The Safety Illusion: That SUV Won’t Protect You from Climate Change
“Worried about climate change? No need to get political, or overly concerned. Just climb into the protective bubble of a Land Rover and isolate yourself from the world. You'll be safe, even as the winds of a changing climate swirl around you and buffet your fellow citizens.
That's the basic message of the latest Land Rover ad. In case you missed it, here's the gist: Severe weather is coming and everyone's getting worried. TV meteorologists issue warnings, worried parents grab supplies off the shelves. Amidst all this anxiety, one woman goes about her day, unconcerned by the rough winds and coming downpour. Why? She's got a Land Rover.”
That’s the opening of our latest blog in Huffington Post, co-authored by Larry Cohen and Dr. Richard Jackson, and we thought we’d share it with our friends and supporters today in honor of Earth Day. Our hope is that it will spur us all in thinking a bit more about the connections between the vehicles we drive, the transportation system we want to create and the environment we’d like to live in.
We know that people all across the country have a growing desire to walk and ride bicycles safely in their own communities, and that making that happen in a robust way can help us all stay personally healthier – while reducing the carbon emissions that threaten the future of our planet. We’re also pleased that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is now seeking comments from the public about steps that advocates, businesses and governments at all levels can take to promote walking and help make communities more walkable.
At Prevention Institute, we believe that making our communities places where it’s easy, safe and comfortable to walk also creates the opportunity to prevent chronic disease and reduce our reliance on cars. We’ll be submitting our own comments and when we do, we’ll make the point that if we want to make our communities truly walkable, we must prioritize the walking needs of low-income people and communities of color, address safety issues that present a barrier to walking and ensure that the development of plans and strategies to implement them includes the participation of advocates and organizations from many sectors.
You can submit comments here by April 30.