December News & Views
Dec. 21, 2023
IN THIS ISSUE
Top Stories
— Reflection: Turning the Page, Practicing Hope
— After COP28
Organizing News
Third Act Central News
More Third Act News
Banking on Our Future Campaign
News from Our Partners & Friends
Did You Know?
Resources
Upcoming Events
Letters from Readers
TOP STORIES
Turning the Page, Practicing Hope
By the Rev. Jane Ellen Nickell
Third Act Faith Co-facilitator
The calendar is a human measuring device, so the turn of a page should have little tangible impact on our daily existence. And yet, as another year draws to a close, we find ourselves taking stock of the preceding 12 months and considering what possibilities a new year offers.
The headlines narrate a year of brutal violence in Gaza and Ukraine, escalating human rights violations around the world, legislative action stalled by political division in our country, record-setting temperatures and a disappointing climate gathering in Dubai. Those situations continue into the year ahead, which will also be another potentially bruising election year. If we look no further than the mainstream media, we may find little reason for cheer this holiday season.
But if we turn our gaze away from the newsmakers, we see everyday people coming together to make positive social change, including those of us in Third Act. Paul Hawken described this movement in his 2007 book Blessed Unrest: How the Largest Social Movement in History Is Restoring Grace, Justice, and Beauty to the World. Hawken documented over 130,000 efforts ranging from NGOs to billionaire philanthropists to small local groups. He estimated that the actual number far surpassed that and may be as high as one or two million, and it has only continued to grow. This enormous movement is so widely dispersed that it flies under the radar of mainstream media and is largely invisible, even to those within it.
A survey of our own work spotlights that movement. On 3.21.23, Third Act’s Day of Action, we told big banks across the nation to “cut out” funding for fossil fuel expansion or we would “cut up” our credit cards, gaining us media attention and thousands of new members. Over the summer, Third Act launched new campaigns to continue pressuring financial institutions and to encourage citizen involvement in energy choice and in voting and election integrity. In November, Third Act co-hosted a webinar with YES! magazine that is devoted to “people building a better world” and featured the work of elders (including Third Actor Lani Ritter) in its most recent issue. (View the webinar video here.)
As a working group within the larger organization, Third Act Faith hosted a Service of Solidarity to ground the March Day of Action in spiritual reflection. General Meetings have featured insights from TAF members Trisha Tull and Debra Rienstra and high-profile guest speakers Fletcher Harper of GreenFaith and climate scientist and evangelical Christian Katharine Hayhoe. Many of us found Dr. Hayhoe’s ideas from her book “Saving Us: A Climate Scientist's Case for Hope and Healing in a Divided World” especially inspiring as we confront the enormous problem of climate change.
Turning the calendar on a new day, month or year provides the opportunity to renew our commitment to positive social change. Any small action we take is amplified by the millions of others around the world engaged in this work. In doing so we practice hope, which is not simply an aspiration but is a discipline that can bring about the future we dream of.*
Now over 70,000 strong, Third Act can be a significant part of that global movement. Third Act Faith leaders will be meeting in January to envision our role, so watch for opportunities to join us in that work. Meanwhile, we send best wishes for your holiday celebrations, especially those for whom the holidays are a difficult time. May the new year bring comfort, joy and many opportunities to practice hope.
* The idea of hope as a discipline reflects the ecological work of Joanna Macy and Chris Johnstone and prison abolitionist Mariame Kaba.
After COP28: Our Work Continues
By Mary Johnson
Third Acts of Faith Co-editor
COP28, the 28th annual get-together of nations dealing with global warming, ended last week, sputtering to a close with a single consensus statement on “transitioning away from fossil fuels in energy systems, in a just, orderly and equitable manner.” Activists were frustrated: GreenFaith’s global organizing director Meryne Warah joined the criticism, calling the statement “not trustworthy” and “not enough.”
Bill McKibben, though, found its good point: as “a tool for activists to use henceforth.” It’s “literally meaningless” he agreed — like saying “in an effort to reduce my headache, I am transitioning away from hitting myself in the forehead with a hammer” — but it’s also “potentially meaningful.”
“The rest of us are going to have to supply that meaning,” he said.
“If the language means anything at all,” he went on, “it means no opening no more new oil fields, no more new pipeline.” And no more new liquefied natural gas terminal export terminals. “LNG export terminals will almost certainly be the first real test of whether this agreement means anything,” he said.
That test will likely come Feb. 6-8 at the U.S. Department of Energy, when Third Act carries out its first mass civil disobedience action aimed at stopping such planned new terminals.
If one were just following the news, COP28 might have seemed no more than an exhausting exercise in collusion, given the controversy over the summit’s leadership by Sultan Ahmed al-Jaber, head of United Arab Emirates’ state-owned oil company, and the increased presence of fossil fuels industry representatives.
But progress did occur away from the spotlight, including these successes pointed out by Katharine Hayhoe in her Dec. 11 blog post:
Colombia and Samoa “became the tenth and eleventh countries to endorse the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty.”
Canada put “a cap on emissions from our oil and gas sector requiring companies to cut emissions 38% before 2030.”
134 world leaders committed “to account for emissions from food and land use and invest in resilient and sustainable agriculture.”
118 countries committed to “triple their renewable energy investment and double investments in efficiency.”
A group of the world’s biggest philanthropies pledged $250 million “to ocean resilience and ocean-based climate solutions.”
C0P28 was also distinguished by the high visibility of interfaith activists at the new Faith Pavilion, designed for pastors, imams, rabbis and other spiritual leaders “to exchange ideas about how to guide people through the effects of climate change.” More than 50 faith groups from around the world were involved in its workings, and over 20 faith leaders — Hindu, Christian, Islamic, Buddhist, Jewish, Sikh and Shinto among them — came together to sign an “Interfaith Statement on Climate Change.”
We’re unlikely to ever know how much faith activists’ work contributed to these breakthroughs, but “there is nothing that scares governments and even corporations like interfaith action,” GreenFaith’s Warah said in a panel discussion at the Faith Pavilion. “When they see faith communities united for the same cause, they get shook.”
To take a deep dive into COP28 issues of interest to Third Act Faith members, check out blog posts by TAF favorites Debra Reinstra, Katharine Hayhoe, and Bill McKibben.
10 Days of Climate Action Planned in Response
The weak COP28 response to the climate emergency calls for “a response that expresses the deep, powerful heart of our faith and spiritualities,” says GreenFaith leader Fletcher Harper in an email announcement that people of faith are mobilizing worldwide for 10 days of public, grassroots, multi-faith climate action from 3-12 May 2024. Register here for the “Faiths for Climate Justice” Launch Call on January 30 to learn more.
ORGANIZING NEWS
New year will bring new leadership
Third Act Faith Co-facilitator Jane Ellen Nickell has announced that she will be stepping down from that role in January to take on a new but much-needed leadership role in our working group: organizing our membership outreach efforts to welcome and engage new members as they join Third Act Faith this year.
Jane Ellen is a United Methodist minister from West Virginia. She retired last year as chaplain at Allegheny College in Meadville, Pennsylvania, where she continues to live. Her climate activism was inspired by a former pastor and has always been linked to her faith. She has served on the board of Pennsylvania Interfaith Power & Light, organized a local creation care network, taught a course on Religion and Ecology at Allegheny, and continues to teach and preach on ecological issues at local congregations. Having worked with young adults for many years, Jane Ellen wanted to devote retirement to addressing the climate crisis they will inherit, so Third Act came along at the perfect time.
Speaking on behalf of all present at this month’s Coordinating Committee meeting, founding member Pat Almonrode expressed our deep gratitude for Jane Ellen’s leadership the past year, which has included establishing our social media presence, envisioning two monthly newsletters, establishing working relationships with GreenFaith and other faith-based organizations and coordinating our working group’s support of Third Act initiatives such our virtual Service of Solidarity preceding the 3.21.23 Day of Action.
Stepping into the leadership role is Coordinating Committee member Kathleen Dickson from Brookings, Oregon, who will be serving as a co-facilitator with Betsy Bennett. A music director for the Smith River United Methodist Church in California, Kathleen joined Third Act Faith in time to organize the music for our virtual Service of Solidarity, and she joined the Coordinating Committee last May. Serving as a co-chair of our Program Committee, she helped organize the recent General Meeting featuring climate scientist Dr. Katharine Hayhoe and is currently at work planning our next meeting with eco-theologian Rabbi Ellen Bernstein in January.
Save the Date
THIRD ACT CENTRAL NEWS
Third Act celebrates birthday, outlines 2024 priorities
Third Act founder Bill McKibben came to the December All-In Call on Zoom wearing a tie. He was wearing it, he said, to mark the occasion of our second birthday: Third Act was launched Dec. 13, 2021. Later we were treated to the video “Third Act: Two Years of Good Trouble” with birthday wishes from supporters across the nation, including some big names: Carole King, Jane Fonda, Mandy Patinkin and wife Kathryn Grody, and the late Norman Lear (whose life and work received a special tribute during the meeting).
But the best birthday gift was the interview with our guest, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. Responding to questions from Bill and Third Act’s lead adviser Akaya Windward, Sanders showed us why the two-time presidential candidate persists as a popular activist politician.
Asked what fueled his long career, Sanders revealed that anger was one motivator: We “live in the richest country in the history of the world” and yet we have people sleeping in the streets and struggling to put food on the table, he said. The other reason, he went on, is that he’s inspired by the “thousands of beautiful people” he has met across the nation, especially young people who “want a different world.”
Asked what strengths he has noticed that older people bring to this work, he said that they have seen and been through a lot in their lifetimes. “What I like about Third Act, you know, is many of the people in our generation in the ‘60s and ‘70s were engaged in the struggle, and now they are older and they still want to continue to do meaningful work.… Or they want to contribute for their own children and their own grandchildren. I think involving them in the process with their history and understanding of the ups and downs of our own history as a nation is a wonderful thing to do.”
Sanders expressed his hope that we, like the “greatest generation” before us, will step up at this “pivotal time” to save the world and democracy. He encouraged us to persist. “These are tough times, and it is important to recognize these are tough times. If you feel upset and depressed, you are not crazy,” he said. “But on the other hand, we must understand that we cannot give up to that despair. It is not an option for our kids and our grandkids. We just can’t give up.” (If you missed the meeting, the video is posted online here.)
National sit-in in DC planned
Third Actors’ accomplishments in 2024 (we now have 70,000+ members and 35 working groups) were duly recognized during the meeting, and then a major action was announced: the Stop LNG Sit-In that will send Third Actors to Washington D.C. for three days of civil disobedience Feb. 6-8 at the Department of Energy.
The Sit-In is being organized to encourage Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm to stop approving new Liquified Natural Gas terminals. “The goal of civil disobedience is not to be disobedient, but to make change,” Bill explained. “Our great hope is that we won’t have to do civil disobedience in February.” Noting that President Biden has done more in promoting clean energy than any president, the intent, Bill continued, is to push and defy in “the most affectionate way.”
‘Big splash’ In January, elections prioritized
Campaign organizers Deborah Moore and Jeremy Friedman also outlined other actions being planned for 2024. Among them, they noted that Third Act is gearing up to make a “big splash” in January when tens of thousands of petition signatures will be presented to Costco urging the popular retailer (and major Citibank client) to end their relationship. On the democracy front, they said that voter engagement will be prioritized, to raise voter turnout, combat disillusionment and register new voters.
MORE THIRD ACT NEWS
YES! celebrates “Elders”, spotlights a Third Actor
Check out YES! magazine’s latest issue, devoted to “Elders.” Third Actor Lani Ritter Hall, a member of Third Act’s advisory board from Cleveland, is one of three activists featured in the issue’s article, “Elder Power: These First-Time Activists Show That the Front Line Isn’t Just for the Poor.”
To celebrate the issue, the magazine’s 108th, Third Act lead adviser Akaya Windwood and YES! executive editor Evette Dionne met for an online conversation, “Age as A Bridge” on Dec. 5. View the video here.
Thumbs up for Third Act — from Heatmap
Third Act has been credited by Heatmap for spurring the Biden Administration's decision to ramp up the domestic production of electric heating appliances. The newsletter, devoted to news about climate change and energy transition, specifically cited Bill McKibben’s February 2022 blog post, “Heat Pumps for Peace and Freedom,” which came out after Russia invaded Ukraine. It urged President Biden to use the Defense Production Act to manufacture electric heating appliances. Doing so, Bill noted, could dramatically weaken Putin’s power and the U.S. meet our climate mitigation targets.
And Third Act gets more notice
A new study from the Environmental Voter Project (EVP) shows that older voters care a lot about climate and are carrying a lot of political clout, among them Third Actors, according to a Dec. 5 article in Inside Climate News by Marianne Lavelle that spotlighted the work of Third Act.
The EVP study of voters in 18 states across the U.S. found that voters aged 65 and older rank the climate and environment as their top issues, making this demographic group second only to the youngest voters (ages 18-34) who prioritize climate.
While that might not be surprising news for Third Actors, the study affirms that politicians ignore us at their peril. “I think this data is a warning sign for politicians, because they know that older Americans vote, volunteer and donate at the highest levels,” said Nathaniel Stinnett, executive director of EVP. “And as they increasingly care about climate change, politicians better follow suit, or they’ll regret it on Election Day” as “they become numerous enough to swing elections in key states.”
Identifying older climate activists as the “unsung partners” in the youth-driven climate movement, Lavelle noted that they have “more experience, greater resources and often, ample time to devote to the cause.” Sound familiar? It should. Bill McKibben, Third Act and our 3.21.23 Day of Action were all spotlighted in the article. Our work, however, is just part of the story, so be sure to read the full article. As Lavelle reports, “These extraordinary older activists are the tip of the iceberg, representing a much broader core group of older citizens passionate about climate.”
Visit the No Time to Waste page to learn more about the fund, established to help support the work of Third Act’s 70,000+ activists.
Banking On Your Future Campaign
‘Move Your Money’ peer trainings January 7 and 12
Third Act has set a goal for each working group to have one or two “peer facilitators” to serve as resources for members looking to move their money from banks and investments that are bad for the climate, and to that end has scheduled two training sessions on Jan. 7 and 12.
The two-hour training sessions will be led by Third Act partner THIS! Is What We Did, an intergenerational organization devoted to fighting climate change that has already been providing educational resources and holding “office hours” for Third Act’s Move Your Money Campaign.
Want to be a TAF peer facilitator? Let us know you are signing up for the training and then register for one of the following sessions:
January 7, 3 - 5 pm EST (12 - 2 p.m. PST): Register for Jan 7 here.
January 12, 3 - 5 pm EST (12 - 2 p.m. PST): Register for Jan 12 here.
Interested but want to know more? Check out this video from Third Act Pennsylvania's recent workshop.
NEWS FROM PARTNERS & FRIENDS
Kudos to Seattle church
First United Methodist Church of Seattle recently endorsed and promoted the Stop the Money petition to pressure Costco to end its relationship with Citibank, one of the leading investors in the expansion of fossil fuel industries.
The action was recommended by the congregation’s Climate Justice Group, and announced in online and in the church newsletter, offering a model for engaging our faith communities in this campaign. Their call for action begins, as Katharine Hayhoe might suggest, with the question “Did you know?” and goes on to cite reasons why Citibank is not a suitable credit card issuer and why Costco is targeted (did you know, by the way, that the retailer claims 30% of American shoppers?).
If you do take this petition request to your congregation, please be sure to use Third Act’s unique link in your announcements. Third Act can then track the numbers and possibly “a proportional share of new prospective Third Actors!”
DID YOU KNOW?
Time to make some resolutions
Third Actors are heading into our third year! The end of a year, and a start of a new one, is a time for reflecting and planning new things. It’s a time to make resolutions — and keep them!
Did you know there’s a science to keeping resolutions? Lots of well-meant resolutions falter, but by setting specific goals and deadlines, listing ways to monitor progress, and — surprisingly, maybe — giving advice to someone who’s trying to achieve similar goals, even goals you haven't yet mastered, will motivate you to action. Climate scientist Dr. Katharine Hayhoe, who spoke at our November TAF General Meeting, said it is “important to activate people” and outlined her three-step method — “bonding, connecting, and inspiring” — which doesn’t sound all that different.
Ayelet Fishbach, one of the world’s foremost researchers on the science of motivation, is the author of Get It Done: Surprising Lessons from the Science of Motivation, published last January. She thinks of goals as baking recipes — with exact quantities and instructions. And TAF’s December “Going Deep” article offers a recipe for how we can do this in 2024 with our “home energy footprint.”
Changing that footprint is “the one thing that only we can do to prepare ourselves for a carbon-free future,” according to guest author (and TAF member) Trisha Tull, who with husband Don Summerfield started working on this goal in 2006. They now have a home whose energy consumption has dropped by two-thirds. (“Going Deep” is one of two newsletters published by Third Act Faith.)
Check out the article, “Changing Paradigms, Systems and Stoves,” to learn exactly how they went about keeping their resolution and to learn about resources such as Inflation Reduction Act tax credits now available to help Americans reduce their carbon footprint on the home front. For activism beyond our homes to democratize our public utilities and advance climate-friendly energy policies, check out Trisha’s report about Third Act’s Campaign to Democratize Energy. (She is TAF’s liaison to the national campaign.)
RESOURCES
On how to keep resolutions
Learn more about how to keep your resolutions by reading Ayelet Fishbach’s “Get It Done: Surprising Lessons from the Science of Motivation" (Little Brown Spark, 2022).
Also check out Katy Milkman’s "How to Change: The Science of Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be" (Portfolio, 2021).
On how to reduce your (and your congregation’s) carbon footprint
"Changing Paradigms, Systems and Stoves" by Trisha Tull.
"Moving Forward: A Guide to Climate Action For Your Congregation and Community" by Fête Crews, Anita and James Crocker (ecoAmerica, 2019).
Rewiring America, a leading nonprofit organization devoted to electrifying homes, schools, businesses and communities. Its website, newsletter and publications are loaded with news, information, resources and practical how-to tools.
On the gridlocks to clean energy reform
“Short Circuiting Policy: Interest Groups and the Battle Over Clean Energy and Climate Policy in the American States” by Leah Cardamore Stokes (Oxford University Press, 2020).
UPCOMING EVENTS
Jan 8: Welcome to Third Act: Let’s Get Started (Zoom), 7:30 p.m. EST (4:30 p.m. PST). Register here.
Jan. 10: Working Group Launch: Third Act Washington D.C. (Zoom), 7 p.m. EST. Register here.
Jan. 22: Welcome to Third Act: Let’s Get Started (Zoom), 7:30 p.m. EST (4:30 p.m. PST). Register here.
Jan. 30: TAF General Meeting with Rabbi Ellen Bernstein (Zoom), 8 p.m. EST (5 p.m. PST). Registration details to come.
Feb. 6-8: Stop LNG Sit-In, Washington D.C. Check the Sit-In website for details.
LETTERS FROM READERS
Letter writers wanted
Join GreenFaith campaign to stop East Africa pipeline
I learned about GreenFaith several years ago and appreciate their global, multi-faith diversity of activists. All faiths have an element of respect for the earth, and all life on earth. We can all push for change across national boundaries. There are a number of campaigns on the website, as there are active fossil fuel companies destroying lives and environments around the world.
Just like big oil companies in the U.S., TotalEnergies is disrupting sacred ground, harming local communities and influencing governments in Africa. I am currently suggesting that Third Act Faith members join in writing a letter to the governments of Tanzania and Uganda, urging them to stop the East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline now.
Thank you,
Melissa Carlson
Third Act Upstate New York
Send Us Your Photos and Stories
Third Acts of Faith is published the third week of each month. Please send us your news (up to 300 words) and photos by the 7th day of each month, and help keep our members updated on what you and your faith communities are doing to safeguard our democracy and beloved Earth. Send the submission to thirdactfaith@gmail.com
