Dear John,
2020 is about to dawn, and 2020 is going to have to be the year. The year we see carbon emissions stop growing and start falling. The year we start taking on the big banks that are funding the climate crisis.
Sometimes that prospect makes me tired. This autumn marked the 30th anniversary of The End of Nature, my first book and also the first volume about climate change for a general audience, (back then we called it the greenhouse effect). So I've had plenty of time to fight and plenty of time to become discouraged. When I look at the melting Arctic or hear about the deadly heatwaves across the UK, I can lose heart.
But then I look at the movement we've all built together — a movement that is cooler and deeper with each passing year. This fall's climate strikes were a signal moment: millions in the streets, so many of them young people. Their commitment is astounding — but it's not okay to take the biggest problem the planet has ever faced and put it on the shoulders of 14-year-olds.
So we all need to do our part — and this time of year that can involve giving some money, if you've reached the end of the year with some to spare. 350 has become the biggest organization on earth whose only job is fighting climate change. This year we've won historic battles from Brazil to Ukraine to east Africa to Australia. And next year we've got to win more.
Have a peaceful holiday and rest up because we're going to call on you next year — together we're going to cause some serious trouble!
With great thanks,
Bill McKibben, Founder 350.org
350.org is building a global climate movement. You can connect with us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and become a sustaining donor to keep this movement strong and growing.
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