Environmental Committee Co-Chairs: Melissa Brown (Ward 5 Chair) and Gary Rucinski 

Join us: 2nd & 4th Wed of the month at 2 pm on Zoom

Contact: Melissa Brown <newtondemsw5@gmail.com>

The Environmental Committee is preparing a series of one-hour webinars in 2026 to educate voters about the intersections between climate change and other hot topics of the day. Our goal is to make it possible for voters to bring these connections into conversations with candidates running for national and state elections this year.

“What’s in Your Energy Bill & What Can the State Do?” (Feb 22, 2026)

Energy affordability is a key issue right now: bills are skyrocketing, and the Massachusetts State Legislature wants to respond to concerned residents. But what is best for ordinary voters? Find out what’s actually in your energy bill and learn about energy-affordability bills at the statehouse, so you can talk effectively with your legislators about the best energy affordability measures for us all. 

What’s in Your Bill? - Jamie Van Nostrand, Future of Heat Initiative

What Does Mass Save Do? - Carrie Katan, Green Energy Consumers Alliance

What Is the State Legislature Considering? - Vick Mohanka, Sierra Club Massachusetts

The recording is here:

NEXT PROGRAM

“How Heat, Air Quality & Trees Affect Our Health”

Tues June 9, 2026 

@ 5:30 - 6:30 pm 

on Zoom

Register here

As climate change heats up our world, how does that affect our health? Come find out about the relationships that heat, air quality, and urban trees have to illness and mortality rates. 

Learn how these are public health issues that state and local policies can improve, so you can talk effectively with officials and legislators about the measures that best serve us all.

Presentations (with Q&A): 

“Trees as Nature-Based Solutions for Heat Risk Reduction”

Robert McDonald, PhD; Lead Scientist for Nature-Based Solutions & Lead Scientst for Europe, The Nature Conservancy (Europe)

“Heat Illness: Policies for Protecting Vulnerable Residents and Workers”

Roger Luckmann, MD & MPH; Professor Emeritus, Family Medicine and Community Health, UMass Chan Medical School

“The Health Impacts of Air Pollution--and What You Can Do To Prevent Them”

Brita Lundberg, MD; Board of Directors, Greater Boston Physicians for Social Responsibility and Chair, Environmental and Occupational Health Committee, Massachusetts Medical Society

Learn more here: https://www.newtondems.org/environmental-committee

Questions? 

Contact Melissa Brown, Environmental Committee Co-Chair, NewtonDemsW5@gmail.com