I have been a climate activist since college, because I believe it’s our generation’s responsibility to do everything we can to be good stewards and protect a liveable planet.

I believe new ideas are best developed locally, and Evanston is a wonderful place to enact bold environmental policies. Evanston committed to climate action when we passed CARP. Now it’s time to make the plan a reality!

Climate action work is a great way to connect with passionate people working to make the world better. I recently loved participating in the intergenerational climate strikes in Evanston and Chicago which also received lots of positive press coverage. Now is the time to succeed on climate action!

I have witnessed the unsustainable and harmful spread of waste throughout the United States. I became involved in climate action because I want to work with leaders who help others learn how to sustainably reduce waste, protect the environment, and live more equitably.

I realized that Climate Action Evanston is one of the leading organizations in Evanston which advocates for the environment. Their members not only talk the talk, but take significant actions to improve the environment in Evanston, all while advocating for climate justice throughout the community.

I do not have a green thumb but, I changed some of my lawn into a pollinator garden. I dug up the grass and planted indigenous plants that harbor pollinators. Thankfully, the plants grew well with little care. During the summer my garden now comes alive with all sorts of butterflies and pollinators.

My involvement with building energy efficiency began in the 1980s. Reducing building energy was primarily an economic consideration then, along with resource preservation. The connection of buildings to GHG emissions and global climate change made water, energy, and grid use an elevated priority.

I participated early in the predecessor organization, Network for Evanston's Future, and was co-chair of the Mayor’s Climate Action and Resilience Plan Working Group that produced the CARP document. Climate Action Evanston was a natural fit to continue the pursuit of Evanston's climate action goals.

To my home I've added attic insulation, new windows, rooftop solar, and electric cooking appliances. Heat pump water and space heating soon to follow. I initiated use of a composting service at home and at my work place. Owned hybrid cars for 13+ years. Work project energy savings received awards.

The future of my children and grandchildren has always been my motivation to fight for change. Throughout my career as a state and federal regulator, I worked to shape environmental policies that support climate mitigation and resilience.  It's the most important challenge of our lifetime.

EJE is committed to bringing a climate equity lens to improve the quality of life in our community and to advance opportunities for full public engagement in local decision-making, especially in under-served neighborhoods, which are hardest hit by climate change.

As a former member of the Environment Board, we helped get the Climate Emergency Resolution passed by City Council. This resolution underscored the importance of environmental equity and environmental justice in CARP implementation, to ensure the future health and well-being of future generations.

There are many issues to be addressed in this world, but this one stands alone because it threatens our very existence. Rich, poor, white, black—we are all threatened by a climate spiraling into dangerous territory.

In my case, “What” is “Who” — my wife. She has watched me care for the Evanston YMCA Camp Echo orchard for 20 years and she knows what I do for a living—financial consulting, so she suggested this as a natural fit. She was right.

I am a newcomer, but my contribution has been to provide insight for the board on how the organization’s money is received and spent.

I was at the first Earth Day in 1970, became involved in Outdoor Education. I discovered the beauty and intricacies of the natural world and our connection to it and learned of threats posed by climate change. I have been involved in climate activism ever since.

In 2001, my wife and I organized the Green Team at our synagogue, JRC, affirming caring for the earth as a Jewish value. I served on the building team and, in 2008, JRC became the first House of Worship ever to earn LEED Platinum Certification! In 2015 I was invited to join the CGE board.

HOME 2006-solar thermal hot water; 2013-Energy Star certificate insulation; 2019-solar PV; 2022-heat pump replaced gas furnace; 1989-2022-landscaped with native plantings. WORK insulating window coverings for cold in winter/heat in summer. PLAY co-steward, Clark Street Beach Bird Sanctuary.

As part of Gen Z, the climate change has always loomed large as both the crisis and opportunity of my lifetime. Challenging as it is, imagining and creating a more just world for all living things gives life tremendous purpose. I intend to accelerate action today, tomorrow, and the rest of my life.

I learned about Climate Action Evanston as a Northwestern student where I majored in Environmental Science and American Studies. I worked with the organization to write my thesis on the history of resident activism and climate action planning in Evanston. I am thrilled to be involved!

I develop utility scale solar and wind projects in my day job, but I am most proud of my volunteer efforts to plan the Generations of Environmental Justice Earth Day event in 2022, and my senior thesis, which helped the City of Evanston dedicate funding for more sustainability staff.

My training as a Geotechnical Engineer has always connected me to the earth. The focus on soils morphed into Environmental Engineering as damage to the earth and the climate became apparent, and new engineering solutions and actions were needed.

I was a member of Edible Evanston, spawned from the “Ten Big Ideas” initiative from the Evanston Centennial Celebration in 2013. Edible Evanston’s mission dovetailed well with CGE, the predecessor organization of Climate Action Evanston, and we were accepted as a formal program.

Along with four other co-leaders, Edible Evanston has created the Eggleston Park Food Forest, taking a half-acre grassy field into a permaculture-based perennial orchard and food forest. The food forest demonstrates how people can help mitigate climate action and be more resilient.

Concern that we humans are acting too slowly to mitigate climate change and biodiversity loss, and hometown pride in Evanston's leadership in taking action.

Encouragement to join from the founder of its predecessor organization, its mission, and seeing it as a way to fulfill my desire to get off the sidelines and take action.

Winning a unanimous City Council vote to overturn the denial of solar panels on our home's rooftop, leading to rewritten historic district rooftop solar rules. Also our lawnless garden. It's low maintenance, and integrates habitat value and landscape architecture.

After years of complaining about why people weren't doing something, I decided to put my money where my mouth was and focus on sustainability.

I was looking for a volunteer opportunities to help birds, bees, and butterflies and stumbled upon Natural Habitat Evanston's Facebook page. I began volunteering with NHE and couldn't get enough of decreasing lawns and increasing wildlife habitat.

By creating native Prairie in my yard, local park, schools, and encouraging others to do the same, I feel a sense of hope. We can eliminate greenhouse gas emissions and use plants and soil to draw down atmospheric GHG. And the side effects are a healthier planet for all beings.

When I was 12, my father gave me Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring.  Learning about the damage chemicals like DDT (once considered harmless!) did to wildlife and birds sparked my environmental passion.

CARP. Evanston Climate Action and Resilience Plan and an interest to work on the implementation of the plan.

We try to take more and more small steps - eliminating driving trips, composting more organic waste, and being mindful that more than just Monday can be meatless.

When I realized around 2008 how climate change impacts the chemistry of the ocean, it brought home how far-reaching climate chaos is to ecosystems and all species.

A friend invited me to a rain garden discussion in her home, followed by engaging me in building weatherizations and then starting Natural Habitat Evanston.

My husband agreed to our converting our yard to native grasses and pollinator plants. I am happy whenever I am in our garden.