During the Community Power Ward 10 forum last night, it became clear that there's only one candidate with an actual plan to marshal the power of our grassroots systems to rapidly meet the challenge of reaching our carbon reduction goals.
A Minneapolis Civilian Climate Corps is urgently needed to mobilize every one of us into agents of change by going door-to-door with information and resources about how homeowners, renters, businesses, and property owners can act today to save tomorrow. A Climate Corps is also desperately needed to answer the demands of equity to ensure that no matter what language, zip code, or home owner status someone has, they can access the subsidized programs and cost-savings already available. With stipends paid for by the franchise fees that utilities pay to fund climate change action, a Civilian Climate Corps can also provide extra income to its members as we grow our green economy. And as part of anew NRP to specifically address equity in our city, we can strengthen our unique and valuable neighborhoods system while making it a tool for undoing racism.
Some candidates think it's just a matter of pushing more policies from above because meaningful community engagement is admittedly hard. But top-down approaches are a replication of the mindset that has brought us to this moment. Instead, we must listen to the data that tells us real change comes when people are empowered through relationship-building and education. This is work we can only do together.
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