The Central Minnesota Chapter of The Climate Reality Project
Representing Minnesota and surrounding areas
A diverse group of passionate individuals who’ve come together to solve the greatest challenge of our time - Climate Change.
We are activists, cultural leaders, organizers, scientists, storytellers and students committed to building a sustainable future together.
Featured
Smart Electric Grids & Microgrids:
Lessons Learned and Pathways Forward
Thursday Sept 14th 6:30 PM - Chapter Zoom Meeting
Featured Speaker: Dr. Massoud Amin
President of Energy Policy and Security Associates and
Professor Emeritus of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the
Our chapter hosted a presentation on smart grid and microgrid technology, including methods for increasing resilience of our current electrical infrastructure and challenges and opportunities for future developments.
About the Speaker: Dr. Massoud Amin, IEEE and ASME Fellow, is president of Energy Policy and Security Associates, a professor emeritus of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE), and a University Distinguished Teaching Professor Award Recipient, at the University of Minnesota. He is widely credited as being the “father of the smart grid”, and a cyber-physical security leader, who led the development of 24 technologies transferred to industry and directed all security-related R&D for all North American utilities after the 9/11 tragedies. In fact, he was at a meeting less than a mile from the Pentagon, discussing disaster risk management with White House OSTP, U.S. DoD officials, and representative of other agencies when the terrorist attacks took place on September 11, 2001.
CMC Action Tracker
Upcoming Events
Wed Oct 4
6:30pm-7:30pm
Leadership Zoom Meeting
Thu Oct 12
6:30pm-7:30pm
Chapter Zoom Meeting
Speaker: Michael Reese, U of MN-Morris
Topic: Green Fertilizer
Wed Nov 1
6:30pm-7:30pm
Leadership Zoom Meeting
Thu Nov 9
6:30pm-7:30pm
Chapter Zoom Meeting
Speaker: Robert Ed, Darcy Tech
Topic: Aquifer-Sourced Heat Pumps
Sat Dec 2
11am-2pm
Chapter Holiday Get Together
Bryce Hamilton Studios
Recent Events
Federal and MN State Policy Updates
Posted Sept 9 2023
Between changes in federal legislation and state level laws, the climate policy landscape in Minnesota has improved dramatically.
In the presentation, Anna Johnson of Fresh Energy gives an overview of the new opportunities available.
Healthy, Equitable, Local Food
Posted May 7 2023
Food insecurity can affect anyone but it disproportionally affects individuals and communities that hold marginalized identities. This presentation will examine food access inequities and how Homegrown Minneapolis has been working to facilitate conversations and coordinate action around building a healthy, equitable, and local food system.
Biochar
Posted Apr 15 2023
The Minneapolis Carbon Sequestration Program uses carbon negative actions to remove and sequester carbon. This is done through biochar, a special type of charcoal made by heating waste biomass in the absence of oxygen, which turns wood waste into biochar.
The (Electric and Efficient) Heat is On
Posted Feb 28 2023
Alexis Troschinetz gives an introduction about how air source heat pumps work in Minnesota's cold climate for heating and how they are a great option when adding or replacing air conditioning.
Solutions
Solutions that are scalable, reliable and proven are the key to fighting climate change - we need both policy and ingenuity to solve the issues of a warming world.
The proposed solutions below lead us in the right direction, and provide hope that we can win the fight against global warming.
Decarbonizing Aviation - Synthetic Fuels
The Future of Nuclear Power in an Evolving Energy World
Members
From Acts to Action:
New Tax Credits and Rebates Page
Our new page is live, with handy links to the references we've created to help navigate the credits and rebates available. This page will be updated frequently, so check back often.
You can view it here or click "Tax Credits and Rebates" under the Learn menu.
Posted June 6 2023
Smart Grids and Microgrids
Chapter member Timothy Nolan has put together a compelling compendium on smart grids and microgrids, explaining their purpose and our need for them as we continue to shift away from fossil fuels.
"Decarbonizing the electricity system, and ultimately achieving net-zero emissions, will require action on a transformative scale. "
Climate Image Archive
Updated Feb 18 2023
We've been working on a new Climate Image Archive to use in presentations and other materials, and the archive is now live! The images are free to use and distribute with any climate presentation.
We have created two separate collections of high quality climate photos at Unsplash and Pixabay.
Photo by Raychel Tanner from Unsplash
There are concrete steps that we can take to both prepare for a warming world and fight against the sources of that increasing warmth. Check out these presentations from chapter members that highlight the specific ways you can make a difference.
25% by '25 Climate Action Plan Update (2023)
with Mary Britton
Beyond Recycling and Composting
with Kellie Kish
with Isaac Evans
with Bill Middlecamp
with Mary Britton
Sustainable Fashion
with Wendi Russo
We Need You!
We need your help to provide content and fight climate change! Submit your ideas for presentations, news, information or other relevant topics to info@climaterealitymsp.com
We also need your assistance in presenting topics to the chapter. Signup for a short talk and demonstrate your passion in fighting for the future of the planet.
Science
Planetary Dashboard
Global Temps
This number is the increase over 1900-2000 average surface temperatures.
As more of the infrared radiation (heat) is trapped by the atmosphere, surface temperatures have also increased.
+.98° C
Arctic Sea Ice
This value represents the total ice coverage minimum during the summer in the arctic. As the atmosphere warms, ice melts faster in the summer. Additionally, less ice coverage increases the dark areas of the arctic, which further increased the absorption of sunlight and leads to further warming of the arctic waters.
4.72 million sq km
2021 summer minimum sea ice levels
Mountain Glaciers
This graph charts the decline of mountain glacier mass over the past 30 years. Melting glaciers are the primary driver of sea rise, along with the expansion of warming ocean water.
Ocean Heat
Warming waters cause sea level rise, glacial melt and coral bleaching. Much of the heat trapped since the beginning of the industrial revolution has gone into the ocean.
Sea Level
This chart shows the steady increase of sea level since the 1800's. Driven by melting glaciers and the expansion of warmer water, this rise leads to coastal flooding and saltwater intrusion, which damages homes and crops, and threatens hundreds of millions around the world who live in these threatened coastal areas.
CO2
418 PPM
This is the current concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. A principal cause of global warming since the beginning of the industrial revolution, this reduces the ability of the Earth to radiate generated heat into space, trapping more of the heat and leading to increased surface and ocean temperatures.
