Calling all you greenies, Dems and just plain sensible folks based in Orange County, Calif. (there are a few of us here!)
I work with a group called the Orange County Interfaith Coalition for the Environment (OCICE) and they have worked hard to put together a www.350.org festival with the local Sierra Club and other groups this Saturday, Oct. 24 at Irvine Regional Park from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
The "International Day of Climate Action" is a call to the world’s political leaders to reduce carbon in the atmosphere to 350 parts per million (ppm), an acceptable "safe" level scientists say will keep us from suffering the worst ravages of global climate change. Over three thousand 350 events are planned for the day throughout the world.
Learn more below the fold.
The festival will take place at the Outdoor Education Center and will be highlighted by an aerial photo of attendees gathered together to form the number "350" on a field. Other activities will include a nature hike, 5K walk, tree-planting, a hands-on workshop for kids, and talks by top Orange County environmental and religious leaders. Music, food, and eco-friendly exhibits will also be available. Registration for the hikes and 5K begins at 7 a.m. Registration for all other activities begins at 9 a.m.
Additional sponsoring organizations include Earth Resource Foundation, the Outdoor Education Center, and the United Nations Association-USA, Orange County Chapter.
Costs are $10 which includes lunch and event T-shirt; $10 for the 5K walk only; or $20 for the event and 5K walk. Onsite registration for the event is $15.
OCICE founder Margaret Henke, who has run the organization for years and should get her own Nobel Prize, had this to say:
In our opinion, stopping global climate change is the single most significant moral challenge that humankind has ever faced. By supporting this global movement, all of us can get the world back to climate safety for our children and future generations.
Currently, the United Nations is working on a global climate treaty, slated for completion in December of 2009 at a conference in Copenhagen, Denmark. The current plans for the treaty are much too weak to get us back to safety. This treaty needs to put a high enough price on carbon that we reduce our use enough to start to reverse climate change.
I'm amazed at Margaret's dedication, and hope all the Daily Kosers in the general vicinity make it out to this event.
Also, if you attend a church, mosque, synagogue or any other hosue of worship and have any sway over your worship leader (or just have the keys to the belfry), have them ring their bells 350 times at noon on Saturday to show your support.