Environmental Defense Fund

The impacts of climate change are here, but there is a path to a vital Earth for all. "If we protect nature, we protect our communities, our economies and our future,” says our executive director, Amanda Leland. At next week's UN biodiversity summit, leaders from across the world have a chance to make prosperous people *and* healthy, vibrant ecosystems a reality. During this global convening and again later this year at the UN climate talks, we need to see bold action to advance these key priorities: ?? Include Indigenous Peoples and local communities in decision-making ?? Mobilize finance to protect nature and fight climate change ?? Ensure nature and net-zero go hand-in-hand https://lnkd.in/eNJnuibz

To pumpkin spice or not to pumpkin spice...it’s a debate that divides America. But we can unite around celebrating all the climate progress the U.S. has made recently. Thanks Kareem Rahma, for giving me a MetroCard microphone to spread the word.? https://lnkd.in/eWjYAa7e?

Demand for green skills in the job market is outpacing the supply of qualified workers by almost double. ?? With so many climate change solutions on hand and this demand signal from the economy, we need to close this skills gap – fast. EDF’s Climate Corps fellowship trains the next generation of the green workforce to fill this missing piece of the climate puzzle. Our fellows have implemented sustainable solutions at 40% of Fortune 100 companies including: Amazon, McDonald’s, Walmart and more. Check out how we’re helping secure a sustainable planet one job at a time and consider applying to host a fellow at your organization today: https://lnkd.in/gDusyUg9

The Supreme Court recently left in place EPA measures that reduce oil and gas methane and protect people from toxic pollution from coal-fired power plants. While that’s good news -- because EPA’s protections are urgently needed and anchored in law – the rulings contrast with other harmful Supreme Court decisions over the past four years. SCOTUS’s conservative supermajority has issued profoundly damaging decisions unraveling EPA protections for clean air and clean water. The Court’s decisions have imperiled generations of progress. They’ve undermined EPA’s authority to protect people from dangerous power plant pollution. They’ve taken the power to enforce laws that protect our health and safety from expert agencies acting under congressional mandates. And this Court isn’t done yet. A new SCOTUS term started last week. And they’ll decide whether to hear cases that could undermine long-standing states’ rights to protect people from harmful pollution and whether to further weaken protections for clean air, clean water and climate safety. U.S. environmental laws were designed to protect people and communities everywhere from harmful pollution. We need to work together to ensure the words on paper translate into real world benefits for people’s lives.? Read more about what’s at stake this SCOTUS term here: https://lnkd.in/emc-dG2z And read about the recent rulings here: https://lnkd.in/ejAwmxuV

Our food systems increasingly rely on groundwater, a resource that is both invisible and rapidly declining. While the long road to groundwater sustainability is difficult, reducing our irrigated footprint can positively transform landscapes and rural communities. Initiatives like California’s land repurposing program highlight the potential for repurposed farmland to benefit people and ecosystems alike. As EDF’s Ann Hayden says, “we need to embrace what this means not just for our relationship with all the water we can’t see, but also for the beautiful, potent land we have the privilege to live with every day.” https://lnkd.in/exviC_MV

More accessible public transportation. Farms that are producing more while using less energy. More shade in the sweltering summer. These are just a few of the ways communities are benefitting from the Biden administration's investments in climate, clean energy and infrastructure. Learn more about what these historic investments are doing for your area: https://bit.ly/3Yg3NNX

Working to solve the climate crisis doesn’t make you immune to its effects. Our Maggie Monast lives outside Asheville, North Carolina. And she’s showing us how neighbors are helping neighbors after Hurricane Helene.

This is a 'BFD!' Today we celebrate the years of advocacy and action taken by so many frontline experts, community groups, members of the White House 'Get the Lead Out' partnership, individual advocates and nonprofit organizations to reach this crucial milestone. The final improvements of the lead and copper rule are out, now we roll up our sleeves to support the work across states and cities nationwide to replace every single lead water pipe. My official statement linked here: https://lnkd.in/e5zjRNp9

Hurricane Milton rapidly intensified over the Gulf of Mexico and became a Category 5 hurricane on Monday, October 7, forecasters said. Satellite imagery from that day shows “An extraordinary amount of lightning within Hurricane Milton,” according to the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere at Colorado State University. Milton was forecast to bring strong winds to the Yucatan Peninsula and heavy rainfall related to the storm would affect parts of Florida throughout Monday, according to the National Hurricane Center. If it seems as though the most intense hurricanes happen more often than they used to, you’re right: The proportion of Atlantic Ocean hurricanes that are Category 3 or above has doubled since 1980. Are record-breaking hurricanes our new normal in a changing climate? Read more: https://bit.ly/2WI42EO

The record-breaking progress in clean energy we’re seeing now is not only reshaping our energy system to tackle climate change, it’s also reshaping the economic opportunities that can drive prosperity and wealth in communities around the country. I’m talking about new, high-paying jobs building clean technologies that can sustain families, training and apprenticeship programs that can launch young people’s careers in this fast-growing field, and the revenue that clean energy projects can pour into towns’ schools and roads. In a new op-ed in Word In Black,?I write about how these unprecedented opportunities can lift up workers, families and entire communities, and we need to make sure they reach everyone — especially Black communities and communities of color that have faced a legacy of disinvestment and have been most harmed by polluting industries. While everyone has a role to play in this moment, mayors and community leaders are in a critical position to bring these communities to the forefront of new clean economic opportunities. ?????Read?more?here: