Editorial: Freakish storms, hottest year, send unmistakable message

We don’t want to say it’s part of the new normal, whatever that might mean, but it’s no coincidence that these freakish storms are related to higher-than-normal global temperatures with a climate changing faster than anticipated.

As we enter the New Year, the weather is on our minds partly because it has been so unusually warm and snowless; but more to the point it’s how that changing weather impacts our lives.

In the days and months after the July floods that devastated much of Vermont, Lesley-Ann Dupigny-Giroux’s inbox filled with requests. 

This has been a brutal year for many Vermonters, with waves of extreme weather driven by climate change.

Persistent rain flooded some roads in Middlebury on Monday, prompting the Addison Central School District to close schools in town early.

Several students at Middlebury College spent part of their fall semester out in the community rather than inside the classroom, speaking with the owners and managers of nonresidential properties across Addison County.   

For years, my generation has been defined as the “climate generation,” the generation that will fix all of the damage done to global health and climate change post-Industrial Revolution.

I fear that, in some important ways, we Vermonters have our heads in the sand about climate change and its likely impacts. 

I was excited to tell you how much my family has loved watching “Life on Our Planet,” the new Morgan Freeman-narrated nature doc on Netflix — a great activity for the whole fam! But then we watched the final episode, and it wasn’t fun and fascinating anym … (read more)

Two state lawmakers are urging Addison County folks not to ease up on efforts to battle climate change.

From planting cover crops to transitioning toward no-till or reduced-till approaches, farmers throughout the state are implementing a variety of practices aimed at keeping phosphorus and other nutrients on their land and out of nearby waterways. 

BILL MCKIBBEN VERMONT — The grassroots climate justice organization 350Vermont is seeking to pressure utilities to sell energy using renewable sources while producing fewer or no greenhouse gasses. The organization will do this by ratcheting up pressure o … (read more)

At its annual meeting on Nov. 28, the Addison County Relocalization Network, or ACORN, will host a panel discussion on “Farming on the Forefront of Climate Change.”

Middlebury College continues to work toward meeting the goals for addressing climate change outlined in its Energy2028 initiative. 

The Climate Action Program supports students in their efforts to tackle climate change through paid fellowships, connections with Middlebury alumni and a variety of other offerings.