Dear Climate-Concerned Friends,
Each month, we host a free, public “Climate Café” at the Monmouth Senior/Community Center. These gatherings focus on our emotional reactions to the climate crisis (see below). Other events, to be announced, will feature speakers, films, or topic-focused discussions. Please plan to join us, and bring a friend.
Successful Climate Café series extended
Throughout the 2026 winter quarter, climate-concerned citizens met for monthly Climate Cafés to discuss their feelings about the sometimes-overwhelming climate issue. Participants have found that these gatherings help them identify and express, and thus better manage their climate anxiety. The supportive group settings also foster a feeling of community, helping participants feel they don’t have to face the climate challenge alone.
Because of the program’s success, MICG has extended the series for at least four more sessions, meeting at the Monmouth Senior Center from 7:00 to 8:30 PM on the second Thursday of each month through August: May 14, June 11, July 9 and August 13.
Please join us and feel welcome to bring a friend.
Related: Climate Magic Podcast - Environmental Science Professor Sarah Jaquette Ray, author of A Field Guide to Climate Anxiety: How to keep your cool on a warming planet, hosts a podcast on how your feelings about the climate issue affect your agency to do something about it. The hour-long sessions with experts in many fields include topics such as “This is Your Brain on Climate,” “Apocalyptic Optimism,” “Climate Anxiety and the Kid Question.”
Books About Climate Change
Each month, the MICG will recommend a book about climate change for our members. We hope you find these readings valuable and informative, and share them with others.
The summer of 2026 is likely to be one of the hottest on record for the West Coast and Oregon. This year, the ongoing effects of global warming will be exacerbated by a “Super El Niño” in the equatorial Pacific that will contribute to the overall warming effect. As a result, we can expect potentially dangerous heat waves, drought conditions and significant wildfire activity. Keep an eye on weather warnings and undertake any summer activities, such as hiking or camping, with caution.
May’s reading: Because of these potential dangers, this month’s book selection is THE HEAT WILL KILL YOU FIRST by renowned climate journalist Jeff Goodell.
Goodell argues that extreme heat events can now strike in all temperate and tropical zones, and are the most immediate and threatening of global warming’s impacts. He explains the critical difference between wet- and dry-bulb temperature readings and calls heat waves potentially life-threatening to people of all ages and physical conditions.
This is an important read, as Goodell’s warning goes to the heart of the most urgent and dangerous universal effect of global warming.
Poem wins first place in MICG’s Imagine Our Future event
MICG wants to thank all participants in this year’s Imagine Our Future event. Their inspiring work indeed helps us imagine a positive future for our community.
MICG activist Kevin Hicks won this year’s event with the following poem.
We Have Ability
by Kevin Hicks
Remember the ozone layer?
Way up in the stratosphere?
Blocking some ultraviolet danger?
Humans were causing holes
Mostly with CFC
So we addressed it
By changed activity
And the holes are closing
Showing global unity
Overcoming deniers
And their obfuscation
Who tried to block
Corrective action
See the takeaway?
Yes, we tiny humans can break it
Yes, we tiny humans can fix it
If we act today
Ignoring deniers
And their ostrich way
We don’t hear about acid rain these days
You might ask yourself, why?
Because the regulations worked
There’s less acid in the sky
Aquatic life
Gets some relief
And forests, too,
However brief
Yes, man can damage climate
Yes, man can fix it, too
Yes, we can limit
Our CO2
Just examine
Our recent history
Yes, we have the ability
To break the atmosphere and to fix it
We can achieve sustainability
After first admitting
Responsibility
Ongoing Activities
Attend our monthly online meeting: Join our next regular Climate Group’s online meeting at 6:00 PM, Monday, May 11. These “business meetings” are focused on policy issues and task distribution for our group activities. If you want to attend, please send us an email and we will send you the link.