Thank you to Scene Magazine and Dan Peacock for writing this blog post series for Off the Hook Arts.
We’ve met two Off the Hook Arts leaders responsible for this years uniquely relevant Summer festival. We’ve talked to a Colorado State University professor about the loudening social link between music and and the environment. This week, we will be zooming in on what businesses and government agencies in Fort Collins are doing to address climate change at a truly local level. OtHA recognizes that in order for its music festival to reach the volume of change required to address such a universal issue, it will take knowledgeable outreach at such a communal level.
Lindsay Ex holds the position of program manager for Fort Collins’ Climate Change Initiative. She is responsible for knowing where the town sits in its goal of reaching carbon neutrality, what fiscally responsible resources are available for individuals and businesses to decrease their impact on the climate, and educating said members of the community on how to do so. Ms. Ex will be speaking at OtHA’s SummerFest: MISSION EARTH on June 27th at Odell Brewing from noon to 1pm. She will be joined by a plethora of community leaders including the city’s Dave Randall, CSU Atmospheric Science Department’s Scott Denning and Corey Odell, Odell Brewing’s own Jeff Hill, and Bounce Software’s software architect, Susan Quinlan, Jax.
As Ms. Ex shared her extensive first hand knowledge of our city’s progression towards carbon neutrality, it became clear how uniquely collaborative and effective our approach to such environmental problems has become. The city of Fort Collins has taken extensive action addressing climate change as early as 1999. Every subsequent communal advancement, from 99’ through the latest, unanimously vote in 2015, has been passed and adopted by the city council. As far back as the 1960’s, Fort Collins voted earlier than most to bury electrical lines, helping to advance the community in resource usage, technological advancement, and aesthetics.
This headstrong approach to a cleaner climate is no more apparent than in the concrete goals our Climate Change Initiative has set forth towards creating a greener city. By 2020, Fort Collins is expected to reach 20% carbon neutrality, growing to 80% by 2030, and eventually reaching a whopping zero net carbon output by 2050. City employees like Lindsay Ex are responsible for directing the community towards making this lofty dream a reality via grass roots intervention. New bike lanes, such as the one you may have noticed sprouting up along Taft Hill between FoCo and Loveland, limiting wasted sources of energy, and refined transportation initiatives are just a few of the means being implemented at the level of city planning and ordinance. For the individual and business, the Climate Change Initiative helps education and funding to improve building insulation, window repair and placement, and lighting efficiency.
One of the biggest challenges facing Fort Collins’ climate goals, explained Ms. Ex, is financing and engagement at the communal level. The correlation posed by this festival between such austere yet necessary topics as energy conservation and the love of art and music encourages professionals and children alike to get involved. Make sure to join Ms. Ex and other community innovators at Odells on June 27th to learn more about what’s been done, what is being done, and most importantly, what you can do.
If you missed last week’s Off the Hook Arts: MISSION EARTH article, make sure to check it out here. For more information on Ms. Lindsay Ex and our the Fort Collins Climate Change Initiative, you may visit their website here. Stay up to date with what is happening and when, so when June rolls around you’ll already know what events speak loudest to you.