The terrible fires in the LA Basin are the latest reminder that our climate is in a precarious state. With the federal government backpedaling on its climate commitments, it is essential to double down on taking local and statewide climate action.

In November, a majority of voters in Washington state and Okanogan County voted to retain the Climate Commitment Act. This reinforces something we already knew: Okanogan County wants to create resilient communities that are prepared for the changes in the climate that are arriving and are working to reduce their own emissions. While almost all our work to protect the land, air and water within Okanogan County is also climate work, we wanted to highlight some upcoming events, actions, and resources from our climate program in 2025:

Quarterly Climate Events: Many of you (370!) attended our last event in December featuring Jeff Hashimoto and Langdon Ernest-Beck sharing their awesome Human-Powered Hundred Peaks presentation as well as panelists discussing sustainable recreation. We’re committed to continuing to host these important, sometimes-hard-to-have conversations that move us towards achieving the goals laid out in the Methow Valley Climate Action Plan. Our next event is coming right up next week, a climate panel co-hosted with the Confluence Gallery on January 29th.

Defending the Climate in the State Legislature

Facing a large budget deficit, the state legislature will be looking at ways to cut programs. Our legislative arm, Methow Valley Citizens Council Action Fund (a 501(c)(4)) will be working to protect the budget of the Climate Commitment Act. Each week MVCC Action Fund will comb through hundreds of bills to find those that impact our natural environment and climate in the Methow and Okanogan Valleys and could benefit from more citizen support. If you aren’t already on our list to receive our MVCC Action Fund Action Alerts you can sign up here.

Youth Engagement in the Legislative Session

We’ll be working with local youth this winter and spring to help connect them with legislators on climate issues that matter to them. If you know of a young person who is interested in becoming more involved in climate action we encourage them to reach out to Dana Golden (dana@mvcitizens.org).

New Ways to Find Incentives and Funding: There is a new statewide website that anyone (individuals, orgs, businesses) can use to find incentives and grant opportunities. You can check it out here.

Heat Pump Resource: Curious about the benefits of heat pumps? Our intern working on our climate program last year, Emma Fehr, created an awesome heat pump FAQ resource to answer all your questions about heat pumps.