Dear Climate-Concerned Friends,
Our public events are going well, and we have more planned for December and next year.
Pilot discussion of “Personal Response to Climate Change” gets positive feedback
Our October 16 Climate Café at the Monmouth Community/Senior Center had the look and feel of an actual cafe. M-I Climate Group members provided table cloths and snacks for the guided discussion.
They also provided a safe and welcoming space where community members connected and shared how they feel about the “too big to hold” climate challenge. People were able to open up about their concerns, anxieties and frustrations with trying to address the problem, and participants came away feeling connected to others who were experiencing many of the same emotional issues.
Positive feedback from participants has encouraged us to sponsor several more such events in 2026. They will be announced as we flesh out next year’s calendar.
Related: Climate Magic Podcast - 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 “Neuroscience and hope,” “Apocalyptic Optimism,” “Climate Anxiety and the Kid Question,” and more.
M-I Fire Chief Ben Stange to address December’s meeting
On December 18, the Chief of the Polk County Fire District No. 1, which includes Monmouth and Independence, will discuss “Community Safety in the era of climate change” at our meeting at the Monmouth Community/Senior Center from 7:00 to 8:30 PM.
Stange will take questions and feedback from the community. Don’t miss this important event, and come prepared with your questions.
New monthly public events schedule for 2026
Starting in January, we will hold public outreach events at the Monmouth Community/Senior Center from 7:00-8:30pm on the second Thursday of every month. These will include the Climate Cafés mentioned above, public speakers and topic-focused meetings. (For example, a meeting might focus on the community response to a wildfire, the most effective measures we can take to reduce our carbon footprint and so on.) The Center is at 180 Warren Street S., Monmouth.
Ongoing Activities
Attend our monthly online meeting: Join our next regular Climate Group’s online meeting at 6:00 PM, Monday, December 8. 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.