The day before New Year’s Eve, out-of-the-ordinary, hurricane force winds fueled Colorado’s most destructive fire in the state’s history, completely leveling community neighborhoods right in front of my eyes…in just half a day.
Wildfires aren’t supposed to happen in December, but the fall had brought severe drought due to climate change, and not the usual winter snow you associate with Colorado.
It happened so fast. Over 1000 homes and businesses burned, hundreds of pets perished trapped inside homes, and 32,000 people were evacuated.
Tens of thousands of people are now displaced, with nowhere to live long term.
We were lucky enough to be 9 miles from the fire and are safe in our home, but after watching it all happen from our window, I’m still rattled.
I keep thinking, this could so easily have been our neighborhood.
And frankly, we all should be thinking that this could have been our neighborhood.
Because these kinds of climate-related events don’t seem to be going away anytime soon, it’s only a matter of time before one impacts you and your family.
This fact can be so disheartening.
It’s easy to fall into a well of despair and hopelessness when these catastrophic events happen.
How do we enjoy life and be happy in the face of all this?
Yoga has taught me that random unlucky disasters (which are going to happen at some point in your life - we call this lila, or divine play) can be handled more gracefully when you prepare in advance for possibility.
Plus yoga has taught me that it’s all in how we react, right?
When we take action, despair turns into empowerment, and in turn fulfillment, and eventually, happiness.
Cry, rage, weep, and pound your fists now, but then get back on the horse and transmute those feelings into choices and actions.
Instead of going into denial or avoidance mode, yoga also shows us that we must dive into things that make us feel a little more certain in an uncertain world.
To that end, I’ve been listening and learning these last few days and I’ve put together a list of 25 things you ought to know and do long before a climate event strikes near you.
Hopefully this gives you agency and makes you feel a bit more uplifted:
Have an evacuation/disaster plan - start a Google Doc that you can share with your family and add to it periodically as life changes. Google sample plans online for ideas. A plan includes things like filling your sinks & bathtubs in case of fire, pulling items off the floor in basements in flood zones, and more.
Check on your neighbors, especially elderly ones - think, living beings first! Make sure everyone around you has the help they need to evacuate when the time comes.
Create an evacuation packing list as part of the above Google Doc. Have it printed out and taped to the inside of a convenient cabinet so you can easily access it. Google has sample lists that have things like valuables, important documents, pets and their supplies, keepsakes, medications, etc.
Build an emergency preparedness kit to grab as you’re going out the door. You can Google sample kit contents for ideas and start putting the items together in a duffle bag or container. This includes items like first aid kit, nonperishable foods, flashlights, emergency radio, survival blankets, fire blankets/gloves etc.
Hire a fire mitigation service to assess your home - whether you own or rent, having your dwelling checked for fire risk by a professional can make the difference between the building catching fire or being spared.
Talk to your neighbors about being prepared for disasters - This could mean encouraging those around you to do tree and fire mitigation. Houses in suburban neighborhoods are closely connected - what happens to one house can easily impact the others. Work as a community team to prepare.
Be very aware of “red flag days” - Red flag days are declared by the National Weather Service when: 1) Relative Humidity is 15 percent or less with either sustained winds of 25 mph or greater or frequent gusts of 35 mph or greater for a duration of 6 hours or more. When this is the case, plan ahead: Take your pets with you everywhere, be in touch with family members, revisit your evacuation plan and packing list, and consider turning on your irrigation system if you have one.
If you have pets and haven’t already done so - put a sign on your front door that alerts first responders and neighbors that you have pets inside in the event you are not home during an evacuation. Do a Google search of images of these signs for great ideas!
Consider this if you have pets - During the fire this week many weren’t able to get home fast enough to save their animals. Neighbors and first responders couldn’t always gain access because the door was locked (or it was too time consuming to break in in time). Consider installing a smart lock for your front door that can be unlocked remotely from your phone to allow for someone to get inside and help.
If you have cats that hide or dogs that run from people, consider finding ways to prevent your kitties from hiding when new people come into the house. We heard of a few cats that could not be saved because they hid when first responders or neighbors tried to rescue them. If you have dogs that run from strangers, consider training them to be more comfortable around people through training drills, treats, etc.
Consider a solar-powered generator for your home - A solar-powered generator can help keep your home functioning when the power goes out so you can be there for those less fortunate! Gas-powered generators are less expensive but they contribute to C02 emissions.
If friends lose their homes, read this article before offering support - it was written by a woman who lost her home in 2015 and she shares a great protocol to follow when giving a hand to those who’ve lost everything.
Talk to your city council about disaster preparedness. Is your hometown ready for hurricanes, tornados, fires, floods, or other extreme weather events? What needs to happen to prepare? For example in Boulder, the Sanitas forest just west of the city, desperately needs to be mitigated for fire. My mission for 2022 is to help mobilize our community to make that happen.
Acknowledge that none of these events will stop until we do something about the climate crisis. To that end, the rest of the list is devoted to what you can do as an individual citizen of planet Earth to mobilize together to turn this around.
If you’re in the USA, call your representatives and demand an end to the filibuster so the Freedom to Vote Act can pass. Without this, we may never have a free and fair election again and we place our democratic system of government in severe peril in this country, thus there will be no hope of electing leaders who will fight for climate justice. If you’re out of the USA, call your representatives and demand climate justice.
Get out the vote in the 2022 midterms - If you live in the USA or know someone who does, tell them to devote as much time as possible to getting their friends and loved ones to the polls in November. #Votebluein2022 is the deal. Yes, I’m being partisan, but it seems like only one party is behind climate justice, and that’s the Democratic party.
Do your part as an individual to get us to carbon-neutral - you can reduce your carbon footprint by eating less or no meat/animal products, going solar, unplugging things when not in use, being mindful with your thermostat, flying less on planes, driving less in cars, and not idling in your car, to name a few.
Do your part as an individual to help draw down legacy carbon from the atmosphere into the soil and the ocean - You can help draw down legacy carbon by supporting local biodynamic and Regenerative Organic farms (or donating to organizations like The Rodale Institute), and/or by donating to Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) such as The Misool Foundation.
Watch Kiss the Ground Movie on Netflix - this film is so inspiring because it outlines Regenerative Organic Agriculture as the single most powerful way to draw down huge levels of legacy carbon from the atmosphere and sequester it in the soil. And if you like it, then watch The Biggest Little Farm.
Read Regeneration by Paul Hawken - get it on audio or read the hardcopy to get you pumped up about fixing the climate mess.
Read Farmocology by Daphne Miller, M.D. - a wonderful read about how farms can elevate human and planetary health.
Plant a garden - Plant trees, plant veggies, native grass lawns (if you must have a lawn), plant flowers that attract pollinators - all will help draw down carbon, feed your family, and save pollinators like hummingbirds, butterflies, and honey bees that are integral to our ecosystem. Do not use Round Up/Glyphosate for weed control. If you have any in your house, find a household hazardous waste disposal event or location to make sure it never makes it into the soil.
Start composting if you’re not already. Read my latest article on how to get started. 40% of all food produced in the USA goes into landfills, and food scraps should not be taking up room there! Not to mention food waste in landfills creates methane gas which is far more potent than CO2 (greenhouse gas).
Be loving and kind, don’t be a jerk - it is natural (but not good) when resources are scarce for human beings to get petty, mean, and unkind. As climate disasters (and pandemics for that matter) strike, decide to be generous, civil, helpful, heroic, and compassionate rather than unkind.
Look for the helpers - Disasters like these can be so devastating, they can kill our spirit. As our representative, Joe Neguse reminded us in a briefing of something Fred Rogers said when there are scary things: look for the helpers and be one of them!
Photo by Taro Smith (from our front porch)