Dear Friends: Please Help Keep Me Out of Jail!

I recently sent this email around to many of my friends and colleagues:

Dear all,

As you probably know, I have taken the Credo Pledge of Resistance (along with 76k+ others) to risk arrest if the White House moves to approve the Keystone XL Pipeline. This pipeline would unlock a massive amount of burnable carbon, spelling ‘game over’ for the climate that all life on Earth depends on. I have never risked arrest before, but the stakes are simply too high now. Arrest seems pretty puny in comparison. 

For political reasons, President Obama and Secretary Kerry are now removing themselves from the KXL review process - which is being conducted by oil industry insiders. This means they could be allowing a sham process by oil industry contractors to set the stage for White House approval of the Keystone XL pipeline. And approval means that over 76,000 of us will be taking to the streets - and likely ending up in jail.

Please sign this Credo petition, urging Obama and Kerry to make sure the review process is authentic and scientifically sound. The fate of our planet rests in the balance. Plus your support now might help keep my arrest record clean. :)

http://act.credoaction.com/sign/obama_kerry_kxl?sp_ref=22978526.4.1670.e.0.2&referring_akid=.7184853.sOm1-e&source=mailto_sp 

With much love and gratitude,

Vanessa

Vanessa Warheit

Producer/Director

vwarheit.blogspot.com

worsethanpoop.com

415-225-4435

Open Letter to Bryn Mawr College Development Office

This morning I got an email from the Bryn Mawr College Fund Chair, Christy Allen. Here is my response.

Returned check from Bryn Mawr College Annual Fund

Hi Christy,

I am a Donor for Divestment - I recently sent a check to the Annual Fund with the stipulation that the College must cease investing in fossil fuel companies and fully divest from fossil fuels within the next five years. The check was returned to me. I will try again next year - with a higher contribution amount - but under the same conditions, and with the timeline narrowed to four years. We are on a collision course with climate catastrophe, and the clock is ticking.

I have made a conscious decision to divest all of my assets from fossil fuels. I will not support an industry that is actively working to destroy the future of the smart young women Bryn Mawr is educating. To do so would be immoral - and illogical. It breaks my heart to read about the aspirations of these young women and the callous disregard for their future displayed by the trustees, in the interest of purportedly saving money. And of course - their decision not to divest won't save the College money, as fossil fuels are ultimately an unsound investment policy. The carbon bubble will ultimately burst, as 80% of the known fossil fuel reserves cannot be burned without destroying human civilization, as well as most of life on earth. 

So the question isn't really WHETHER the College will divest - but WHEN. I sincerely hope that Bryn Mawr will choose to be a leader on this vitally important issue, before it is too late.

Sorry to not be more helpful - I know you are trying to support this noble institution that means so much to all of us. But our life support systems come first - and the sooner Bryn Mawr wakes up and joins the movement for a livable climate, the better.

Best regards,

Vanessa Warheit '90

Boiling frogs!

Yesterday was a day of deep irony in the Ingle-Warheit household.

Our only pets are two cute little aquatic frogs that live in a fishtank in our dining room. They were a gift to my husband a year and a half ago. As the most diligent and methodical member of our family, my husband is in charge of feeding and caring for them.

Cyril and Basil, our cute pets - hiding from the camera.

For the past year and half, Cyril and Basil seemed to be doing well - singing into the night, and cheerfully swimming around in their tank. But starting a few months ago, their companion snail died. We bought them another one - and it died too. And the frogs started to seem listless. They sang less. They swam less. We got worried.

Two days ago, my husband finally announced that one of them had died - but much to my relief, when he went to scoop out the dead frog, it moved. So - as the crisis management member of our family - I took a sample of the frogs' water in to the aquarium store yesterday to see if they had any insights into what might be wrong. Their advice? Check the temperature. African Dwarf Frogs are tropical creatures, and they like their water to be around 78 degrees.

So... I returned home and checked... and the thermometer read 94 degrees. We had been, in effect, cooking our frogs.

A few hours after frantically unplugging the heater, turning off the tank light, and pointing a fan to blow over the top, I got the tank back down to 78 degrees. Lo and behold, the frogs now seem much happier.

There are a few lessons we have learned from this experience:
1) don't trust the heater thermometer to do its job.
2) my husband needs new glasses.
3) look to your own metaphors for guidance (I used this as an opportunity to teach Elliot the word 'irony'):

I'm a Climate Reality Leader. I even helped our friend Naveen to create a 'boiling frog' sign for the Forward on Climate march in San Francisco! If anyone should have thought of checking the temperature, it should have been me.

But there you go. Sometimes, the stuff happening in your own back yard (or your own fishtank) is the hardest to notice - until it's (almost) too late.

Father's Day - Beatles style

 Elliot and his dad performed two Beatles songs yesterday at a recital for Chaia May's students. What a great way to celebrate Father's Day!

EV's more affordable than ever

How cool is this? Three all-electric cars are now available to lease (from Nissan, Fiat, and Honda) for $199/month - some with no money down, and some even throw in a 240v home charger!

Honda Fit all-electric EV - 80-90 mile range, $199/month

Cool City Challenge video - at last!

After several months of very hard work, we have finally finished the Cool City Challenge video. This program is based on a simple but very powerful idea: organize people at the neighborhood level to reduce their carbon and work together toward local sustainability. We're trying to get it off the ground in three Northern California cities, which will provide models for the hundreds of other cities that are looking for ways to implement their climate action plans. We have the cities, we have the people - now we're just looking for funding. Check it out, and tell me what you think!

Cool City Challenge is an initiative of Empowerment Institute in collaboration with Lawrence Berkeley Labs, Stanford, UCB, UC Davis, and the World Wildlife Fund. For more information, please visit www.coolcitychallenge.org.

Elliot tries to meet the President

Elliot and I participated in a protest against the Keystone XL pipeline outside a fundraiser at a private home in Palo Alto this evening. We saw his car from afar but not much else!

 

OFA National Day of Action on Climate Change

Last week I was invited to speak at a rally in downtown Palo Alto, as part of Organizing for America's National Day of Action on Climate Change. Here is a link to the text of my speech. If you don't have time to read the whole thing, skip to page 6.

Vanessa Warheit presenting at OFA's National Day of Action on Climate Change
Lytton Plaza, Palo Alto, California

Aachen... and home again

Claudia took me to Aachen, where I stayed with yet another dear friend, Manfred, and his lovely partner Rita. I hadn't seen him in over 15 years. Manfred had a near-fatal heart attack last year, so I was particularly grateful for the time we got to spend together!

Manfred & Rita in front of their recently-renovated, ultra-efficient house in Aachen.

Aachen cathedral - over a thousand years old.

Buying tea for my mom!

Back on the ICE, heading for the Frankfurt airport. Auf wiedersehen!

Another dear old friend!

Continuing on my tour down Memory Lane... via high-speed Deutsche Bahn ICE... visiting my dear friend Claudia in Gummersbach, near Koln.

Arriving at the Cologne train station.

With Claudia's son and mother, at dinner in Cologne.

With Claudia in front of her flat in Gummersbach.
(That's her black super-efficient BMW. Why can't we get those in the US?)

Stuttgart, and on to Koln

Stayed with friends in Stuttgart for a few days, who offered to take me to the Mercedes Museum. I agreed only after they assured me that it was as much about history as about cars.

My dear friends Matthias and Roger, in front of the Mercedes Museum.

On our way to the museum, Roger turned to me and said, "I guess to you, going here is like visiting Mordor!"

Super-cool Mercedes from the 1930s! (Highest speed ever attained on a public road - to this day:268mph) 

Some of their cars were pretty cool - especially the older models. Though Roger's assessment was actually pretty accurate. The founders of Mercedes were the first to invent the internal combustion engine, it turns out.

Bringing the Marianas to Munich

Just wrapping up at the conference on Transpacific Americas in the unlikely but beautiful city of Munich. Attended by a truly global roster of academics - from Europe, north and South America, Asia, and the Caribbean, though surprisingly no Pacific Islanders! - it's re-immersed me in the world of the Pacific (and the German I studied so long ago in school).

Screening The Insular Empire at the Transpacific Americas conference in Munich

View out my window in Munich

My first meal in Munich: Nuremberger mit bier! (So long gluten free diet...)

At the foot of the Odeonsplatz - which I'm pretty sure was open to cars the last time I was here (15 years ago). Look at all the bikes!

Bringing Climate Reality to GreenTown Los Altos

I had the honor of giving a Climate Reality presentation to GreenTown Los Altos last week - and the Los Altos Patch just wrote a story about it! There were about 40 people packed into the lovely Neutra House (a mid-century modern architectural gem, converted from private residence to community center), who were very receptive and asked a lot of intelligent questions afterwards.

Every time I give a Climate Reality presentation, I try to tailor it to the audience and keep it up-to-date and relevant. I used this presentation as an opportunity to test out a new 8-slide presentation on the Alberta Tar Sands and 350.org's ongoing efforts to stop the Keystone XL Pipeline. I also used some of Climate Reality's most recent images addressing feedback loops, to try to bring home the urgency of addressing climate change NOW, while we still have the power to influence the climate.

Little Bikes for Little People!

I am always getting complimented on my bike. Random strangers will say to me - Hey, nice bike! And I always reply, "Thanks! I *love* it." And if they stick around, I'll launch into the litany of reasons why riding my awesome bike is *so* much better than driving. I figure it's one small way for me to help make the world a better place.

My bike is made by a local company called PUBLIC - and one of the reasons I love it so much is that it FITS me. Unlike all other bike manufacturers, Public seems to understand that bikes - like people - should come in at least three sizes. Yesterday they sent out a promo for a sale on their small-sized bikes (like mine). So if you, or someone you know, is petite and looking for a great new bike - here's your chance: eepurl.com/wWoW9.

This is the only picture of my bike I seem to have - it's the bright yellow/green bike with the matching rack & fenders. (That's my friend Rachel standing next to it, holding Nik's bike.)

Stanford Faculty Guide to the Office of Accessible Education

I've been working since last October on a series of videos for Stanford University's Associate Vice Provost for Student Affairs, and I'm pleased to report that they're finally finished!

Click here to see all six episodes.

A lot of people worked on this project, including:
Jenni Nelson (associate producer/Queen of Logistics)
Keith Wilson (camera)
Jeremiah Moore (sound)
Summers Henderson and Sara Newens (assistant editors)
Sari Gilman and Maria Fortiz-Morse (editors)
Sylvia Roberts (graphics/titling)
Robert Arnold (online edit/color correction)

Back in the saddle...

I decided - over a year ago - to start blogging about environmental issues, and in particular about my life as an environmentally aware bike commuter and mother, stuck in car-friendly San Jose, California. But life got in the way, and then we moved away from San Jose (which was a good thing), and the blogging didn't happen. But a lot of other good things did happen: like moving to Palo Alto, and getting trained with Al Gore's Climate Reality Leadership Corps last summer (that's me in the front row with the yellow shawl):

My controlled panic about the increasing rate of climate change also got me involved with David Gershon's Empowerment Institute and the Cool City Challenge - which I'll be blogging more about soon. And in my spare time I also managed to produce a series of videos for Stanford University's Student Affairs Office, which I will be delivering tomorrow(!) with help from Robert Arnold at Lateral Films.

So... because March 11 is as good a day as any to turn over a new leaf, I'm starting to blog again. Welcome, and thanks for reading!