(ITHACA, NY) Barbara Lifton, New York Assemblywoman, Tracy Mitrano, Democratic Candidate for the NY-23 seat in US House of Representatives, and Anne Armstrong, Author of “Communicating Climate Change: A Guide for Global Climate Strike” will be among the speakers at Ithaca Climate Action rally, to be held at Stewart Park in Ithaca, New York, as part of the Global Climate Strike activities planned on September 20th. The rally will start at 3 pm at the Small Pavilion in Stewart Park. Entertainment will include Ithaca’s own DJ Ziggy and Music for the Bahamas, featuring a benefit mini-concert and opportunity to donate to Red Cross relief efforts for Hurricane Dorian. A number of organizations will be on hand to share their climate change solutions. On September 20, 2019, millions of people are expected to walk out of their workplaces and homes to join young climate strikers on the streets and demand an end to the age of fossil fuels. Ithaca NY will see a number of events marking this Day of Climate Action. Marchers from both Cornell University and Ithaca College will start out at 11 am, wending their way down to the Ithaca Commons for the Ithaca Global Climate Strike, being held from 12:00-2:00 pm at the Bernie Milton Pavilion on Ithaca Commons. Youth in Ithaca, along with IC Eco Reps, Sunrise Movement, Extinction Rebellion, and Mothers Out Front, Climate Justice Cornell and Cornell Environmental Collaborative - ECO are leading the strikes in the city, demanding stark climate action be taken by local, national, and global politicians. Following at 3 pm, the Ithaca Climate Action rally will be held at the Stewart Park Small Pavilion. The event is designed to help teach how everyone can take individual and community action to combat the threat of climate change. Speakers at the Rally for Education and Action will include: Seven-term New York State Assemblywoman Barbara Lifton. Lifton’s legislative work focuses on education and environment, and she is a member of NY Assembly’s Work Group on Climate Change and Committee on Environmental Conservation. Lifton was a sponsor of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act. The CLCPA requires that a climate action plan be put into law and codifies the goals for greenhouse gas emission reductions, all in a transparent and inclusive manner. “I see the CLCPA as critical in providing the structure our state needs to move much more swiftly on the path to net zero emissions, so as to help mitigate the worst impacts of climate change.” said Lifton. “It will also become a model for other states, and perhaps the world, to emulate as we work to save our planet from the devastation of a warming climate, creating tens of thousands of good, green jobs as we implement our plan.” Anne Armstrong, doctoral student in the Cornell Department of Natural Resources is an author of “Communicating Climate Change: A Guide for Educators” (Cornell University Press, 2018), which was co-authored with Marianne E. Krasny, Professor in the Department of Natural Resources and Jonathon P. Schuldt, Associate Professor in the Department of Communication at Cornell University. In the book, Armstrong proposes effective tools for educators in understanding the complexity of the science of climate change and the socio-political contexts in which climate change is taking place. Also discussed are climate change educational programs that foster both dialogue and subsequent action in classrooms of all levels. Armstrong is also a co-instructor of the Cornell online course, “Climate Change Science, Communication, and Action”. Tracy Mitrano, Democratic Candidate for the NY-23 seat in US House of Representatives. Mitrano is campaigning to unseat incumbent Rep. Tom Read. As part of her platform, Mitrano has committed to federal funding for climate change research “to both reduce our contributions to the changing climate as well as to support our businesses, especially our farmers, as they adapt to increasingly unpredictable weather patterns.” Dayna Jorgenson is the Director of Programs at the Cayuga Nature Center. She teaches workshops on climate and the environment to many different audiences including hundreds of school children across Tompkins County each year. Louis Derry, is a Cornell University professor in the Earth and Atmospheric Sciences department. Derry studies the effects of climate change on water chemistry and watersheds. He is also a Professeur Associe at the Institute de Physique du Globe de Paris (IPGP) and a Presidential laureate of the Make Our Planet Great Again program, France. Entertainment will include Ithaca’s own DJ Ziggy and Music for the Bahamas, featuring a benefit mini-concert and opportunity to donate to Red Cross relief efforts for Hurricane Dorian. A number of organizations are scheduled to participate in the afternoon event including: Sustainable Tompkins; Tompkins County Climate Protection Initiative; Ithaca High School Green Team; Extinction Rebellion; Cornell Cooperative Extension with a display on energy use and the Energy Bike!; Discover Cayuga Lake--focusing on invasive species & climate change; The History Center showing historical climate events in Tompkins County; Mothers Out Front working on climate action for all; and voter registration being done by NY23 Votes; as well as the Museum of the Earth which will feature face-painting for young climate activists. Following the Stewart Park Rally Discover Cayuga Lake is running a special cruise from 6 – 8 pm, featuring a discussion of climate change and local watersheds. Students will be able to purchase discounted tickets. The Stewart Park event is being hosted by the Paleontological Research Institution (PRI), which has been at the forefront of Climate Science education. PRI is the publisher of “The Teacher-Friendly Guide to Climate Change”, which has won national recognition. In conjunction with the publication of the Guide, PRI has undertaken a drive to fight climate-change denial propaganda by raising donations to distribute copies of the Guide free to every school in the United States.
About the Paleontological Research Institution The Paleontological Research Institution (PRI) pursues and integrates education and research, and interprets the history and systems of the Earth and its life, to increase knowledge, educate society, and encourage wise stewardship of the Earth. PRI and its two public venues for education, the Museum of the Earth and the Cayuga Nature Center, are separate from, but formally affiliated with Cornell University, and interact closely with numerous University departments in research, teaching, and public outreach.
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