The Invading Sea
  • In the News
  • Editorials
    • Earlier opinion pieces in South Florida media about climate, rising seas
  • Elections
  • Influencers
  • About
No Result
View All Result
The Invading Sea
  • In the News
  • Editorials
    • Earlier opinion pieces in South Florida media about climate, rising seas
  • Elections
  • Influencers
  • About
No Result
View All Result
The Invading Sea
No Result
View All Result

Our time Is up: We must vote for leaders who intend to address the climate crisis

The warming of the planet harms our health, national security, economic growth, and America’s standing in the world

by Jose Javier Rodriguez
October 30, 2020
in Influencers
0

By Jose Javier Rodriguez, Democratic State Senator

These days it can feel like there is a lot more that divides us than unites us. However, it’s increasingly clear that climate change isn’t one of them.

As much as the Republicans in the White House and Congress like to pretend climate change isn’t happening, our summer of extreme heat, climate fires, supercharged hurricanes, derecho wind storms, and other extreme weather events have proven otherwise. Florida knows this better than most.

In South Florida, king tides are flooding our streets due to sea-level rise. In Miami-Dade County, cases of mosquito-borne illnesses are on the rise, a situation that gets worse at this time of year because of heavy rain. And a record-breaking supercharged hurricane season is still underway, threatening our state.

Jose Javier Rodriguez

This is why we need to vote for climate this election. We are facing an urgent moment that will decide how our country progresses forward — not just for one presidency but for decades and centuries.

Experts widely agree that if we don’t act now, we’ll miss our chance to stop the worst effects of the climate crisis. It’s a now or never moment.

With so little time left in this election, we cannot afford to miss our chance to vote for science and climate action so we can all do the work to prevent our children from facing terrifying repercussions from climate change.

We have a choice: Instead of leaving our most vulnerable citizens to endure the harm from a warming planet, we can choose leadership that will consider how any new action by the government or industries will affect the health, welfare, and environment of every community.

Luckily, voters have indicated their strong support for those committed to taking bold action on climate change. But to accomplish this mission, we need a movement of climate voters to come to the polls between now and Election Day.

This coalition exists. Climate change is an issue that touches us all — from our health to our national security, to economic growth, justice, and America’s standing in the world. If all the individuals who deeply care about those issues turned out for candidates who know that climate action is the first step in addressing those challenges, we’d have a powerful coalition that would bring about change.

The good news is that climate crosses political and demographic lines. A majority of Democrats, Republicans, and Independents believe climate change is a serious threat. And a majority of voters want Congress and the next president to make climate action a Day 1 priority.

This holds true even more so in Florida. Florida voters want us to act on climate. A recent poll from Yale found that 68% of Floridians believe in climate change, and 59% of the state’s residents are worried about climate change.  Further, more than half of the respondents stated that a presidential candidate’s views on climate change are important to their votes.

Florida has long lived with the climate crisis. Those who also went through Hurricane Andrew remember that we — amid the wreckage and tragedy — united around one purpose: recovery. We learned lessons from our planet, and we now have better resiliency plans.

We need to embrace that spirit once again as we go to the polls. Today, it’s essential for us to work together to recover from the devastation climate change is inflicting and make our state more resilient. To be a climate voter.

If 2020 has proven one thing, it’s that science matters. And I sincerely hope that Floridians vote on science and climate. We might not get another chance.

Jose Javier Rodriguez is a member of the Florida State Senate and an outspoken advocate for Florida’s coastlines and a clean energy economy.

“The Invading Sea” is the opinion arm of the Florida Climate Reporting Network, a collaborative of news organizations across the state focusing on the threats posed by the warming climate.

 

Tags: Climate crisisFlorida state SenateJose Javier RodriguezMiami-Dade CountyYale
Previous Post

Floridians need to vote so we can keep our heads above water

Next Post

It’s always darkest before the dawn

Related Posts

Reject questionable South Dade development, commissioners. Everglades must come first 
Editorials

Reject questionable South Dade development, commissioners. Everglades must come first 

by The Miami Herald Editorial Board
May 19, 2022
Young people – concerned about global climate change – can combat it through political engagement
Influencers

Miami should consider requiring underground parking garages to serve as temporary reservoirs during flooding

by Morgan Dunn
December 6, 2021
It’s always darkest before the dawn
Influencers

Miami Beach and sea-level rise: Flawed infrastructure, environmental injustice, and new opportunities

by Diana Rodriguez
December 2, 2021
Next Post
Zillow can help fight the climate crisis by creating a market for rental homes with solar arrays and exceptional energy efficiency

It’s always darkest before the dawn

Twitter Facebook

About the Project

The Invading Sea is a collaboration by news organizations across Florida to address the threat we face from sea-level rise. We want to raise awareness, amplify the voice of our region and create a call to action that can’t be ignored. Read More

Archives

Categories

Audio Editorials Faces of Sea Level Rise Influencers In The News Other The Business of Climate Change Video

Newsletter

Subscribe

* indicates required


© 2022 The Invading Sea

No Result
View All Result
  • In the News
  • Editorials
    • Earlier opinion pieces in South Florida media about climate, rising seas
  • Elections
  • Influencers
  • About

© 2022 The Invading Sea

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Fill the forms bellow to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In