Course: Climate Change (2020)
Faculty: Christine Muller, Arthur Lyon Dahl, Laurent Mesbah
This course enabled me to develop a more holistic understanding of climate change; the science, threats, ethical challenges and a plethora of strategies and actions that need to implemented to address this crisis of our time. The course was designed for us to reflect on making changes in our lifestyle. Some personal changes I made as a result of the course are to begin composting; cutting back on packaged food; eating less meat; growing vegetables again; driving far less (helped by the pandemic); and encouraging my husband and others to be more conscious of our lifestyle and consumer decisions.
At a community level, I joined a local environmental group – Climate Action Now – and attended several of their excellent programs on forests and local forest protection, biomass, and related issues. With some fellow Bahá’í’s, I have joined the climate committee of our local interfaith group. Finally, I am following developments on a proposed local biomass plant (near Springfield, Massachusetts) and plan to get involved in local advocacy related to ensuring that permits for energy projects near the city go through legally-required environmental reviews.
