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CITY OF SOUTH BEND OFFICE OF THE CLERK
<br /> McKinley Lewis, 3105 Salem Drive, stated, Dear City Council, one (1) solution is to plant more
<br /> trees which help us breath. They also give us shade which cools down the city. Planting trees also
<br /> saves the City money by preventing flooding. Thank you.
<br /> Michael Dunam, 52473 Swanson Drive, I am sixteen (16) years old and I am a junior at John
<br /> Adams High School. I've been a member of Cub Scouts, Webelows and Boy Scouts for around a
<br /> total of seven(7) years. I am currently the senior patrol leader of Troop 173 which is out of Grace
<br /> United Methodist Church, and as of a month ago,an Eagle Scout.There is a pledge in scouts called
<br /> the Outdoor Cub, and it goes,As an American, I will do my best to be clean in my outdoor manor,
<br /> be careful with fire, be considerate in the outdoors, and be conservation minded. Furthermore, in
<br /> order to achieve the rank of Eagle Scout,scouts must either earn the sustainability or environmental
<br /> science merit badge. Considering that this is an organization with over 2 million members, this
<br /> clearly demonstrates the need to educate youth on the importance of sustainability on a national
<br /> level. However, on a more local level,many troops in the area have spent countless hours cleaning
<br /> up trails, volunteering for parks, and picking up trash from around the rivers. In my personal
<br /> opinion, it is the job of scouts to ensure that we leave things better than they were before. When
<br /> we leave a campsite, or trail, we always make sure it is the same, if not better than when we first
<br /> (1St) found it. This is the idea of leave no trace. I personally think that the scout website actually
<br /> puts it best.The leave no trace principles might seem unimportant until you consider the combined
<br /> effects of millions of others. In the same way,we should all do our part to leave the earth as pristine
<br /> as we can for all of those who will come after us. Thank you.
<br /> Emily Smith,2320 Ribourde Drive, stated, I am here representing St. Joseph High School and our
<br /> environmental club,the Social and Ecological Concerns Organization(SECO). St. Joe and SECO,
<br /> in general,would just like to thank you for taking on the challenge that is legislating around climate
<br /> change. Within our club at St. Joe, we try to educate our student body and the rest of our
<br /> community on topics like fair trade and man-made climate change, and we do this through events
<br /> and videos that make them accessible and relatable to high schoolers. As high school and middle
<br /> school young adults gain more knowledge about climate change, the more it becomes apparent
<br /> that we have to stand up and fight alongside generations above us for acknowledgement of our
<br /> changing climate. Also, we have to recognize that it is the older generations that we have to work
<br /> with,not just fight against. We have to put our faith in these older generations to vote on the issues
<br /> that are affecting us right now and will continue to affect us as we grow up. We can't vote yet,we
<br /> can only trust in you guys. So, St. Joseph and SECO would just like to thank you for the ability to
<br /> be here to speak, for you to donate your time to listen to us. Thank you.
<br /> Theri Niemier, 3575 West Bertrand Road, Niles, MI, stated, I am the director of Bertrand Farm at
<br /> Good Shepard Montessori School,a working and educational urban farm here in Downtown South
<br /> Bend on the corner of Jefferson and Eddy. I've been a local farmer and educator for over twenty
<br /> (20) years, working to empower farmers and eaters to be the movement that builds localized food
<br /> economies, systems resilience. Agriculture is currently the number one (1) producer of all
<br /> greenhouse gas emissions. As much as thirty-three percent (33%) with transportation making up
<br /> half(1/2) of that. Of course greenhouse gases are linked to global warming and climate change.
<br /> I'm not sure that it's enough to focus on decreasing our emissions, but we must also put great
<br /> energy into syncing more of those. Agriculture is a big and necessary part of that discussion about
<br /> environmental restoration. Understanding the relationship between agriculture practices and
<br /> environmental health are at the heart of this conversation, and require an understanding of how
<br /> nature lifecycles work. This information will be as, if not more, important to the coming
<br /> EXCELLENCE ACCOUNTABILITY INNOVATION INCLUSION EMPOWERMENT
<br /> 455 County-City Building 227 W.Jefferson Bvld South Bend,Indiana 46601 p 574.235.9221 f 574.235.9173 I i D574.235.5567 www.southbendin.gov
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