This month, Tangletown Equity Committee member Ellen Block brings you some good news to start off your new year!
“First, I recommend Bill McKibben’s new book Here Comes the Sun: A Last Chance for the Climate and a Fresh Chance for Civilization. In this book, McKibben, the environmentalist and journalist who founded 350.org (a climate activism movement), talks about the hope and promise of solar energy. One of things I like about McKibben’s work is that he looks at how solar energy appeals across political divides, and examines the geopolitical and economic context that has enabled solar to be more widely accessible for people both in the US and abroad.
There are a few ways you can learn about McKibben’s work. Obviously, you can read McKibben’s book. If you prefer another way to engage with his work, he had an article out recently in the New Yorker called “4.6 billion years on, the sun is having its moment” (from July 9, 2025, which you can see here if you subscribe to the New Yorker). Or, you can listen to him talk about this work on the November 20th episode of the “Climate Positive” podcast (you can find it wherever you listen to your podcasts).
Bonus: One more piece of good reporting to share this month from our own neighbor (and my spouse) Will McGrath on Somali youths’ efforts to build gardens in the Cedar Riverside neighborhood in Minneapolis.”