End of Year Message from the Los Angeles Climate Reality Project Chair
Wow. 2024, huh?
I’ve spent some time contemplating what I should write to our chapter as an end-of-year missive. Last year I went through a great list of accomplishments from our chapter. Our list is even longer this year, and it is with heartfelt thanks that I acknowledge the great work of our committees and chapter members. You’ve done great things—important things. Keep doing them.
But this year I want to address the GOP elephant in the room. It’s been a tough year politically. We are a non-partisan organization open to all, but it’s increasingly difficult to separate out politics from our conversation when one major party has rallied behind a candidate who continues to deny climate science and now will be coming into power with a team determined to roll back climate mitigation efforts with the assistance of a conservative media apparatus spreading disinformation in support of that agenda. I’m not going to pull punches here: the election of Donald Trump is a problem for our climate crisis, and everyone who supported his candidacy either has embraced false information regarding climate change, or has decided not to prioritize the numerous environmental threats to survival of life on this planet.
As I write this, I am in the middle of watching a streaming television show on the somewhat obscure Paramount+ service called “Landman.” Created by “Yellowstone” helmer Taylor Sheridan and oil business podcaster Christian Wallace, the show looks at the stressful life of working independent oil fields in West Texas. Starring Billy Bob Thornton, Ali Larter, Jon Hamm, and others, it’s a well-made (not for kids) show that offers the perspective of hard-working characters who likely all would have easily fallen into the category of supporting the orange-tinged felon we just elected as president. Thornton in particular is such a compelling actor when he has good writing at his disposal that the show is imminently watchable and insightful. While it steers clear of any discussion of real-life political figures, the show is riddled with false claims about problems with renewable energy, the necessity of greater commitments to fossil fuels, and a disbelief in anthropomorphic climate change. These claims go completely unchallenged in the show, as they probably do in real life West Texas oil fields culture as well. No one in the show is depicted as evil for defending a culture and business that feeds them and supports their communities, or for doubting anyone claiming the consensus in their echo chamber is false. Nor should they be.
But they ARE wrong.
Just this week, the Los Angeles Times published an article discussing how facts-optional Fox News now captures 70% of the cable news audience. Billionaires control social media outlets where anti-climate propaganda commonly rules the day. As individuals or collectively as the Los Angeles Climate Reality Project, we can’t change that these things exist, but we need to be aware of them and push back against disinformation at the individual human scale. I’m in a number of sustainability-oriented groups, and many of these entities have held meetings in the wake of the election that talk about circling the wagons and holding onto everything we can for the environment as the federal government becomes increasingly hostile to science and truth. And yeah, I don’t want to dismiss the importance of that work. But that cannot be all we do. Even in “blue” California, millions of people voted for Trump and the party he has remade into a faux populist effort to dismantle democracy. They did this in part because the other political party has largely been feckless and overly cautious, but also because messaging coming from sources other than Trump did not resonate with enough people.
I think we as Climate Reality Ambassadors have an opportunity here to go out of our comfort zones and engage with our fellow citizens who have real problems and real reasons they chose to support someone many of us find obscenely unqualified.
So I will start with myself. If you are someone who identifies as conservative and voted for Donald Trump, you are welcome here in our chapter. I’m not going to walk on eggshells around you or fail to call out anti-climate actions any politician might take, but I invite you to have those difficult discussions with me and know I will respect you for making the effort, even if we have difficulty finding common ground in some areas. I refuse to normalize what has happened or say it’s okay that we have elected a person like Trump—it’s not. I need you to understand that, but I also commit to being open to understanding why you—someone who cares enough to be reading this newsletter—felt your needs were better addressed by voting the way you did. I won’t agree with your conclusion, but I already agree that there are many things that our politicians may not be discussing that Americans who are not billionaires need to have addressed. We can find areas to work together on these things, and many of them are connected to our climate crisis even though they may not seem that way on the surface.
And if you are not in the MAGA camp, I’m encouraging you to find areas where we can have common ground with those who are. Our climate crisis IS a voting issue, and it is a very powerful one despite the Harris/Walz campaign scarcely mentioning it for months. Concern for the health and safety of people—and all life—on our planet is not limited to liberals, centrists, conservatives, or those who are politically disengaged. We all want a healthy life where we can thrive on the only habitable planet known to exist in the universe.
So give it some thought. Think about common ground. Approach things locally where they are less apt to already have been politically divided up by the corporate interests that dictate national policies. Challenge lies about climate change and science, but do so with facts and kindness. Learn more to make yourself better equipped for this work. We need each and every one of you.
We have our work cut out for us. But the world needs us, and it’s good to be needed, right?
After all that heaviness, it’s awkward to mention our annual call for financial support, but that’s part of the task I’ve been given. Therein, if you are in a position to do any end of the year giving, our chapter is a worthwhile cause. Though we get in-kind support and organizational assistance from our national parent organization, financially we are pretty much on our own. That means our chapter website services, our chapter zoom account, administrative costs, and expenses connected to in-person events all come from donations. We do not charge any membership dues or fees for our events (a policy I support), but as we grow and attempt to provide more and better services to you, this does mean that a handful of people on your leadership team are shouldering a significant burden of costs to keep the lights on. If you can do so, please consider making a tax deductible donation to our chapter. We route everything through Climate Reality Project National so we can take advantage of the 501(c)(3) status, but all funds designated for the chapter will go to support chapter expenses.
I hope you will join us for our laid-back, low-key holiday party on December 22. Instead of focusing on problems, we are going to take 90 minutes to have some fun and care about one another. Then we will get back to working for a better 2025. That’s it for now.
Charles Miller
Chair, Los Angeles Climate Reality Project
CharlesAllenMiller@gmail.com