EARTH JUSTICE MINISTRIES

Do the Right Thing, Right Here, Right Now

Posted on November 18, 2024 by Sharon Delgado

By Tom Durban, Re-posted from The Union, November 15, 2024:

Part one

How long are we, as a society, going to continue to make more and more people live outside because there is no available housing that meets increasingly impossible standards and high costs?

To their credit, Nevada County is applying for millions of dollars in grants for housing through Prohousing Designation, Behavioral Health Bridge Housing and Behavioral Health Continuum Infrastructure Program. Even if they get the money, supportive, affordable and workforce housing is still years away, and it won’t be enough.

Meanwhile, what about the housing-ready people – low-wage workforce and folks on fixed incomes – who just can’t find or afford legal housing?

Although we risk forced relocation and our landlords face severe financial penalties, thousands of us do live underground in “desperation housing.” We live in perfectly habitable RV/trailers on private property all over the county because we have no other choice.

Alternative housing may not be the ideal solution, but it is the best solution for right here, right now.

When are we going to do the right thing and relax housing standards – on an emergency basis – so that people can live as honest citizens in RV/trailers and other alternative housing (e.g., yurt, shipping containers)?

Alternative housing that meets minimum health & safety standards is the only housing that is available and affordable right here, right now.

What‘s more important? The restrictive zoning and prohibitively expensive housing regulations that, literally, cause homelessness? Or the welfare of our low-wage and fixed-income residents who are suffering the hardships of homelessness or the constant paranoia of an anonymous complaint that will force them out of their homes?

Simple human compassion would dictate that RV/trailers be legalized as emergency alternative housing.

Aren’t we better than this? How can we enjoy Thanksgiving when we know people are suffering outside because our elected leaders are not using the power we have invested in them to house our fellow citizens?

Give and take

The county giveth, and then it taketh it away. On the surface, the proposed Tiny Homes On Wheels (THOWs) ordinance and Title 25, Limited Density Owner-Built Rural Dwellings look like real progress.

At the Oct. 24 Planning Commission public hearing, we learned the THOWs ordinance is modeled after Placer County’s ordinance. When asked how many THOWs have been created in Placer in the last two years, Principal Planner Tyler Barrington said only two (2!) have been delivered.

Likewise, the Limited-Density Owner-Built Rural Dwellings ordinance is so restrictive as to be another paper tiger in dealing with the need for much more housing than it can possibly provide. And it sunsets after only three years.

Real reform

Legalizing RV/trailers is not a new idea. I first proposed RV/trailers as an emergency housing option to the Board of Supervisors Jan. 22, 2019. I didn’t know what I was doing, and the idea went nowhere.

But if I’m anything, I’m persistent. Thanks to a July 2023 grant from the Upstate California Creative Corps and the Nevada County Arts Council, we created the Sierra Roots/No Place To Go Project. Sierra Roots is a nonprofit serving homeless people in western Nevada County.

I was able to devote full time to advocating the legalization of RV/trailers – for all the good it did.

We had a nearly unprecedented meeting with department directors and senior staff from the Community Development Agency and Health and Human Services Agency last October 31, 2023. That was followed up with one-on-one meetings and sidebar interactions with each of the supervisors and most of the directors and senior staff.

As a result of those meetings, on Jan. 18 of this year, the supervisors unanimously articulated support for allowing full-time occupancy of RV/trailers and safe parking for homeless people living in their cars.

Community Development Agency Director Trisha Tillotson said her agency, in collaboration the Health and Human Services Agency, would report back to the board on “options” for RV/trailers and safe parking.

That report has yet to happen.

Call to action

That’s why the Sierra Roots/No Place To Go Project needs as many supporters as possible to sign our petition, write to the supervisors, and to show up and speak up at the Board of Supervisors public hearing on the THOWs ordinance Nov. 26.

We must persuade the supervisors to direct staff to expand the THOW ordinance to include RV/trailers – and relax some of the requirements on alternative housing.

You can sign our petition at www.noplacetogoproject.com. You can find your supervisor at https://www.nevadacountyca.gov/731/Board-of-Supervisors. You don’t have to live in Nevada County to sign the petition or share your thoughts because our end goal is for Nevada County to lead the way in the legalization of RV/trailers as long-term dwelling units on a statewide level.

In Part Two of “Do the right thing,” I will share our most compelling reasoning and ideas on how to expand the THOWs ordinance into creating a real mitigation of the rural homeless/housing crisis.

It’s Just Wrong

Posted on November 17, 2024 by Sharon Delgado

Written by Brian Fry, Printed as an Other Voices piece in The Union as It’s Just Wrong.

There is so much important to say about the root causes of the “conflict” between Israel and the Palestinians:

Zionism. Judaism. Anti-semitism. Islamophobia. Who has a “right to exist” and who doesn’t? Who has a “right to defend themselves” and who doesn’t? The history of the Middle East, settler colonialism, what constitutes genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing, freedom of speech on college campuses, and more are all legitimate topics to debate along with “who started this war?” I have plenty that I would like to say on all of that.

But right now, with at least 50-100 innocent civilians dying on average each day in Gaza and now Lebanon, and up to 70% of them women and children, the priority is to stop the massacre. Children are being blown up, dismembered, buried in rubble, incinerated, losing all their family members, chased from one temporary shelter or tent to another, with no safe place to go, and intentionally starved, day after day for nearly 400 days. How can anyone justify that, or look the other way, or even just pray about it and wait for God to solve it?

We can talk about humanitarian aid and the future of Gaza, the “two-state solution” and any other related topic regarding the relationship of Israeli’s, Palestinians, and the rest of the world, but nothing positive can happen there while the war continues and US bombs and bullets and shells keep killing and destroying lives.

For those of us here in the United States, what can we do? Senator Sanders has introduced a bill to restrict military goods from going to Israel in violation of US and International law. Get our Senators, Congresspersons, and yes, City Councils to demand it. This is not just Israel’s genocide. It is (another) US genocide. Any claims of sympathy or concern about civilian victims from the US government ring totally hollow as long as we refuse to do the only thing that has influence over the Netanyahu government. The US must stop sending him weapons and to stop blocking efforts at the United Nations and elsewhere to hold Israel accountable for human rights abuses and violation of international law.

Many of us older folks who grew up in the aftermath of World War II and learned about the Holocaust, were taught to shame the German people for allowing Hitler and Nazi atrocities to occur, and for claiming they didn’t know what was happening to their fellow Jewish citizens. We wondered how the good Germans could let it happen. Some people adopted the theory that it was something about the “German authoritarian personality.” I think by now, many realize that almost any nation or ethnic group is capable of allowing unspeakable crimes to occur in their name. What we still have to realize is that any nation or ethnic group is also capable of demanding justice and peace from their leaders and ourselves.

Brian Fry

Grass Valley

COP 29: A Perilous Moment of Choice

Posted on November 12, 2024November 17, 2024 by Sharon Delgado

Image by Laurie Bayen

See the sign-on letter to world leaders below

In 1992 I was part of the United Methodist delegation to Rio de Janeiro during the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, where George HW Bush signed the Framework Convention on Climate Change, the foundational climate treaty. At that conference, the nations of the world agreed that not only would they work together to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but the wealthy nations would also transfer renewable technologies and funds to poorer nations to enable them to “leapfrog” over the fossil-fuel-intensive model that wealthier nations had followed. In this way, with gradual reductions in greenhouse gas reductions and shared renewable technologies, we could protect the environment and alleviate poverty at the same time.

It was a hopeful time. There was lots of media coverage, with pictures of the earth from space on Time and Newsweek magazines and articles reflecting hopefulness and enthusiasm all around. Fast forward to today, the first day of the 29^th Conference of the Parties, COP29, when the nations of the world begin meeting in Azerbaijan for climate talks. The mood is not so hopeful now. The promises of Rio have not been kept.

Instead, we face a perilous moment of choice. The window of time to stabilize the climate still stands slightly open, but if we continue along the current path, it will soon slam shut. Greenhouse gas emissions and global temperatures have been rising year after year. In fact, half of the burden of greenhouse gases now in the atmosphere have been released in the past 30 years, since Rio, despite our good intentions.

Scientists tell us that this is the decade in which we must act if we hope for overall global temperatures to stay under the 1.5°C limit agreed on at the Paris Accords, or under even 2° C. Here’s how the scientists put it in the IPCC’s 6^th Assessment Report (B.6): “All global modelled pathways that limit warming to 1.5°C… and those that limit warming to 2°C…, involve rapid and deep and, in most cases, immediate greenhouse gas emissions reductions in all sectors this decade. In other words: we need a phaseout of fossil fuels.

People committed to climate justice both inside and outside the talks in Azerbaijan and people around the world are advocating and organizing for a strong commitment by all parties at the talks for a phaseout of fossil fuels and payments for loss and damage to the countries most harmed by climate change and least responsible for emissions. The Climate Reality Project is circulating the letter to world leaders (below), which I signed and sent and now present to you to consider signing. Find the link here.

Please also keep the talks in your prayers. Since fossil fuel representatives usually now outnumber delegates from any one country at the talks, the odds are against us that they will commit to quickly phasing out fossil fuels as science says we must. Further frustrating our goals, the incoming administration may again pull the United States out of the Paris Climate Accords. But it is certainly not time to give up. Through prayer and ongoing faithful action, the Spirit carries us through whatever we go through, however difficult, and intercedes for us “with sighs too deep for words.”

Take Action:

Stop funding fossil fuels and accelerate a just transition to clean energy.

Find the link here.

Dear World Leaders,

You gave us the Paris Agreement. And promised you’d work together to hold global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius so we’d prevent the worst of climate change. 1.5 was a lifeline for the planet. A chance to protect our future. Especially in the Global South. Watching the sea swallow our homes. Sweating through lethal heat waves. Seeing our families suffer. All from pollution that we didn’t create but made others rich.

For all of us, 1.5 was hope. But so far, you’ve failed to deliver. Failed to end your addiction to fossil fuels. Failed to turn those speeches into the support billions need to survive. So what have we seen instead? The hottest years on record. Thousands dying prematurely who didn’t have to. And the climate crisis moving faster than ever.

We MUST move faster too. So we’re calling on you to rise to the moment. To do what it takes to keep the Paris Agreement goal of 1.5 alive. That means real climate action plans to phase out fossil fuels and transition to clean energy as fast as countries can. With rich nations going first. It means making the energy transition fair for everyone. Finally delivering the finance Global South nations need to grow with clean energy. It means making truly brave commitments to climate action. Commitments that will actually keep 1.5 alive. And then turning them into real action right away. Real action to keep 1.5 alive NOW. This is the moment. History is watching. So are we. Sincerely, [Your information here]

Vote Climate and Divest from Fossil Fuels

Posted on October 12, 2024 by Sharon Delgado

Hi Friends, this is a reprinted article written by Sharon Delgado, board member of Earth Justice Ministries and Convener of Fossil Free UMC, which is working to get the United Methodist Church to divest from fossil fuels. She wrote this article, which was published in United Methodist Insight.

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Ephesians 6:12 (NIV)

During this election season, those of us who continue to work toward fossil fuel divestment in the United Methodist Church are also urging people to vote in the upcoming election. Polls show that election results will be close. Some have called it the most consequential US election ever.

Those of us at Fossil Free UMC call on people to vote their conscience, with eyes wide open both to what is at stake with the election and to the limitations of what our votes can accomplish. Participatory democracy does not mean just voting every two or four years. It also means educating ourselves, recognizing the larger forces that constrain our choices, and addressing the “powers” that influence public policy and human affairs in an ongoing way.

People base their choices about which candidate and which party to support on various issues of concern. In this election, a key issue is climate change. Articles on our Fossil Free UMC website point out what is at stake with climate change and the need to phase out fossil fuels to prevent its worst effects. Science clearly tells us that this is the critical decade if we are to limit warming to 1.5°C or even 2°C, and that either of these limits can only be achieved by “rapid, deep and in most cases immediate greenhouse gas emission reductions.” Regardless of what issues you prioritize as a voter, be aware that climate change is a “threat multiplier” that will impact all aspects of our lives.

There are extreme differences between the two candidates, including on issues of energy and climate. In this upcoming presidential election, the Democratic Party platform calls the climate crisis “an existential threat to future generations who deserve better,” emphasizes policies supporting conservation and environmental justice, and proposes growing the economy while combating climate change. The Republican Party platform is silent on climate and proposes becoming “Energy Dominant” by cutting regulations and streamlining permits for new fossil fuel projects. If adopted, Project 2025, written by former Trump officials, would jeopardize climate action, human well-being, social programs, and democracy itself. Each of us needs to compare and vote accordingly.

But climate itself is not a partisan issue. It can’t be blamed on Republicans or Democrats. More than half of all CO2 emissions now in the atmosphere have been released during the past 30 years, that is, more human-caused emissions have been released since the signing of the Framework Convention on Climate Change in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 than were released in all the years before. Since that time the United States has reduced fossil fuel emissions slightly within our borders, but we have also become the world’s leading natural (methane) gas exporter. Our true contribution to the atmospheric burden of global emissions is hidden by the fact that US fossil fuel exports don’t count as US emissions, but as emissions of importing nations after they are burned.

These are systemic issues. That’s why signs at climate demonstrations often include the slogan of the global climate justice movement: “System Change Not Climate Change.” For more about the forces that perpetuate this crisis, see my article, The Limitations of the Dominant Paradigm for Climate Rescue. Here is an excerpt:

When Jesus says, “My kingdom is not of this world,” he is contrasting it with the kingdom of Herod or the Empire of Caesar. Walter Wink makes the case that when Jesus says “world” here, he does not mean God’s creation, but the “system,” that is, the human-constructed value-systems and structures in which we live—the “domination system.” Marcus Borg calls this “the normalcy of civilization.” Some people call it the “real world.” In other words, Jesus is pointing out two opposing paradigms: the world as it is now and the world as God intends for it to be. These conflicting paradigms are still at work today.

Voting will not save us, but it is one way to reduce harm as much as possible within the dominant paradigm. Then, following the election, we must continue the struggle “against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms,” as we seek to live a new and emerging and life-giving paradigm into being. One way of continuing the struggle is through Fossil Free UMC.

Vote your conscience and consider the climate when you cast your vote.

Join us in calling for the United Methodist Church to screen out fossil fuels from our investment portfolios on the grounds that they are driving climate change and the desecration of creation. To participate, find out about the New York and Pacific Northwest Annual Conferences and the Northwest UM Foundation, which have already divested. Follow the conversations taking place in the California-Nevada Annual Conference about responsible ways to divest from fossil fuels, and urge your annual conference to do so as well. If you receive a pension from Wespath (our Board of Pensions), as I do, divest from fossil fuels and from Palestine conflict funds by moving your money into their Social Values Choice funds, and urge Wespath to make these funds truly fossil free.

For regardless of how concerned we are about the outcome of this election or the trajectory of the future, “our struggle is not against flesh and blood,” certainly not against our brothers and sisters in the pews beside us who are Republican or Democrat, certainly not against our neighbors or people who see things differently than we do or even against people we think might be deluded. There are unseen forces (spiritual forces) that would drive us apart. But in the Spirit of Christ, we are given the grace to accept all people within our circle of concern and to acknowledge that each of us and all parts of creation are within God’s circle of care and concern.

See Cobb and Friends presentation by Sharon Delgado on Fossil Fuel Divestment as Climate Change Strategy, October 15, 10 am to 12 pm PST https://fossilfreeumc.net/2024/09/24/fossil-fuel-divestment-as-climate-change-strategy/