Connect! Unite! Act! is a weekly series that seeks to create face-to-face networks in each congressional district. Groups meet regularly to socialize, get out the vote, support candidates, and engage in other local political actions that help our progressive movement grow and exert influence on the powers that be. Visit us every week to see how you can get involved!
The changing of the seasons gives us new holidays and experiences. When it comes to fall, one of the moments I love the most is the changing of colors. When tree leaves move from green to orange and red, shades fall to the ground around us. The rustling of branches provides a rain of the colors, forming a walkway for us, a chance to build giant piles of leaves and mulch for the new year. Even if you hate cleaning up leaves, the majesty in our backyards and our communities lets us know that summer is coming to an end. What if tomorrow things changed entirely and our fall didn’t look like the fall we know? The Daily Kos group Climate Brief focuses on the impact of climate changes and the need to care for our environment—and if you like fall leaves, it may be time to join them and start thinking about what to do next.
What if things changed for us in the beauty of the seasons? Well, thanks to global warming, we may be about to find out. Appalachian State University gives us some scary details:
Along those lines then, how could global climate change affect fall color? To paraphrase the Bard, let me count the ways: (1) higher temperatures, (2) altered timing and/or amounts of precipitation, (3) changes in humidity, (4) changes in cloud cover and light striking the trees, (5) increases in the length of the growing season and displacement of the timing of leaf out and leaf fall, (6) higher levels of nitrogen inputs to ecosystems from agricultural practices such as fertilizing and hog production, (7) acidic deposition that causes nutrients to leach out of the soil, (8) migration of trees farther north to escape the heat, (9) extirpation of trees that can't migrate for one reason or another, and finally, (10) changes in competition due to greater pest loads or invasive exotic species.
There are several fantastic stories about the environment here at Daily Kos, and if you want to catch them all in one place, finding your way to the Climate Brief can give you an easy rundown of what is happening with our planet—that place we all live and love.
Last week, Mettle Fatigue posted a great comment, so I’m just going to—with their permission—post it here.
Find or start a group:
WHERE THE KOGS ARE: Links to 287 DK Local&Political Grps
This index includes basic information about the dk site-tech of how groups work, and a kosmail link to the diarist for coordinating the formation of new local and political groups — “organize rather than fragment, collide or compete!” (This list includes dk groups beyond the US, some currently active, some not.) This is where “Think global; act local!” comes to your own realworld community!
Another dk group index is
200 Health/Med, Community, Heritage, FriendlyOpenThread & widely Related Grps
— examples: Black Kos, America Latina, This Week in the War on Women (meeting today at 5pm) and other feminist and sisterhood groups, LGBTQI groups, KosAbility (a longrunning group for people with disabilities & those who love them), Abortion & Pro-Choice & related, groups focused on climate change activism and mutual support for activism and coping, groups working on issues of gun control be it with or without full disarm (liberals don’t have to agree on absolutely every detail — it’s a big tent), cannabis reform, Kossaks for the Homeless, Kossacks Helping Each Other, The Grieving Room for mutual support in mourning personal loss, and so on. Many in this list have a distinct political activist component, too.
And dk has probably a couple hundred or more groups dedicated to a huge range of interests: history, backyard science, sci-tech, crafts & DIY, music & cinema & television & theater —sorry, theatre! — and innumerable more. Browse through the NewDKGroups diaries to see the ones most recently formed; some of those diaries includes link-lists of established groups in similar interests.
Kosmail to staff-member diarist (click on his name as diary author) or to maverick-volunteer me (click on my name as commenter) if you’d like help finding the kinds of groups you’re interested in if you don’t see them listed in the indexes or NewDKGroups diaries. Meself I’ll do my best to reply timely.
Our Connect! Unite! Act! team is here to provide support and guidance to new and existing volunteer leaders of each regional and state group, helping them recruit, organize, and execute social and action events. We invite you to join in this effort to build our community. There are many ways to pitch in. If there isn't a group to join near you, please start one.
LINK TO DAILY KOS STORE