/12\/Stephanie-Kane.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/12\/Stephanie-Kane.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/12\/Stephanie-Kane.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/12\/Stephanie-Kane.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":14077,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/climate-storytelling\/","url_meta":{"origin":17354,"position":4},"title":"The Impact of Storytelling","author":"Rishya N.","date":"May 27, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Our words hold immense power.\u00a0 We all learn this pretty early on. Think of your first favorite book or movie that whisked you off into a wonderful, magical world and how that made you feel. Think about the last time you sat down with a loved one to vent your\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Climate&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Climate","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/climate\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/05\/YOUTH-Phil-Doyle.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/05\/YOUTH-Phil-Doyle.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/05\/YOUTH-Phil-Doyle.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/05\/YOUTH-Phil-Doyle.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":17104,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/a-momentous-week-in-climate-history\/","url_meta":{"origin":17354,"position":5},"title":"A Momentous Week in Climate History","author":"Mass Audubon","date":"August 19, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"It\u2019s mid-August, which means the formal legislative session on Beacon Hill is over. Here\u2019s what happened on the federal and state level and what this means for our efforts to meet our advocacy campaign goal of securing $1 billion in new public funding for nature and climate.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 In just the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Advocacy&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Advocacy","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/advocacy-2\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"pic of the state house and a sign in front that says change","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/08\/statehouse.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/08\/statehouse.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/08\/statehouse.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2022\/08\/statehouse.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17354","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17354"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17354\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17366,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17354\/revisions\/17366"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17360"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17354"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17354"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17354"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}