When we first started thinking about forming an international climate campaign, we thought the biggest challenge would be language. With everyone on the planet insisting on speaking different languages, how could a unifying message link our efforts together?
Language turned out to be the easiest part. We thought about all sorts of slogans that would define the global climate movement. Instead, we realized we could convey both the urgency of climate destabilization and the global scale of our movement with one number: 350. Ten languages later, and having chosen a number for our name, we set out to actually try and organize with people all across the globe, most of whom we had never, and probably will never, actually meet.
Global, impactful, web-savvy, meaningful, and creative organizing. That’s why I’m part of this movement. And today’s a special day around here–it’s August 10, or 10 August if you live outside the U.S. In numerical terms, it’s 8/10/10, the 2 month countdown to 10/10/10, when once again we’ll all showcase the global climate movement.
It’s truly everywhere, and it’s our best hope at linking together oil spills large and small, murderous heat waves, stalled negotiations, and insipid political discourse.
The concept is simple: get together with friends, family, neighbors, your book club: whomever defines community for you. Dedicate yourselves to improving your communitiy that day, by getting your hands dirty cutting carbon emissions.
That means lots of things: harvesting community gardens to demonstrate local food solutions. Hosting a bike-fixing workshops so you and your friends drive less. Paint your roof white to cool off without A/C. Invite local green businesses to showcase how their getting to work. When you’re doing, celebrate with music, food, dancing–whatever you’d like.
All of this will happen with the backdrop of a sharp political message. If we can work with our neighbors and rebuild our communities, then our political leaders can surely do what we hired them to do: pass the policies that will dramatically and immediately wean us off of fossil fuels.