This panel discussion with four members of Cambridge Mothers Out Front includes inspirational stories of local climate activism. The mission of Mothers Out Front is to ensure a livable climate and sustainable future for generations ahead.

This panel discussion with three local and state climate leaders includes an overview of the Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) Program and the efforts of Watertown and Cambridge to conduct vulnerability assessments and implement climate change preparedness and resiliency plans. Panelists also discuss the role of the urban forest and green infrastructure in addressing heat and flood risks.

Henry David Thoreau was a climate change scientist! For the past 17 years, Professor Richard Primack and his team have been using Thoreau’s records from the 1850s and other Massachusetts data sources to document the earlier flowering and leafing out times of plants, the earlier flight times of butterflies, and the more variable response of migratory birds. Most noteworthy, plants in Concord are also changing in abundance due to a warming climate. This work has received extensive media coverage as an example of the biological effects of climate change and is now being extended to the neglected autumn season. What would Thoreau tell us to do about global warming if he were alive today?