Sustainable Woodstock’s focus on community resilience in response to global climate change is catalyzed by the pressing need to ensure that residents of Woodstock, the surrounding towns and the Upper Valley region are able to find sustenance, health and safety—the necessities that individuals and communities need to achieve their full potential. To these ends, Sustainable Woodstock has increased our capacity as a leading local and regional grassroots organization that reaches across social, economic and cultural barriers to promote Sustainable Opportunities for All. We have increased the events and initiatives that provide support and security in regards to food and energy needs for those from all backgrounds and income levels. The links between Earth stewardship, social justice and racial equality are more clear and present than ever before.

2022 Highlights

• Sustainable Woodstock—The Whole Environment: Working with the community to foster Woodstock’s unique legacy of stewardship, sustainability and resilience—yesterday, today and tomorrow. 
• Climate Change Leadership: Producing and partnering on numerous public programs, student and community actions, films, articles, solar energy projects, energy conservation and transportation initiatives and programs, including a Regional Climate Action Plan to curb carbon emissions and mitigate global warming.
• Energy & Transportation Action Group: Collaborating with the Town and Village of Woodstock and the Intermunicipal Regional Energy Coordinator (IREC/Two Rivers-Ottauquechee Regional Commission) to design and retrofit buildings to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions at considerable savings to Woodstock residents over time.
  • Equal Energy Opportunities for All: Raising $100,000 to implement energy-efficiency improvements & upgraded systems for income-sensitive households—from weatherization to heat pumps.
  • Renewable Energy for All: Promoting the means to make renewable energy affordable for everyone. Partnering with Norwich Solar Technologies, Twin Pines Housing, SEVCA and IREC to plan a solar array to serve low- to moderate-income households. 
  • Window Dressers: Implementing a 2-year project for income-sensitive households in Woodstock and the surrounding towns, making some 450 interior storm window inserts to reduce cold drafts, save energy, lower heating costs and reduce carbon emissions: https://windowdressers.org/
  • eBike Trials: Provided 67 free public eBike trials (to date) to promote low-impact transportation, in partnership with Vital Communities, Local Motion, Norman Williams Public Library and St. James Church.
• Community Gardens & Food Security: Helping to meet the crucial need for sustenance as the root of sustainability for individuals and families. SW expanded our Billings Farm and King Farm community gardens and planted additional food security plots. Our GROW YOUR OWN GARDEN project created 225 beginner gardening kits that were distributed free to income-sensitive households—feeding some 600 people. This year we also funded raised beds at Woodstock’s Riverside Mobile Home Park.
• Natural Resources Projects & Funding: On behalf of the Town and Village of Woodstock, Sustainable Woodstock applied for $280,000 in state funding to implement natural resource projects related to water quality. Procured a project design grant from VT Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) and Watershed United Vermont to mitigate erosion along Barnard Brook (in partnership with the Woodstock Resort Corporation & Billings Farm). Initiated a process—in partnership with the Connecticut River Conservancy, Woodstock Resort and ANR—to remove the three remaining dams restricting fish passage along Kedron Brook.
• Advocacy: SW advocates on the local, regional and statewide level for sustainability and community benefits, ranging from climate change mitigation and community resiliency to quiet alternatives to leaf blowers.
• Upper Valley Partners & Leadership: No town is an island. Sustainable Woodstock has worked on regional sustainability initiatives, educational programs and events in partnership with more than 60 organizations and municipal bodies throughout Woodstock, the Ottauquechee Watershed and the Upper Valley. As a result of SW’s success, residents in Lebanon, Brownsville and Plymouth asked for help with forming organizations to address sustainability and resiliency in their own communities.
• Celebrating the 4th year of partnering with Pentangle Arts on monthly screenings of our Upper Valley Climate Change & Sustainability Film Series—with attendance of over 4,500 people (to date) from  the Upper Valley and beyond, including online viewers from Europe to New Zealand! Inspiring viewers to act on critical environmental and social issues, with generous support from underwriters Mascoma Bank & Vermont Community Foundation, and sponsors Mark D. Knott DDS, Ellaway Property Services, Unicorn and Yankee Bookshop.
• Bridgewater Community Center: SW is in the 4th year of helping to transform the Bridgewater Area Community Center into a resilient, sustainable hub, including the Bridgewater Community Childcare, which opened its doors to children and families in June 2022! During this time, we have spearheaded a successful $100,000 grant from the State of Vermont and National Park Service to restore and weatherize historic windows and install new storm windows throughout, and co-authored a successful $75,000 grant from the Canaday Family Charitable Trust to install energy-efficient systems.
• Completed 7 years of monthly Green Drinks discussions, reaching a growing audience with presentations and discussions on sustainability initiatives in Woodstock, the Upper Valley and beyond—a dynamic venue for networking, public education and collaboration between sustainability and resilience organizations. 
• Weekly Columns: 12+ years of writing weekly columns for the Vermont Standard. (A special thanks to the Vermont Standard staff!)
• Community Recycling: At SW’s Annual Recycling Day, on October 15, 2022, participants recycled nearly 11,000 pounds of used electronics, and 5,000 pounds of documents. Forest Carbon Action Group: Marking 4 years of leadership educating foresters and landowners about managing forest carbon to mitigate climate change. Published a 24×36 full-color Family Forest Carbon Poster with Northam Forest Carbon. 

Sustainable Woodstock is honored and grateful for the energy, enthusiasm and hard work of our dedicated volunteers—and for the incredible generosity of our supporters—all of whom make it possible to accomplish so much on behalf of our communities and the environment. Thank you!

Photo caption & credit: A sampling of harvests from Sustainable Woodstock’s Community Garden at Billings Farm that were donated to the Woodstock Community Food Shelf. (Photo: Amy Wheeler/Sustainable Woodstock)

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Scientists predict that, as climate change worsens, so will the intensity of hurricanes. In order to form, hurricanes need warm ocean water, moist air, vertical wind shear (change in wind speed as you travel upwards in the atmosphere), and a pre-existing disturbance like a cluster of thunderstorms. The combination of these four ingredients, according to NASA, is what makes the perfect storm, so to speak. In a world warmed by climate change there is more moisture in the atmosphere. Think of a pot of water put on the stove to boil– as the water gradually heats more water vapor escapes into the air in the form of steam. According to NOAA, temperatures in some parts of the Caribbean hovered around 90 degrees (more than 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than usual) as Hurricane Ian was forming, and these unusually warm waters were at least in part responsible for the intensity of the hurricane.

According to scientists, while the frequency of hurricanes and storms is not increasing, the intensity of hurricanes is, and will continue to worsen due to climate change. In the past few years there have been multiple storms that, like Ian, rapidly intensified before making landfall. Rapid intensification occurs when a tropical cyclone’s maximum sustained winds increase by at least 35 mph in a 24-hour period (tropical cyclones are what can become hurricanes). It was once unusual for storms to keep strengthening until landfall, but there are roughly 25 percent more rapidly intensifying storms in the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific now than 40 years ago. Noru, which recently hit the Philippines, was one of the most rapid storm intensifications that scientists have ever seen before: the storm’s winds accelerated from 50 miles per hour to 155 miles per hour within a day.

In addition to increasing intensity, research shows that hurricanes are now moving more slowly. This might sound like a good thing, but is far from positive; when hurricanes move slowly, they have the opportunity to drop more rain. The mechanism causing this slowdown is still being debated, but the effects are devastating. 

Sea level rise will also increase the severity of hurricanes, making storm surge flooding even worse for coastal communities. Sea level is predicted to rise 1-12 inches in the next 30 years and anywhere from 2-7 feet by the end of the century, depending on our future greenhouse gas emissions. Rising sea levels will push flooding further inland, causing even more destruction.

As we ride out the rest of hurricane season it is important to acknowledge that hurricanes do not affect everyone equally. BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color) and low-income people are at a disproportionate risk of hurricanes. These communities are more likely to live in neighborhoods with poor housing stock that are vulnerable to damage from natural disasters. When Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans communities of color were the most impacted and were more likely to be below sea level. Additionally, though New Orleans called for mandatory evacuation, many low-income residents had no way of leaving the city or lacked the funds to do so; a 2011 study determined that 93% of those stranded in the days following the storm were Black. We continue to see these trends as more hurricanes hit, and it is indicative of an environmental justice problem. Environmental justice seeks to address the disproportionate exposure of historically marginalized communities to environmental harms. We see again and again how disadvantaged communities are the most impacted by climate change, and hurricanes are often a prime example.

It is essential that we curb our carbon emissions now to prevent worse disasters down the line. Cutting emissions would minimize sea level rise, helping to prevent higher flood levels. This would also help preserve coastal wetlands such as the Everglades, which are biologically diverse and fragile ecosystems. Lastly, cutting our carbon pollution would be a way to address environmental justice concerns so that the most historically marginalized and vulnerable people don’t continue to bear the brunt of the climate crisis.

What can you do?

• Donate to the American Red Cross.
• To help victims of hurricane Ian, donate to Feeding Florida, Florida Disaster Fund, and many more.
• To help those impacted by Hurricane Fiona, donate to orgs such as Brigada Solidaria del Oeste or Global Giving’s Hurricane Fiona Relief Fund. 
• Take steps to reduce your carbon emissions.

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How longstanding is the tradition of hunting and fishing in the North Country? More than 11,000 years ago the ancestors of today’s Abenaki arrived in the place they would come to call Ndakinna, “Our Land,” following the post-glacial return of migrating caribou along the winding valley of Kwenitekw, Long River (the Connecticut). 

Over time, a cyclical way of life evolved that relied on gathering wild foods, gardening and hunting—all of which meant traveling to different locations in different seasons. Summers were spent living near large community gardens, and winters in the best hunting grounds. When garden soil became depleted, or when game was scarce in a family’s hunting territory, horticultural activities and hunting were relocated to new grounds. Over time, as resources recovered, activity would once again shift back to the replenished areas. This combination of seasonal cycles punctuated by periodic relocation to allow the land and resources to recover, was key to the sustainable land use practices of New England’s native peoples. It was a seasonal form of local sovereignty within a regional homeland.

Historically, Abenaki families had specific hunting territories that were passed down to the next generation through the lineage of women. Families held the right to hunt, harvest berries, gather birchbark, grow food and undertake the full range of subsistence activities. Even though these territories were defined and vigorously defended, whenever hunting rights were exchanged between families it was only the permission to use the land that was given. 

Later, when Native Americans traded with Europeans, they exchanged land use rights for a period of time, or so they thought. The Western concept of owning and trading the land itself was alien to indigenous peoples and conflicted with their world views. The seasonal movement of native peoples, however, was shrewdly used by early colonists to exploit these diverging views of land use and ownership as a pretext for laying claim to vast tracts of land. Fallow fields, forests and other environments that were not surmised to be actively used by local indigenous populations at that particular moment in time were declared vacant or abandoned, and thus free for the taking. 

Some words are fulsome and satisfying as they roll off the tongue, pregnant with meaning when plumbed for depth and historical weight. So it is with usufruct (YOU-suh-fruct), whose roots sprout from the Latin usus et fructus or “use and enjoyment.” It speaks of the right to employ someone else’s property for one’s own benefit, and for a time, without altering the nature of that property.  

After decades of fighting for their indigenous rights to hunt and fish in Ndakinna, the Abenaki peoples of Vermont finally succeeded when, in July of 2020, the State legally recognized some of their usufruct rights. In 2021, members of the Abenaki communities who have been recognized by the State of Vermont became eligible to receive free permanent licenses for hunting and fishing.

The legal issues behind the conflict between usufruct rights and the Western concept of land ownership underlie two divergent views of resource use that collided when the first Europeans arrived in the Americas more than 500 years ago. Over time, the English view of land as commodity prevailed, supplanting the traditional Native American perspective that land was shared by families and communities, and that the use of natural resources was connected to long-term stewardship. And since survival depends on the sustainable use of the soil, as well as maintaining healthy populations of plants and animals, usufructuary encourages wise stewardship.

Rural residents in the North Country are still trying to balance the land ownership of individuals and families with the value of managing resources for the benefit of communities composed of diverse peoples and forms of life. In the months ahead, this tension will play out in the midst of seasonal changes, as it has for thousands of years.

The many opinions one encounters about white-tailed deer personify the wide array of perspectives about wildlife and the land. Photo by Laura College on Unsplash.

What you can do: Engage in thoughtful conversations with people who have a variety of viewpoints on usufruct land rights and our relationships to wildlife. Read some of the classic works that broach this and related subjects, such as A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold, and Of Men and Marshes by Paul L. Errington.

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This fall Sustainable Woodstock is once again participating in Efficiency Vermont’s Button Up campaign. This yearly campaign hosts educational events and offers free virtual home energy visits, where an Efficiency Vermont energy expert can do a walkthrough of your home online. Together, you will check over your house and identify the best opportunities for saving energy. There are also virtual and in-person events where you can get your questions answered. Visit https://buttonupvermont.org to see events and sign up for a virtual energy visit.

Have you been meaning to start the weatherization process in your home, but keep getting cold feet? Here are three common weatherization myths, and tips and tricks to consider instead:

Doing a comprehensive weatherization project costs too much

This is a tricky one, since it depends so much on individual circumstances. However, there are programs and rebates out there to help with weatherization. The Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) is a national program run by Community Action Partnerships (CAPs) across the country. In Windham and Windsor counties, SEVCA is the agency administering this program.  Visiting SEVCA’s website or calling will provide the information you need to determine eligibility (www.sevca.org or call 802•722•4575). If you qualify, SEVCA will come in and do a full energy audit of your home, and will insulate important areas like the basement and attic. They can also help replace inefficient appliances. The nonprofit COVER Home Repair also weatherizes homes of income-qualifying residents who are within 45 minutes of White River Junction.

If you do not qualify for free weatherization, there are other great options and incentives. Income-based Home Energy Loans offer as low as 0% interest and up to 100% financing for home weatherization and heating improvements, and can include: cold-climate heat pumps, air sealing and insulation, solar hot water heaters, heat pump water heaters, central pellet boilers and furnaces, and advanced cord wood and pellet stoves. Visit efficiencyvermont.com for more details. Home Performance with ENERGY STAR, another program available to Vermonters, allows you to work with an Efficiency Excellence Network contractor to improve your home’s insulation and air sealing and get 75% off project costs up to $2,000 or $5,000, depending on your income. These “money back” programs that offer rebates are common when purchasing a new efficient appliance as well. Visit efficiencyvermont.com for details.

Weatherizing requires working with a contractor

Of course, some things are better left to the experts. That said, you don’t need too much experience to make simple home weatherization improvements. Efficiency Vermont offers $100 cash back on DIY projects, including weatherstripping, insulation, and air-sealing. Eligible projects include weatherizing exterior doors and windows, insulating hot water pipes, and spot air sealing your attic and basement. Visit efficiencyvermont.com to learn more about eligible projects.

Weatherization is all about windows and doors

When I talk to people about weatherizing their homes the first thing they often jump to is the quality of their windows. There are many reasons to invest in new windows, including better visibility, aesthetics, and noise reduction from the outdoors. New windows also improve your home’s energy efficiency, but typically not enough to actually save you money. This is because of the high upfront cost. 

It may be time to replace your windows if they are single paned, have extensive deterioration, are missing parts, or have rotted frames. Otherwise, start with easy window repairs like weatherstripping, filling cavities, replacing cracked panes, and adding caulking around window casings. Consider adding storm windows; there are exterior and interior options. Rather than blowing your weatherization budget on all new windows, these smaller fixes are much more cost effective. They will allow you to focus your energy and money on insulating your basement/crawlspace and attic, which are the areas of your home where weatherization will save you the most energy.

Window Dresser interior inserts are a cost-effective way to realize energy savings and increased comfort at home. Photos courtesy of Window Dressers.

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This community build is run in partnership with Window Dressers (WD). WD brings volunteers together to build insulating window inserts for a participating town’s residents. The inserts function like custom interior storm windows, insulating a home to improve the warmth and comfort of interior spaces, lower heating costs, and reduce carbon dioxide pollution. More info is at: https://windowdressers.org/.

All recipients of our Window Dressers build are income-qualifying and are receiving up to 10 inserts for free. We were able to identify and offer support to recipients in partnership with the Woodstock Area Relief Fund, which provided home heating grants to households last winter. We also found interested families by advertising at the Woodstock Area Food Shelf and posting on local listservs. The inserts are free of charge to all due to generous funding from Mascoma Bank and the Canaday Family Charitable Trust. 

We will construct ~225 inserts for 26 families during our week-long build, which will have multiple shifts during the weekday and on the weekend for people to volunteer—no experience necessary. While you do not need to have any building experience to be successful at a community build, you can still contribute if building isn’t in your comfort zone. We will also need folks to bring snacks and other food and drink for every day of the build, including bigger dishes around lunchtime. This program is a great experience for anyone wanting to help those in our community reduce energy load, save money, and create a warmer living space during the cold months of the year.

Window Dressers is also an important way of addressing energy burden for low-income Vermonters. Energy burden is the share of a household’s income spent on heat, electricity and transportation. According to Energy Action Vermont, some Vermonters spend over a quarter of their income on energy costs. Even worse, most of those expenses are for fossil fuels, which have volatile prices like those that we are seeing now for heating oil, propane, and at the gas pump. A tighter, well-insulated home is one step towards reducing a home’s energy burden, and to making it a more comfortable space.

Volunteering is also a great way to help the planet by combatting climate change. The thermal sector accounts for about 34% of Vermont’s Greenhouse Gas emissions, making it the state’s second largest source of climate pollution, behind transportation. To reach the state’s Global Warming Solutions Act (GWSA) emissions reduction requirements, we will need to weatherize around 120,000 more homes by 2030. These inserts will help us reach that goal. Each insulating window insert is made of a custom-made pine frame wrapped in two layers of tightly-sealed, clear polyolefin film and finished with a compressible foam gasket. The foam allows enough give for the inserts to be easily slid into place in the fall and removed in the spring, while holding firmly enough to provide a tight, friction-based seal that stops drafts and adds two more insulating air spaces. This is very helpful in Vermont’s homes, many of which were built in the 1900’s and have old, leaky windows. 

Join us anytime October 27^th through November 2^nd to volunteer at Woodstock’s Window Dressers Build, and build community at the same time! 

Left: a volunteer holds an insert. Right: a Window Dressers insert being installed. (Photos courtesy of Window Dressers)

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Climate change is causing rising temperatures. The 10 warmest years on record have all occurred since 2005, and 7 of the 10 have occurred just since 2014. Temperature change is not happening evenly across the globe–the northeast region of the country is the fastest-warming area of the contiguous United States and is warming at a rate 50% greater than the global average. Vermonters are already feeling changes on the ground, and these changes are affecting our health. 

The heat index is a measure of how hot it really feels when relative humidity is factored into the actual air temperature. For example, if the air temperature is 90°F and the relative humidity is 65%, the heat index – how hot it feels – is 103°F. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) heat index shows the likelihood of heat disorders with prolonged exposure and/or strenuous activity. Exposure to high temperatures, especially when combined with high humidity, limits the body’s ability to thermoregulate, or keep its internal temperature within healthy boundaries. When our bodies fail to thermoregulate, this causes heat-related illness including heat cramps, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke. Exposure to extreme heat can also amplify existing conditions.

Some populations are at greater risk of death from exposure to extreme heat, including the sick, elderly, disabled, homeless and displaced, children, and outdoor/manual laborers. Low-income people are also more at risk because they are often concentrated in urban heat islands, which occur when cities replace natural vegetation with concrete, pavement, buildings, and other surfaces that absorb heat. Low-income people are also less likely to be able to afford to an air conditioner or heat pump. In the US, it is well-documented that environmental burdens are overwhelmingly placed on low-income communities and communities of color. This means that risk of heat-related illness is a good example of an environmental justice issue, where low-income people and/or people of color are disproportionately at risk of climate-related ills.

Warmer weather does not only cause heat-related illness, but also increases the risk of a host of other health risks to humans. Ticks love warm weather, and climate change is making Vermont winters shorter and warmer. Ticks are not active when the temperature falls below freezing so, as winters warm, tick activity increases and the season when they are active lengthens. This means more opportunities for humans and other animals to come into contact with them. This warmer weather also means that mosquitos are active earlier in the spring and later into the fall. Warmer weather also causes waterbodies like lakes and ponds to become warmer and more stratified, meaning the shallower layers are much warmer and do not mix with cooler layers below. This causes cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) blooms, which release toxins harmful to humans and animals. 

When we think about climate change we often think about the possible future effects, which can make it easy to miss the effects of climate change that are already here in plain sight. Increased temperatures are one of those effects that we are all dealing with, and that will be more and more important in the coming decades. Temperature change is a dangerous reminder that we must act now on climate, or suffer the consequences.

The Heat Index shows how the ambient air temperature feels hotter with higher humidity.  (Credit: National Weather Service/National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)

What you can do:

• Take measures to keep your home cool in summer, including weatherizing your home by adding insulation and making your home more energy efficient. This will help keep your home cool in the summer, since there will be more of a barrier to the heat.
• Invest in shades for your windows, particularly for southern-facing windows. Blackout thermal shades are best, and can be used in the winter to keep heat in, but less-expensive alternatives will also help.
• Consider switching your ac unit out for a heat pump. Heat pumps use electricity to cool and dehumidify in the summer and to heat the house in the winter. Heat pumps are much more efficient than air conditioners.

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Mobile homes are an especially affordable housing option; however they are particularly susceptible to heat loss in the winter. As such, these households face a disproportionately large energy burden—the percentage of gross household income spent on energy costs. According to the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, mobile homes consume 1.5 to 2 times more energy than a site-built home as a result of the home’s structural issues. However, because they still consume less than large institutions, they are frequently overlooked by initiatives that prioritize energy-usage numbers. The team believes that real sustainability must address these shortcomings at the community level.

One solution to this problem is weatherization—the weather-proofing of buildings, typically through insulation and air-sealing, to protect the interior from harsh weather conditions and improve energy efficiency. This process reduces energy consumption, lowers energy bills, and improves home comfort. Despite the existence of weatherization programs, they are frequently underutilized by low-income households. The team sought to understand and address this gap.

As the team approached this project, they were mindful of their positionality as newcomers to this topic and the influence of this perspective in shaping their research. Their initial research consisted of two parts: secondary research of academic literature and existing reports, and primary research through 15 ethnographically-informed, semi-structured interviews with non-profit organizations and mobile homeowners. This allowed the team to better understand the current state of weatherization in Vermont, the roles and services of weatherization organizations, and the experiences of mobile homeowners. Synthesis of this research revealed that there is a lot of embarrassment and anxiety in asking for help. However, residents felt supported and empowered by community weatherization services such as those provided by COVER. Furthermore, word of mouth was the most successful strategy in spreading the word about weatherization services. 

The team presented this research to the Just Transitions subcommittee of the Vermont Climate Council. This council is a state organization focused on creating a plan to combat climate change for the next 50 years; the Just Transitions subcommittee works to ensure that their programs are made accessible to all Vermonters and do not unfairly burden any groups. In these conversations, the team sought to highlight the importance of community-centered weatherization, advocating for weatherization funds to be dedicated to these services.

In addition, the team created a pilot program guide for a model of community liaisons. In this model, neighborhood representatives partner with organizations to connect underserved communities with resources they might not otherwise have access to. This liaison is able to better communicate the needs of the community and, in response, co-design outreach strategies and programming. Sustainable Woodstock is engaged in a long-term process of building community relationships in tandem with weatherization outreach and increasing  opportunities for  sustainable  energy  services.  These efforts align closely with the collaborative nature of a recently-completed campaign—Riverside Mobile Home Park’s raised garden beds, which was made possible with the active organizing and input of several park residents. Sustainable Woodstock will continue to explore the potential to expand this model of outreach in the coming months.

This design project brought unique and new insights to each member of the student team. They learned the importance of aligning with the work being done by organizers who have more expertise in this space. Moreover, they navigated how to create positive impact and minimize harm in the context of a course timeline. Lastly, they came away with the understanding that socio-economic issues are all intrinsically linked, with no singular need, like weatherization, existing in isolation.

The Dartmouth team consists of Lidia Balanovich, Elorm Coch, Cindy Yuan, and Catherine Cooney.  They would like to thank Sustainable Woodstock, specifically Jenevra Wetmore and Michael Caduto, for their continued support and commitment to this project and, more broadly, this work in energy justice.

The Senior Design Challenge Team (left to right): Catherine Cooney, Elorm Coch, Jenevra Wetmore (Sustainable Woodstock), Lidia Balanovich, Cindy Yuan

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There are numerous reasons attributed to the rising numbers of people moving to Vermont, one of them being climate migration. There is no established legal definition of climate migrants, but generally speaking they are people who leave their homes due to climate stressors such as wildfires, drought, floods, sea level rise, or other climate impacts that make staying put dangerous or impossible. Given the current housing market, those moving to Vermont for climate-related reasons are largely people with the financial means to do so. 

 We are lucky to live in a place expected to be relatively stable in the face of climate change. The EPA has ranked Vermont fourth in a nationwide assessment of resilience to extreme weather events brought on by climate change. A 2020 county-by-county analysis of the United States by ProPublica ranked six of the top seven counties for climate resiliency in Vermont. Interestingly, Windsor County fell further down the list due to risk of extreme heat and humidity. These scores were based on impacts of: heat, heat and humidity, crop yields, sea level rise, wildfires, and economic damage. Overall, Vermont far outperformed other states like Arizona, where some counties will experience temperatures above 95 degrees for half the year. By 2050, parts of the Midwest and Louisiana could see conditions that make it difficult for the human body to cool itself for nearly one out of every 20 days in the year. These are serious, life-threatening changes. 

Is Vermont truly an oasis free from the effects of climate change? It is true that we are relatively safe from the effects of widespread drought, wildfires, and sea rise, but we are by no means immune to climate change. Increased warming and precipitation are expected, and we are already seeing these changes–the state’s average annual temperature has warmed by nearly 2°F, and precipitation has increased by a whopping 21%, since 1900. This comes with an increased risk of floods and droughts. Anyone that was here in 2011 for Tropical Storm Irene knows exactly what that will look like on the ground, and how quickly flooding can destroy homes and infrastructure. 

On a larger scale, Vermont as we know it will cease to exist as our climate changes. The following are a summary of some of the expected changes due to the warming climate:

• increased tick populations and rates of Lyme disease
• a shortened ski season by two weeks to one month
• loss of roughly 70 bird species including the loon and hermit thrush (Vermont’s State Bird)
• increased algal blooms in our lakes, preventing safe recreation and damaging aquatic life
• less favorable conditions for our iconic sugar maple trees, damaging the maple sugar industry
• warmer, humid summers creating conditions that can limit the body’s ability to thermoregulate properly, putting human health at risk.

This list is not meant to induce panic, but to show that there is no place that is immune to climate change. That said, Vermont will remain relatively safe compared to other states. We should expect a growing influx of climate migrants and refugees, and we should be thankful to be here ourselves.

 Vermont’s average annual temperature has increased by nearly 2°F since the early 1900s when Wilson “Snowflake” Bentley photographed his iconic images of snow crystals in Jericho, Vermont. Photo credit: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

What can you do?

As the state moves forward with implementing a Climate Action Plan (https://climatechange.vermont.gov/), consider ways that you can reduce your emissions and prepare for warmer, wetter weather:

• Install a heat pump to keep you warm in winter and cool in the summer. Heat pumps actively remove humidity from the air in your home, which will become more important in the coming years. Find ways to eliminate fossil fuels in your home.
• Weatherize your home by adding insulation to your walls, basement, and attic. Free weatherization through SEVCA is available to income-qualifying families. Add storm windows to your home, or get Window Dressers interior storm windows (contact programs@sustainablewoodstock.org)
• Join your local energy committee to encourage your town to get off fossil fuels.
• Buy an electric car or electric bike. Visit https://www.driveelectricvt.com to learn about incentives. 
• Take public transportation or walk when you are able. The largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in Vermont is transportation, which makes up 40% of our total emissions. 

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Over 4,000 people have attended monthly films in the Upper Valley Climate Change and Sustainability Film Series, which is offered by Sustainable Woodstock in partnership with Pentangle Arts. Screening on May 24-25, 2022: Motherload—a crowdsourced documentary in which the cargo bicycle becomes a vehicle for exploring motherhood in this digital age of climate change. (Motherload is also cohosted with the Upper Valley Sierra Club.)

In this column we normally share information about important environmental, social and economic issues affecting Woodstock, neighboring communities, the Upper Valley region and beyond, including suggestions for what we can all do to help. Yet one of the most common questions we hear is: “What does Sustainable Woodstock do?” So here are some highlights and recent news. 

As of May 1st 2022, Sustainable Woodstock (SW) has our first full-time employee! Jenevra Wetmore has been our Program Coordinator for nearly two years, and recently accepted the position of full-time Program Director. This new role will allow the organization to focus more time and energy on the initiatives we are committed to, including an expansion of our income-sensitive outreach on weatherization and other energy-efficiency projects, as well as other regular programs such as our Upper Valley Green Drinks series and Climate Change and Sustainability Film Series (with Pentangle Arts). 

Energy policy action and advocacy to mitigate climate change: For several years, Sustainable Woodstock has been working toward progress with energy policy and actions in Woodstock, These initiatives include planning and advocacy for hiring a Regional Energy Coordinator (passed at Town Meeting in 2020), as well as adopting the Climate Emergency Action & Resolution (in partnership with Change the World Kids), which was passed by the Select Board and Village Trustees in December 2019. In the ensuing 2 years, we have worked closely with the Intermunicipal Regional Energy Coordinator (IREC) at Two Rivers-Ottauquechee Regional Commission (Geoff Martin), as well as town officials, in order to move several major energy projects along to mitigate carbon emissions, including the net-zero-ready design of the new EMS building.

A more recent IREC initiative (with SW’s input, support and advocacy) was a major proposal for energy-saving projects that will reduce Woodstock’s carbon emissions by 12.5%. This proposal was passed by voters on 1 March 2022. (Thank you to everyone who supported this effort!) The primary focus of the proposal is installing heat pumps in municipal buildings to substantially offset, and in some cases eliminate, the use of propane for heating. These heat pumps will reduce the town’s propane use by up to 10,000 gallons per year. (This will save Woodstock $20,000/year, even when factoring in the use of electricity by the new heat pumps.) The proposal also includes adding direct digital controls for managing the HVAC systems throughout Woodstock buildings. The controls will allow the buildings to be managed through a centralized, online platform, and will ensure that the buildings’ systems are running optimally. Finally, the project includes LED lighting upgrades wherever needed, and some minor weatherization and weather stripping.

Forest Carbon Management: Sustainable Woodstock’s Forest Carbon Action Group recently completed a 2-year effort to create a 24×36-inch full-color educational forest carbon management poster for landowners. The poster will assist and inform landowners on how to manage their forests so as to mitigate climate change by storing and sequestering more carbon. Posters are currently on display throughout the Upper Valley, Vermont and New England. You can access an online version of the poster on our website.

Weatherization and energy-saving projects for low-income households: 

1. One of Sustainable Woodstock’s biggest initiatives over the next two years is a project called: EQUAL ENERGY OPPORTUNITIES FOR ALL: Nurturing Resilient Households for Future Generations Through Income-Sensitive Energy Savings & Efficiencies. As part of this effort, SW is working with the Woodstock Area Relief Fund and other regional community partners to provide small grants for low-income weatherization and energy-efficiency improvement projects. To date, fifty households have signed up to receive this assistance. Sustainable Woodstock is conducting outreach to these households to register them for free weatherization, if income qualifying, and to address their home energy concerns. The following community organizations have also donated and partnered by enrolling low-income households in their own communities: King’s Daughters, Plymouth Memory Tree, Barnard Helping Hands, Faulkner Fund, Aging in Place and Senior Solutions (southeastern Vermont).
2. SW has been working for two years now on a weatherization program conducting outreach to mobile homeowners in partnership with Vital Communities. This year, all mobile home residents in Hartland and Woodstock received an energy survey, along with materials on free weatherization and energy assistance services.
3. This fall, Sustainable Woodstock will be collaborating with WindowDressers (WD), a nonprofit organization, to make custom-built, interior storm window inserts for income-qualifying Woodstock area residents. The inserts are easy to install, removable and reusable. They let light in, keep drafts out and reduce heating costs. We will build 200 inserts at no cost for local residents.

Watershed United Block Grant: Sustainable Woodstock applied for and received a Design and Implementation Block Grant through Watersheds United Vermont (WUV), in conjunction with the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources. This grant will address an eroding bank on Barnard Brook where it flows alongside SW’s Billings Farm Community Garden. The subsiding riverbank is undermining a corner of the garden, which will need to be moved somewhat to the west once the bank stabilization work gets underway during the off-season. Work will begin this summer to create an initial design and alternatives assessment for the project. 

Community Gardens & Food Security: SW has greatly increased our focus on addressing the critical need for sustenance as the root of sustainability for individuals, families and communities by coordinating such activities in our gardens at Billings Farm and King Farm (VT Land Trust). We have increased staff time to accommodate a 30% rise in community gardeners in recent years, and to grow food for the Woodstock Community Food Shelf and Upper Valley Haven (in partnership with Zack’s Place and Woodstock Terrace). We collaborate with and support the efforts of other organizations addressing critical needs for food and nutrition, including the Woodstock Community Food Shelf, Reading-West Windsor Food Shelf, Hartland Food Shelf and Upper Valley Haven. SW’s GROW YOUR OWN GARDEN project has enabled and empowered some 600 people of all ages to establish new gardens and grow their own nutritious vegetables. 

Our sincere gratitude to all of our dedicated volunteers and generous supporters for making it all possible!

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