This year’s United Nations Climate Conference (COP28) concluded with historic language in its plenary agreement. For the first time in 28 years of talking about the climate crisis, world governments have suggested countries should transition away from fossil fuels—in nonbinding and loophole-ridden verbiage. Well, it’s a start.

The climate emergency and loss of biodiversity worldwide are intertwined calamities. Rapidly changing climate adversely affects biodiversity by affecting timing of insect and plant emergence, fertility cycles, and migration patterns. Resulting loss of biodiversity reduces the resiliency of habitats to cope with erratic weather and other factors exacerbated by accelerating global warming.

And production and use of fossil fuels continue to increase, overburdening Earth’s atmosphere with greenhouse gases–including carbon dioxide and methane–at an alarming and unsustainable rate. Island nations—whose land is sinking because of sea level rise, developing countries—whose emerging economies depend on access to reliable and cheap sources of energy, and environmentalists say the COP 28 agreement is not nearly enough.

In short, the COP 28 agreement is a symbol. The actual hands-on work of combating climate will continue (and must accelerate) at the grassroots level. And that’s where PDA and our affiliated 501(c)(4) organization, Progressives for Democracy in America, step in. We not only help develop and promote sound climate policy at all levels, we are in the streets (and halls of Congress and city council rooms and state houses) putting pressure on legislators, and we are organizing locally with like-minded allies on specific projects and problem-solving to slow and reverse climate change and make our planet more habitable.

Make no mistake: the climate crisis is reaching a critical point, and we each have a role to play. If you want to roll up your sleeves and get busy, we’ll put you to work. If you can help us maintain and increase our efforts, donate now and/or volunteer.

We’re all in this together, and only by working together can we overcome this crisis.

Solidarity,

Debra Schrishuhn for the PDA National Team