We started this episode of TMSOG with the song “People Have the Power” by Patti Smith, which is a song about collective empowerment and the potential for positive change through unified action. It emphasizes the idea that ordinary people, when acting together, possess the ability to shape their world and achieve their dreams. The song was written by Patti Smith and her late husband Fred “Sonic” Smith as a call to action, inspired by the spirit of the 1960s protest movements and aiming to inspire a similar sense of agency in the late 1980s and beyond. It is an anthem about the collective power of individuals to create change. It encourages listeners to recognize their own agency and work together to realize their dreams and address societal issues. The song emphasizes that meaningful transformation comes from the unified efforts of people rather than relying on external forces or authority.
People have the power to do great things, but at times it seems that humans have a propensity to mess things up, especially when it comes to the environment. There are those who are working to make things better and to help reduce the pollution of the land, air and water. We need to build community to protect the Earth. So on this week’s podcast we talk about a powerful ally in the climate movement: religious institutions. From churches to mosques, synagogues to temples, faith communities are stepping up and making a tremendous effort to protect the planet. According to our guest Reverend Fletcher Harper, Executive Director of GreenFaith, the United States stands at a crossroads, as within months, decades of climate progress have been undone. So what can we do to get the pendulum to swing back and get us on a path to creating a healthier planet for current and future generations?
For centuries, faith traditions have urged people to care for the Earth. People more likely trust their spiritual leaders more than politicians or corporations. When a pastor, rabbi, imam, or monk speaks about climate change, it can resonate in a deeply personal way. The climate crisis is causing real harm right now and Faith based groups are helping to fill a gap in climate activism by connecting the global crisis to local needs—providing disaster relief, protecting vulnerable communities, and ensuring that climate justice includes racial and economic equity. The message is clear: caring for the planet isn’t just environmental—it’s spiritual and moral. Our guest Rev. Fletcher Harper gives us his thoughts, as well as important information on how GreenFaith is working to inform faith based communities on ways to be proactive on environmental issues. Reverend Fletcher is a pioneer of the global religious environmental movement, and he helped spearhead the faith-based fossil fuel divestment movement. He organizes faith turnouts at major climate mobilizations, and a mobilization is coming up next month as the Faiths 4 Climate Justice Sun Day will take place from September 19th though the 21st, please go to greenfaith.org for more info. Rev Harper is also the founder of Shine, an international campaign that supports women and community-led renewable energy access initiatives in Africa and India. He is the author of GreenFaith: Mobilizing God’s People to Protect the Earth. You can email Rev. Amy Brooks at amy@greenfaith.org for more info on the Sun Day events.
To find out how to take actions to heighten your civic duty go to https://civ.works/
Also please go to the following organizations to get info and if you can, donate to https://www.ucs.org/ (Union of Concerned Scientists which helps scientists continue their valuable work). If you want to help protect the environment please donate to https://earthjustice.org/ and World Wildlife Fund: WWF
You can also donate to help lawyers defend our constitution by going to https://www.aclu.org/ https://www.brennancenter.org/
To listen to past TMSOG shows go to: https://hudsonriverradio.com/ and https://malcolmpresents.com Follow The Many Shades of Green on FB, Threads and Instagram @tmshadesofgreen and on Blue Sky @tmshadesofgreen.bsky.social. Listen to TMSOG podcasts on all major podcast apps.#RaiseYourEco&SocialConsciousness
A Special shout out to Neil Richter for all of his help and engineering wizardry in getting TMSOG up and running each week.
Electric cars are cool, electric cars are fun, electric cars don’t pollute the air we breathe, so why aren’t there more of them on the road? My co-host Brian Horowtiz and I chat about this and other topics, with my guest Seth Leitman, Green Living Guy. Seth is an EV car aficionado, and author of a series of books called the Green Guru Guides. He is working with the Solarize initiative in Westchester County to promote solar energy. Seth will be lecturing and touring colleges this Spring, to spread the word about green living. For more information go to greenlivingguy.com
Why are environmental regulations important in helping reduce greenhouse gas emissions? The Clean Air Act and the Clean Power Standard Rule have been put into place to keep the air, land and water safe, in order to reduce the negative health effects of pollutants. Join me and my special guest, Elon D. Rubin, Esq., Environmental lawyer, entrepreneur, techie, musician and most importantly my awesome son, as we talk about the environmental regulatory process, and how citizens can participate in the process. The climate is changing, and we must be proactive in being resilient and adaptive to current and future climate challenges. For more information visit Edrlaw.com and epa.gov.