Climate Change

Climate change – the warming of the planet due to changes in the Earth’s atmosphere, and all the effects that follow from that – is the overarching environmental issue of our time. Combined with habitat loss (due to development, resource extraction, and other forms of degradation), the two forces together represent the greatest threats to global biodiversity and healthy ecosystems, today and in the future. It is critical that both be addressed with urgency. However, it is worth noting that, despite the immense importance of (and obstacles to) stemming habitat loss, climate change is somehow the even-more-complicated of the two challenges.

The causes and effects of climate change are incredibly diverse and complex processes, as are the interactions among them. In our education and advocacy role, VCS has worked for over thirty years to help shed light on this complexity, initially seeking to raise awareness of the reality of climate change, and in more recent years providing a deeper look into impacts and solutions. Below, we share some of the resources we’ve created, along with some outside sources, for the benefit of anyone with an interest in how climate change will affect our Island. The 15-part series by Liz Durkee is an excellent starting point for an overview of the breadth of the challenge we face; our 3-part “Scientific Consensus” report takes a deeper dive into sea level rise, human health effects, and the science behind the impacts. (For those who want to skip straight to “what should we do about it,” please see Project Drawdown for our favorite go-to resource on solutions.)

Martha’s Vineyard is, of course, an island. The impacts of climate change will be felt especially strongly here – they already are. And since climate change interacts with every other environmental issue, our work at VCS – as the Island’s environmental advocate – is always connected to climate change, even when it is not obviously about climate mitigation or adaptation. From conserving habitat to protecting water quality to reducing plastic pollution, every issue VCS addresses is in some way affected by climate change; more important, the outcomes we work to achieve are in the service of strengthening our Island’s resilience in the face of climate change, reducing our own carbon footprint, and often both.

Altering the climate of the entire planet, despite happening first by accident, and later by willful neglect, is arguably the most significant feat ever performed by humanity. Reversing the process – or even just adapting to the consequences – will be an even greater accomplishment, but one that cannot happen by accident. Now is the time for dedicated action on all fronts: transitioning to cleaner energy sources, reducing consumption and waste of energy and materials, slowing the loss of forests and wetlands that store carbon, and protecting habitat to build ecological resilience. There is no more time to waste.

Impacts on our Island: The Scientific Consensus

Part 1: Emissions Scenarios and Global Climate Change
Part 2: Sea Level Rise
Part 3: Human Health Impacts

Our three part report on the impacts of global climate change on Martha’s Vineyard is intended to be an educational resource for all who are interested in the science behind the well-known causes and effects. The project strives to present the scientific consensus as clearly as possible, while also considering the broad range of possible outcomes and acknowledging the uncertainty in predictions (Vineyard Gazette coverage).

Unfortunately, the data and analysis that have come out since our report was prepared have steered that uncertainty in a more pessimistic direction. Recent years have seen insufficient action on the part of national governments (USA included), and even greater warming is now “baked in” to every future scenario.

Given the refinements we now have to predictions of future emissions and total global warming, our report’s greatest value today is in the description of local impacts, and the explanation of how and why they occur. For someone first seeing this today, the best place to start may in fact be Part 3, Human Health; if you enjoy it, work backwards from there to Sea Level Rise, and then on to the introductory chapter.

Thanks are due to the Edey Foundation, whose funding provided the time and resources for our staffer Jeremy Houser to research and prepare the report. See the Vineyard Gazette’s coverage.

Please note: if printing, it is recommended to download the documents first (see the download icon at top right in the new window that opens when you click the links), then open the pdf in Acrobat, and print from there.

Local effects of climate change

Originally published in the Vineyard Gazette, this fifteen-part series by our former Board Member, and now MV Commission Climate Change Planner, Liz Durkee provides an excellent, accessible introduction to climate change issues as they pertain to life here on our island.

The Vineyard Way: A Climate Action Plan

In late 2021, the MV Commission was awarded a grant from the state’s Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness program to create a comprehensive Climate Action Plan for the Island. With that funding, the MVC’s Climate Action Task Force, along with dozens of community representatives, worked together to identify priorities for addressing our vulnerabilities and strategies for mitigating our emissions.

The Plan is organized around six thematic areas; VCS is honored to have been asked to take the leadership role in developing the section on Land Use, Natural Resources, and Biodiversity – a subject always close to our heart. To learn more about the team members, subject areas, and development process for the Climate Action Plan, please see The Vineyard Way website

Individual Action: The Island Climate Action Network

Addressing the enormity of the climate challenge will require not only large-scale political change and technological innovation, but also mass action at the individual level. In 2019, a new volunteer organization, the Island Climate Action Network (ICAN), was formed to focus on that side of climate advocacy: to give people information about what they can do to personally make a difference. To learn more more, see the ICAN website and sign up for their great newsletter!

As a founding member of ICAN, VCS continues our support through our role on the steering committee.