It's a new year and a new look for BCAG 

Do you love winter sports? Even if cozying up with a good book is more your cup of tea than braving the chilly outdoors, there’s no escaping the fact that climate change affects you.

Beginning with this issue of the BCAG newsletter, we are exploring the coming impacts climate change will have on our ways of life, including recreation. Won’t you take our short survey so that we can better understand your needs? You’ll also find some pretty interesting information (including the future of skiing, snow, and actions you can take) that you won’t want to miss.

BCAG will sponsor an excellent video series, “Climate Solutions 101” by Project Drawdown, explaining both the multi-faceted climate problem and offering a path forward. The course will be presented in March and April (more details to follow).

In addition to the video presentations we plan to have an expert local guest at each session to lead discussions about what we can do, both as individuals and as a community. This course is for everyone; those who are wanting to learn more about climate change and its impacts in our lives, and those focused on what actions we can take.

BCAG is honored to be partnering with the University of Montana and SpectrUM Discovery Area in their 2 ½ year project called ResilienceMT. The $450,000 grant from NOAA’s Environmental Literacy program will bring mobile climate resilience exhibits and community forums to Hamilton and Corvallis in 2023.

SpectrUM’s work on designing the science exhibits begins this spring, with assistance from Bitterroot area school teachers. During 2022 BCAG is recruiting volunteers to help build a successful program of community meetings for climate resilience planning, plan implementation, and related community education in the valley. We need your help! For more information, contact BCAG Chair Peter Reynolds.

Education

• Sponsor four (4) science lectures/webinars on climate topics important to our community

• Sponsor the video/discussion series “Climate Solutions 101”

• Produce eight (8) e-newsletters to inform our membership about current issues and BCAG activities

• Continue to develop BCAG’s website as a source of information and inspiration

• Continue to develop the ResilienceMT project with the University of Montana to bring climate science exhibits to Bitterroot High Schools and the community in 2023 (described above).

Resilience and Mitigation

• Participate in the City of Hamilton’s Envision Hamilton meetings to bring climate issues forward in City planning

• Participate in the Fire in the Root meetings to bring climate issues forward in the update of the Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP)

• Increase BCAG Membership in 2022 by 100% (to 250 members)

• Sponsor a Mitigation project in collaboration with a local nonprofit partner

• Sponsor our volunteer Hwy 93 cleanup project in April and again in October

• Work with the City of Hamilton to complete installation of the Electric Vehicle Charging Station on 2nd Street in Hamilton
  

Advocacy

• Continue meeting with local elected officials to influence local policy and planning

• Prepare and coordinate BCAG input into the USFS NEPA process to bring climate science considerations to forest management decisions

• Create Action Alerts to the BCAG membership around critical climate change issues requiring local public comment and advocacy
  

Hope and Community

• Operate the Victor Community Garden program as an opportunity for hands-on community participation in building local food resilience in our valley

• Sponsor two “Climate Cafes” in different valley locations for community members to share feelings, concerns, ideas and inspiration on climate change

• Partner with at least two local nonprofits in presenting climate action opportunities in 2022

• Update the BCAG website to direct visitors to new and ongoing activities to connect with community members around climate change mitigation and resilience.

• Present BCAG’s Annual Meeting in October 2022 to elect the new board and draw feedback and input from members