Note: The Lawrence Times runs opinion columns and letters to the Times written by community members with varying perspectives on local issues. These pieces do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Times staff.
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Kansans’ representatives in Congress don’t hear from their constituents enough about the climate emergency. I learned this recently as part of the Lawrence chapter of the Citizens Climate Lobby (CCL), a volunteer-powered organization dedicated to bipartisan efforts to address climate change.
In June, I participated in CCL’s Lobby Weekend and met with a staff member of Kansas House District 1 Rep. Tracey Mann. During this meeting I asked how often Mann’s offices heard from individuals about climate change. The answer: rarely. They hear more from business leaders and farmers who are worried about changes they will have to adjust to as the world addresses earth’s rising temperature.
Though Republican leadership isn’t generally thought of as being proactive on climate action, 41 Republicans in Congress supported the CHIPS and Science Act in August, which is considered “one of the largest climate bills ever passed by Congress.” And although the possibility of CCL’s larger goal of a carbon fee and dividend seems very small on the horizon, public opinion on the need to take climate action is growing, and I believe we will reach that goal eventually.
To help us make progress, reach out to candidates in the days leading up to the election on Nov. 8. Let them know that you believe action on climate change is vital in their coming term as our representatives. And don’t stop asking all elected officials to take action on climate change.
Bailey Mareu (she/her), Lawrence
Citizens Climate Lobby, Lawrence Chapter
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More Community Voices:
Letter to the Times: City should create oversight committee to guide pool renovation project, rebuild trust
”Our petition’s 1,764 signatures, our supporters’ 75 letters, and our research into the extensive flaws in the (pool renovation) community engagement process all indicate that the previously proposed plan did not reflect public opinion,” Holly Krebs writes in this letter to the Times.
Shawn Alexander: Say his name – Fred Harvey Smith (Column)
”Racial violence has been omnipresent in American history, and in far too many of the incidents, the perpetrators of the crime are acquitted or not even brought up on charges. When I think of such cases I am often haunted by the heinous murder of Fred Harvey Smith here in the land of John Brown in May 1936,” Shawn Alexander writes in this column.
Letter to the Times: Are veterans’ sacrifices for democracy worthless?
”My father (Navy), mother (Army), and many other family members served our country in World War II. … They gave of themselves, in countless ways, to stop the spread of authoritarianism, suppression of freedoms and tyranny of the many by the few,” Sandy Sanders writes in this letter to the Times.
