The Foreign Service Journal, October 2021

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | OCTOBER 2021 33 contemplating how national and state funds could benefit local mitigation and adaptation efforts. In the last decade, western Wisconsin experienced two 100- year floods, and 2010-2019 was the wettest decade in the state’s history. With support from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Monroe County is offering a voluntary buy-out option for land- owners located in increasingly vulnerable flood plains. The com- munity is doing the best it can to reduce its environmental foot- print while providing for the immediate needs of its people. At a recent meeting, 40 community members discussed the construc- tion status of a new nursing home to house the county’s elderly, many of whom are also among the most vulnerable to climate change effects. While the county aspired to enhancing energy efficient infrastructure, building to meet Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification standards would require time and financial resources that are in short supply. Monroe County is a leader in renewable energy, and it is common to see horse-drawn Amish buggies, Subarus and John Deere corn combines driving past massive wind turbines that surround the ridgetop headquarters of the Organic Valley Cooperative. Aspen Institute’s Nils Christoffersen has noted the similarities among racially diverse, marginalized communities facing climate change: “Biden’s Racial Equity Executive Order acknowledges people living in rural areas as being part of an ‘underserved’ geographic community requiring special consid- eration. … It’s time to reconsider dated stereotypes regarding which communities are leading the environmental movement and start imagining what could be accomplished if our policy- makers tap into the ingenuity of rural Americans surviving on the front lines of climate catastrophe.” Monroe County is just one of many rural American communi- ties grappling with shrinking tax bases as they deal with complex water, energy and internet infrastructure issues and needs that often inordinately affect communities of color and low-income communities of all races. The area where my parents live does not have affordable access to broadband. Some major cellular car- riers do not offer coverage in the outskirts of Sparta, the Monroe County seat. Educational opportunities and health care access have not kept pace with more prosperous cities. Current efforts to extend connectivity to rural areas help community leaders and citizens alike, which in turn enhance their ability to make climate- smart decisions at the local level. At the Wisconsin Climate Change Task Force chaired by Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes, leaders of agriculture, indigenous groups, urban environmental activists, businesspeo- ple and scientists met in what 20th-century American political scientist John Dewey would have characterized as “deliberative, discursive and participatory democracy.” In December 2020, after 10 months of consultations and deliberations, the task force released its report, including policy recommendations across nine sectors for state and local community decision-makers. Wisconsin business representatives on the task force supported Wisconsin’s commitment to achieve 100 percent carbon-free energy generation by 2050. One third-generation farmer on the task force said that this forum connected himwith urban Milwaukee communities affected by tree loss, park shortages and water quality issues. Former U.S. Lead Negotiator Kim Carnahan (in pink) and the author brief House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her 14-member congressional delegation at COP 25 in Madrid. COURTESYOFHOLLYKIRKINGLOOMIS