Are you fired up and ready to vote? I know I am. In fact, I’m so fired up, I’m going to vote early. Down below, you’ll find a link so you know when you can vote early, too.

Why do I care? Because here’s what’s at stake:

The air we breathe.

The way we use energy.

Our health, and the health of our kids and grandkids.

The water we drink.

Nature in all its beauty.

All of my concerns are connected to just one thing: where we get our energy.

Right now, most of our energy comes from burning fossil fuels: coal, oil, natural gas.

Air pollution from fossil fuels creates the pollution that causes smog and Code Red bad air days. If you have asthma, it’s worse because of dirty air. Women get more heart attacks than men when they live in cities where the air is polluted. None of us should be outside when it’s Code Red.

Burning fossil fuels is also causing climate change. By now, you know what that means. Worse poison ivy. More mosquitoes and dengue fever. Floods. Fire. Drought. Hurricanes like Katrina and Matthew and Sandy – terrible superstorms that have caused billions of dollars of damage, killed hundreds of people, and ruined our homes and, in some cases, our livelihoods.

Drilling for oil, fracking for natural gas and mining for coal cause some of the worst environmental disasters we’ve ever seen, from oil spills to contaminated rivers to polluted ground water.

Says Clean Air Moms Action, “We must fight to protect the air we breathe and the many treasured places across our country vulnerable to climate disruption.”

Adds North Carolina Mom Caroline Armijo, “I’ve been meeting with moms…we’ve been praying for solutions…And one thing we know we can do right now is vote.”

What Difference Does It Make If We Vote?

The next President of the United States, our elected officials in Congress, our governors, and  our state legislators all hold the power to decide whether our nation continues to burn fossil fuels – or whether we finally make a full and complete transition to the abundant clean energy that is all around us: energy from the wind and the sun. Our elected officials can decide whether to help us save energy, too.

Don’t Miss: Top Ten Reasons to Take Climate Change Seriously

Why Vote Early?

Early voting gives you the peace of mind that you’ve made your voice heard and your concerns count.

Plus, by voting early, you can volunteer to help get the vote out. Clean Air Moms is asking “passionate volunteers to help get their communities out to vote.” You can make a difference by helping register people to vote, educating your community on the issues, and showing up at candidate events.”

As Clean Air Moms Action points out, “There is more on the line during the 2016 election than the office of the President. There are also many “down ballot” races that will have an impact on your daily life and the quality of the air our children breathe.”

Where Can You Vote Early? Find Out Here!

Take the Pledge

I’m joining with Clean Air Moms Action to pledge to vote by or on November 8.

Won’t you join us?

NOTE: This post was produced with support from Clean Air Moms Action. All editorial opinions are my own.

The post Vote Early – and Vote for Clean Air appeared first on Big Green Purse.

At a conference I recently attended on rebuilding sustainably after natural disasters strike, the audience of educators, first responders, disaster experts, scientists, elected officials, public interest advocates and business leaders all agreed: most people do not have enough natural disaster insurance to protect themselves if a hurricane, storm, flood or fire hits. As the sponsor of this post, the Australian insurer HBF also points out that most travelers don’t carry adequate insurance in the event their holiday or business trip is disrupted by a natural disaster, either.

HOW MUCH NATURAL DISASTER INSURANCE DO YOU NEED?

Homeowners, renters and businesses should all have standard policies that protect loss and damage under relatively conventional conditions – a random fire, the unexpected tree falling on the roof.  But for catastrophic coverage? The answer to this question depends, to a great degree, on where you live and what your current policy covers. Areas subject to earthquakes, floods, hurricanes and frequent fires generally won’t find their damage covered by the standard policy.  Even if standard policies do cover structural damage related to a natural disaster, they may not cover total property lost. (When Superstorm Sandy came through my town last year, my standard homeowner’s policy covered damage to my roof and the internal painting and drywalling needed  to repair water damage in my living room. However, when my town experienced an earthquake a few years ago, my policy did not cover the repairs needed to replace cracked drywall.)

It makes sense to speak with your current insurer to be clear on what losses are covered, and which ones aren’t. “Disaster” policies can come with expensive price tags and high deductibles, so before you buy, calculate not only what you can afford but what it would cost to rebuild your home or replace your belongings.  For more suggestions on how to insure your home against natural disasters, visit United Policyholders, a non-profit organization offering useful consumer advice.

WHAT ABOUT TRAVEL INSURANCE?

I personally believe it makes sense to buy travel insurance to cover any trip costing more than $200. The price is usually very affordable, adding negligible cost to the overall ticket, and it comes in handy even if a trip is not disrupted by a disaster but needs to be cancelled or postponed for another reason. (I bought insurance on a family vacation I planned last winter, only to have to cancel the trip when my father passed away. I received the insurance reimbursement on the trip within a week or two of filing my claim.)

It’s also a good idea to buy coverage in case you need to be evacuated. What if the country you’re visiting is unexpectedly overwhelmed by a tsunami or a political revolution? Or you fall down the Matterhorn and break your leg? You may need to make a (relatively) quick exit or cover medical bills your own country insurance does not.

EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS IS KEY

The key is to be prepared. At home or for your business, review your existing policy, discuss your disaster risk with your insurance agent, and consider adding additional coverage if you can afford it and it will help you recover more quickly.

 When you travel,  take into account where you are going, what you’ll be doing when you get there, and what you might need to get medical treatment on the spot, or even leave your destination sooner than anticipated. Ask insurance companies like HBF for travel insurance quotes so you can make the best decision possible to protect yourself, your family, and your property.

NOTE: Our sponsors allow us to bring you useful information like this at no cost to you. Our editorial opinion remains our own. Thank you.

The post With More Natural Disasters, Do You Need More — or Different — Insurance? appeared first on Big Green Purse.

The Gender and Climate Change website argues:  “Climate change is not a neutral process; first of all, women are in general more vulnerable to the effects of climate change, not least because they represent the majority of the world’s poor and because they are more than proportionally dependent on natural resources that are threatened.  The technological changes and instruments that are being proposed to mitigate carbon emissions, which are implicitly presented as gender-neutral, are in fact quite gender biased and may negatively affect women or bypass them.”

The Association for Women’s Rights in Development asks, “Is climate change a gender issue?” and reports on the hardships Inuit women, who live in Canada’s far north, are suffering from the devastating impact climate change is having on their climate and community.

Julia Marton-Lefevre, Director General of IUCN-The World Conservation Union, has also joined the chorus of those who are concerned that climate change is threatening women’s lives. When swift environmental changes and natural disasters come along, she pointed out during the celebration of International Women’s Day, it is the women – who are poor and landless yet responsible for food production and the health and safety of their families and communities – who are the most vulnerable. An IUCN report notes that the physical, social, cultural and economic impacts of global warming jeopardize women far more than men.

An international Climate for Change project is trying to encourage more women to participate in discussions about climate protection.

That’s a step in the right direction. But those of us with marketplace clout can do more. Given that we buy so many products that fuel global warming – from energy-burning cars and light bulbs to home appliances and even food – one immediate action we can take is to shift our spending to the most fuel-efficient products and services available.

There are lots of reasons to try to cool the globe. Helping out our sisters is one of the important ones.

The post Hot Women appeared first on Big Green Purse.