350PDX Weekly Update – Heatwave – June 23 2021

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Hi everyone,

It’s hot. Really hot. The forecast for Portland this weekend says 111 degrees, which would be the 4 degrees higher than the hottest temperature ever recorded in Portland.

The weather is warming and wildfire season is lengthening, there are already four active wildfires burning across the state. Experts are expecting this year’s fire season to be more severe than last year’s. So we’re co-sponsoring a webinar on being prepared to try to minimize the health risks for ourselves and everyone in our communities.

Our Health in Wildfire Season
Mon June 28, 8:00PM – 9:00PM
Online – Register here

The webinar is hosted by Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility and Neighbors for Clean Air, and will be available live in both English and Spanish, with Q&A, and then also recorded for wide distribution.

The speakers will be:

  • Erica Moseson MD, pulmonologist & Chair of the Pulmonary Section at Emanuel Hospital.   She will cover what wild-fire smoke is, how it affects our health in both the short and long term, who is most vulnerable to its effects, and possible modes of protection.

  • Elliot Gall PhD, Assistant Professor, Engineering at Portland State.  He will cover how smoke enters the home, and ways to create a cleaner air shelter within your home, including different types of filters and air purifiers.

  • Ira Cuello Martinez, Policy Climate Associate for PCUN (Pineros y Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste, in English, Northwest Tree-planters and Farmworkers).  He will cover how outdoor workers can take measures to minimize exposure to dangerous smoky conditions.

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Know how you’re cooling off this weekend, but wondering how you can help your neighbors beat the heat? Here’s some ideas:

  • Organizers with local bail fund Defense Fund PDX are coordinating to drop off water, sunscreen, and other necessary supplies for local camps and folks living outside. Please consider dropping off ice, beverages, and sunscreen for camps and campers in your neighborhood, and contact @DefenseFundPDX on Twitter to let them know what ground you’re covering!
  • Meals on Us and Be Loved Bloc are organizing to provide folks with sunscreen, water, electrolytes, snacks, and other essentials to survive this heat wave! You can drop off items at the following locations:
    • Bunk Bar Water, 1028 SE Water Ave
    • Aveda Institute Portland, 325 NW 13th Ave
    • Haleakala PDX, 2816 NE Halsey St

Cash donations to purchase supplies can be made to $mealsonuspdx (Cashapp) or @mealsonuspdx (Venmo)!

  • The Warm Springs Reservation is already experiencing wildfire impacts, and their water is still being conserved due to further pipe failures. You can help get lifesaving water to Warm Springs by:
    • Donating to The Chúush Fund, organized by MRG Foundation and the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs,
    • Bringing donations of bottles or gallons of water to Bison Coffeehouse at 3941 NE Cully Blvd in preparation for their run to Warm Springs this weekend, or
    • Donating to CSPP’s Care Camel, which makes regular water deliveries to Warm Springs, at $CareCamelPDX (Cashapp) or @CSPPPDX (Venmo)

Thanks for looking out for yourselves and your neighbors; let’s keep each other safe!

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Here’s your 350PDX weekly update.

Actions

For quick actions like petitions, check out our Take Action Page. See here for our broader Volunteer Opportunities.

  • No Tar Sands Here, No Tar Sands Anywhere. City of Portland: it’s time to Stop Zenith!

    Here in Portland we have our own tar sands oil fight, with Zenith Energy bringing in tar sands by rail and exporting on ships from their facility in NW Portland. Ever since Zenith Energy began operating in our City over 3 years ago, the amount of dangerous oil trains in our community has quadrupled. It’s time for this to stop. The Portland City Council has a big decision to make about Zenith Energy’s oil-by-rail terminal this month and they need to hear from you! In the face of a climate emergency, Portland has the opportunity to say “NO!” to this dirty oil company and assert its vision for a sustainable city—one that values community and environmental health over profits for fossil fuel companies.

    Take action to stop Zenith by calling each member of City Council. If you only have time for one phone call, though, make it to Commissioner Dan Ryan, who oversees the Bureau of Development Services which will make this permit decision. His number is 503-823-3589.

  • Sign and send the petition to your local elected officials: Divest our pensions from fossil fuels

    Nearly all public pension funds in the U.S. are invested in fossil fuel companies — and thus using our tax dollars to support the powerful polluters that are causing the climate crisis and violating Indigenous rights.

    Public money shouldn’t be used to fund global destruction.

    Sign and send a letter to your pension fund’s decision makers urging them to divest from fossil fuels. It is time to stop supporting climate chaos with our retirement money!

  • Tell Biden: Stop Line 3

    With enough national pressure, we can make this pipeline a top issue for Biden among the likes of Keystone XL and Dakota Access. But it will take all of us rising up.

    Will you add your name to the national petition calling on Biden to review the permits granted by Trump and halt construction on the Line 3 tar sands pipeline immediately?

    Sign the petition here.

  • Wanted: Help with Trainings

    We want to put on more trainings, like the Volunteer Orientation, Climate Justice 101, Winning a Campaign 101, Centering Frontline Leadership 101, etc. But we need help! Trainings take up a lot of time and energy, and Chris could use some support in developing, delivering, advertising, and everything else that goes into trainings. These trainings might be virtual, but increasingly we’re thinking about doing some summer trainings in the park or backyard. Interested in helping out? Let chris@350pdx.org know! You don’t need to be an expert in the content, we can learn that together. Looking for teachers / trainers / good public speakers / curriculum designers / researchers or anyone with a passion for creating a learning environment.

Updates

  • Missed the Volunteer Orientation last week?

    Sign up for the next one on August 19th here. Or watch the recording (60 min) and follow along on the slides (which have the transcript of eveything I said typed up below the slides).

  • Volunteer Support Fund

    350PDX is committed to removing barriers to volunteering and organizing within our movement. Thanks to a generous donation from an anonymous donor, we are now able to provide limited stipends to go towards removing barriers to volunteering with 350PDX through a Volunteer Support Fund.

    We aim to foster a more inclusive and accessible 350PDX community, while also providing opportunities for distributed leadership and more sustainable volunteer teams.

    Will a stipend support you in volunteering with 350PDX? This fund may be for you! Apply here

    Applications will be considered and stipends will be distributed on a quarterly basis, so about every 3 months, with the next rolling deadline coming up on June 30. Questions? Please reach out to chris@350pdx.org and dineen@350pdx.org.

Opportunities​​​​

Thank you all for the work that you do, stay safe, we’re all in this together,
Chris, Chuck, Dineen, Gaby, Indi – the 350PDX staff

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