Thread by @MeghanWise_

Sometimes the relationships between climate change (CC) & needed city actions that can help prevent risk & harm from CC impacts isn’t clear to folks.

So here’s a bit of an overview of why climate action at the city level is critical & NECESSARY. #vanpoli

Long 🧵

Cities are epicentres of human life, behaviours and actions that have important influence on CC drivers and impacts.

Transportation use, energy use, waste generation, consumption patterns, natural and built environment influence, local food and water access etc.

Cities & towns are also epicentres of where ppl often experience direct & indirect CC impacts, but don’t always realize it.

And just bc you don’t realize it, doesn’t mean you aren’t still navigating impacts of CC.

Eg. if you have cancer & don’t realize it—you still have cancer.

Before we get to how cities can meaningfully address CC, let’s look at why they need to.

Why is it critical cities become leaders, adopters & implementers of climate action?

Because cities are regularly seeing complex deadly and degrading impacts as a result of CC.

Such as:

Loss of life
-619 lives tragically lost in 2021 heat-dome which was amplified in severity 40% by CC factors.
nature.com/articles/s4155…

Over 640,000 livestock animals drowned in the 2021 atmospheric river floods which were made 60% more likely due to CC factors.

globalnews.ca/news/8622139/s…

650,000 BC farm animals & over a billion sea creatures died on the BC coast in the 2021 heat dome.
theguardian.com/environment/20…

Human influences on CC also substantially increased risk of wildfires in 2017. The area burned was seven to eleven times larger than would have been expected without human influences on the climate—and incinerated trees, animals & insects.

These CC impacts effect local city jobs, air quality, transportation, public health, food production and more.

For example, studies have found that people living within 50 km of a major wildfire are at elevated risk of certain types of cancers.
cbc.ca/news/canada/br…

As many know, the atmospheric river wiped out key BC transportation routes impacting local shipping & access, creating local economic stress.

Climate impacts in other regions can also impact a city’s access to and cost of crops, foods, goods and resources in other regions.

CC drivers & impacts are also a strain on public health systems & infrastructure.

Fossil fuel air pollution is responsible for 1 in 7 premature deaths in CDN & causes extensive respiratory health issues.

These preventable deaths & illness require local medical system support.

The 2021 heat dome created such a massive strain on an already stretched thin first responder system that during the height of the heat emergency, the medical response system was functionally compromised.

CC impacts also cost local economies HUGE money and can drain local tax $$$ fast.

In one year alone, BC’s 2021 heat, fire and floods cost the economy $10.6 billion to $17.1 billion.
policyalternatives.ca/climate-reckon…

I could go on & on & on, but I think you get the point.

All these impacts being felt by people in their communities are causally connected to climate change, which is driven by human systems, actions and behaviours—which we have the power to change & address municipal levels.

So what can we do about it?

This is where we can dive into HOW cities can meaningfully work to redirect & proactively minimize CC risks & harms to uplift local public health, wellbeing, safety, resilience & long term sustainability.

While also contributing to global action.

♦️Cities can proactively electrify all aspects of city life to mitigate emissions

♦️promote heat pump installation to protect ppl w/ heat/cooling capacity & increase energy efficiency

♦️reject building permits to development expanding/upholding fossil fuel infrastructure/demand

♦️advocacy for retrofitting & updating existing building infrastructure for overall energy efficiency

♦️prioritize public transit networks, access & affordability to reduce emissions

♦️create city wide networks of separated bikes lanes to reduce emissions & local air pollution

♦️build campaigns fostering behaviour change around transportation, consumption & waste streams

♦️offer policy & knowledge support for producing food locally & sustainably

♦️provide services to ppl disproportionately affected by CC to mitigate loss of life, risk, medical strain

♦️build municipal policy, planning & decision making alongside Indigenous communities & leadership to uphold UNDRIP, DRIPA

♦️mobilize circular economy principles across sectors

♦️support local businesses looking to repurpose waste streams

♦️prioritize reclaiming community spaces from car culture by transitioning redundant streets into green community corridors to mitigate emissions, insulate city spaces to heat impacts, and increase biodiversity

♦️implementing a sharing economy to reduce waste streams

♦️set aside funds to #SueBigOil for their role in driving CC and its harmful and costly impacts on cities.

♦️engage tax structures that equitably and justly shift public culture & behaviour towards lower emissions lifestyles and choices.

Okay, as you know, I could go on and on here too.

The overall driving point here is that cities are POWERFUL & NECESSARY nodes for emissions reduction, waste management, and meaningful behaviour change that can have local to global influence and impact.

Action & change that can proactively protect life, expand public safety and wellbeing & nurture overall resilience of local and global communities to justly navigate, withstand & thrive amid the climate challenges that lay ahead.

If you’re against fostering community climate wellbeing, security, resilience & thriving—you might need to reevaluate your life philosophy.

Go have a snack, a nap & come back with a better attitude & life outlook that can recognize the value of shared dignity & respect amid CC🌿

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