During this August recess, as our Senators and Congresspeople come home from D.C., we should all ask that they look around and see the ways climate change is impacting our community and country.

I care about our changing climate because I see the impacts severe storms, worsening red tide, and sea level rise are having on my family and community here in Sarasota. We stand together on this. 78% of Americans now say they personally are concerned about climate change. 96% of us believe we have a right to live in a healthy environment with clean air and water (ecoAmerica, 2021). 

We need to solve the climate emergency, not just put another bandage on it. We can accelerate and increase our actions to eliminate carbon pollution, restore thriving nature, and prioritize solutions that include and are fair to all our neighbors.

Each of us needs to take steps to eliminate all fossil fuel pollution in our homes, workplaces, communities, and in the nation through systemic change.  

I personally have committed to cutting my climate pollution in half by signing onto MomentUs. Please join me yourself, and urge our policy makers to do the same. 

Sidney Otis, Sarasota