Climate Connections: Planting local
I am a big fan of this quote by 18th century philosopher Edmund Burke: “Never, no never, did nature say one thing, and wisdom another.”
Nature adapts and survives. Since the climate crisis is a...
Climate Connections: Sitting in for Doris
Our friend Doris is taking a brief break from this column. She adores sharing the connections she sees between climate change and our daily lives. She encourages us to make simple changes in our...
Climate Change Connections: Nature leads the way
“My whole life had been spent waiting for an epiphany, a manifestation of God’s presence, the kind of transcendent, magical experience that lets you see your place in the big picture. And that is...
Climate Change Connections: Blooming beauty
“A flower does not use words to announce its arrival; it just blooms.” –Matshona Dhliwayo
Think of all the occasions where flowers set a certain desired tone: weddings, funerals, christenings, birthdays, anniversaries, hospital stays, commemorations,...
Climate Change Connections: Water
“You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.” —C.S. Lewis
In considering the effects of climate change on water, the bottom line is that...
Climate Change Connections: Tipping points
“Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.” —Albert Einstein
When looking around, especially after these last storms, it would be hard for there to be any denial about climate change, but...
Climate Change Connections: Valentine for Mother Earth
“There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature – the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after the winter.” —Rachel Carson
It all started with my sandbox, my irrepressible love...
Climate Change Connections: Trees
“Keep close to nature’s heart.” —John Muir
As a young lad, John Muir was in a welding accident, and lost his eyesight. As he lay in his bed resting for weeks on end, which was...
One tree at a time
Some might argue that the “one person can change the world” theory is simply wishful thinking, but Islander Claudia Macedo is proving them wrong. Macedo is stepping up in a big way, making significant...
Climate Change Connections: Taking action
“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second-best time is now.” —Chinese proverb
Listening to all that is out there in the news and in everyday conversations, the amount of...
Climate Change Connections: Blessings in a storm
All around us is news about climate change, and as it pounds away at us, it can get very disheartening and frightening — a giant comes to slay us. Fear does keep the species...
Climate Change Connections: Thinking outside the box
The concept of rewilding is a broad subject, certainly thinking out of the box, and can take on many forms. To better understand and visualize this concept, I sought out a pair of Islanders...
Climate Change Connections: It takes the Vineyard
In the last column, young people were interviewed. In this column, people from the older generation are asked the same questions. This is so we can substantiate once again that it will take all...
Climate Change Connections: Teach your children well
It is ironic that the very words “climate change” are using two different meanings of the word “change.” The first is present, the other is future. The present is well-established and foreboding; the other...
Climate Change Connections: The past is the prologue
We are an Island that threatened to secede from Massachusetts over reduced representation in the legislature. We even created our own flag! It is clear that we are a feisty lot. The beauty of...
Climate Change Connections: All hands on deck
When my friend Liz Durkee and I first met, it was pure curiosity that drew us to each other. Who is this woman who knows so much about climate change? I wondered. I want...
Woodland wonders
If you worry about climate change, hearing Bob Perschel, Chilmark resident and executive director of the New England Forestry Foundation (NEFF), share about the organization’s work is a comfort. NEFF’s exciting forest restoration initiative,...
West Tisbury looks toward renewable future
The West Tisbury energy committee introduced three main strategies toward attaining the town’s goal of being powered by 100 percent renewable energy by 2040 — support West Tisbury’s transition toward having all electric vehicles and...
Climate Solutions: Moving toward a circular economy — a regenerative approach
Linear vs. Circular — What does it Mean?
We have designed a linear, extractive economy: we take resources, make them into products, use them, and discard them. The focus is not on making things durable,...
‘Our Island is shrinking’
The natural erosional processes that inevitably shape Martha’s Vineyard are being sped up by increased climate change and sea level rise.
With significant amounts of beach being taken back by the sea each year, and...