RALEIGH, N.C. -- On Earth Day, faith leaders are reflecting on how they believe climate change and the coronavirus crisis will change humanity.

Susannah Tuttle directs Interfaith Power and Light, a North Carolina Council of Churches program that works with congregations to promote renewable energy and raise awareness about the climate crisis. The group celebrates its 85th anniversary this year.

Racial and economic inequities are amplified as communities face hurricanes, drought and other effects of climate change, Tuttle said, "and, as a moral imperative, we must be making the connections of the COVID-19 pandemic to our shared global climate emergency."

According to EPA data, North Carolina's climate warmed one-half to one degree Fahrenheit over the last century, and the state's coastal waters are rising about one inch every decade, leading to eroding beaches and severe flooding.

Tuttle said she believes the coronavirus offers an opportunity for state lawmakers to improve air and water quality, and curb greenhouse-gas emissions, even as the Trump administration continues to unravel federal environmental regulations.

"If they only put the economy and business first, with the very economic system that has created the problem in the first place of inequality and injustice, in this country and in North Carolina," she said, "then it'll be crystal clear what they value most."

Studies have shown that low-income neighborhoods and communities of color disproportionately are located near coal-fired power plants, hog farms and industrial manufacturers, emitting toxins linked to cancer, lung disease and other health burdens. Emerging research also indicates that people of color are becoming sick and dying of COVID-19 at higher rates than other groups.

The EPA's North Carolina data from August 2016 is online at 19january2017snapshot.epa.gov, racial health data is at americanprogress.org, and COVID-19 data is at apmresearchlab.org.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Climate activists are praising Gov. Gavin Newsom for signing a $15 billion climate action package Thursday, but argued he should go one step further, and declare an official "climate emergency" in California.

The bills will fund projects to build up wildfire resilience and combat the drought.

Heidi Harmon, former mayor of San Luis Obispo, said the state needs to think even bigger.

"People in the state of California and everywhere will not do small things for small goals, but they will do big things for big goals," Harmon asserted. "And California is a big vision state."

The package also includes money to plant more trees in cities to combat the heat island effect and improve air quality. It would also fund so-called "smart agriculture" projects, and put more zero-emission vehicles on the road. Newsom said the investment is the largest in state history.

Paul Koretz, member of the Los Angeles City Council, thinks it does not go far enough, given the immediate threats climate change poses in terms of drought, wildfires and sea-level rise.

"We need to halt the permitting of oil and gas operations," Koretz contended. "We need to phase out the sale of fossil-fuel-powered vehicles as soon as possible. Right away wouldn't be too soon."

Advocates are also calling on the state to allow more prescribed burns on Native American reservations, in order to reduce the buildup of dead trees and brush that increases the fuel load and leads to megafires.

DULUTH, Minn. - As Minnesota looks to address the impact of climate change on the region, land managers and policymakers are reminded of the role nature can play. They're being urged to use a new tool that shows the range in which forests can capture and store carbon emissions.

In recent years, The Nature Conservancy has offered an interactive online map that shows which lands are more resilient to climate change. Now, that same tool can show which areas are well-suited to absorb carbon-dioxide floating through the atmosphere.

The Climate Change Director for The Nature Conservancy in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota - Meredith Cornett - said Minnesota's forests are capable of removing 487 million metric tons of C02 over the next 30 years.

"That's a number that may not mean a lot to a lot of us," said Cornett. "So we have something called a carbon dioxide - an emissions equivalency. So that is equivalent of 3.6 million cars. "

She said taking the equivalent of those gas-powered cars off the road each year can only happen if the forests remain in their current form.

The group says potential roadblocks include wildfires and forest management that doesn't prioritize ecological thinning and prescribed burning.

Minnesota's forest cover has gone from more than 30 million acres down to 17 million over the past 150 years. But the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources' State Forest Action plan notes there's been an uptick in acreage over the past decade.

Cornett applauded some of the progress in planting seedlings in forests after they've been harvested, including climate-resilient species. But she said Minnesota can't afford to slow down.

"We will need to really ramp up nursery production and wild-seed collection in order to make that possible," said Cornett.

She referred to a specific goal from the group that calls for one million acres in reforestation in Minnesota by the year 2040.

As the for the carbon tool, the Nature Conservancy says it can measure "capture potential" on lands as small as one quarter of an acre, adding that could be helpful for policymakers as they develop conservation plans.

SANTA FE, N.M. - A nonpartisan group of mothers and climate scientists is on a nationwide education campaign to engage more people about the effects of climate change and actions they can take to make a difference.

Colorado State University atmospheric science researcher Mellisa Burt co-founded the group "Science Moms." She said from the day they're born, parents want to protect their children, and the warming climate is now a direct threat to them.

"The goal of 'Science Moms' is to educate, inspire and empower moms," said Burt, "so that they have the climate change information and the resources that they need, so they can understand and feel comfortable sharing and having conversations around climate change."

During Climate Week, September 20 through 26, organizers will encourage businesses, governments and others to fulfill and increase their climate commitments.

An Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report earlier this year signaled a "code red" alert for humankind, from widespread extreme weather events, and cited controlling methane emissions as one solution.

In a survey by the Potential Energy Coalition, more than 60% of Americans describe themselves as "concerned" or "very concerned" about climate change, but only 14% say they regularly talk about it.

Coalition CEO John Marshall says his 17-year-old son convinced him to get more involved.

"A lot of these conversations happen around the kitchen table or the dining room table," said Marshall. "And a lot of us are experiencing the need to act on behalf of, and in response, to our kids."

Climate change is simple to understand according to Burt, and the effects are now difficult to avoid.

"The more that we burn fossil fuels, the more carbon pollution we're putting into the atmosphere," said Burt. "We're creating a thicker blanket of carbon pollution around our earth. And as that blanket continues to get thicker our planet is getting warmer and warmer. And as a result of that, we're seeing more wildfires, more floods, more hurricanes."

Last week, 10 New Mexico environmental groups and 62 others sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency calling for new regulations to limit emissions from fossil fuel development.

In addition, President Joe Biden has solicited a pledge from world leaders to cut methane emissions ahead of a climate change summit next month.