Two proposed relief funds for New Hampshire farmers aim to recover losses from climate change-related weather events.

Years of droughts were followed by the wettest summer on record in 2023. Extreme flooding, a tornado and frost in mid-May cost fruit and vegetable farmers an estimated $13 million.

Sen. Donovan Fenton, D-Keene, said farmers are asking for help.

"Right now they only have options for low-interest loans and insurance," Fenton pointed out. "Most of them are underinsured because it's so expensive."

Fenton has introduced a bill to create a $5 million fund to help farmers affected by future disasters, while another bill would help cover up to half of farmers' recent losses. He noted it is just a start for what is expected to be a growing number of climate change-related weather events.

Agricultural tourism supports an estimated 10,000 jobs and contributes hundreds of millions of dollars to New Hampshire each year but weather-related crop damage has already kept tourists away. Apple, pear and cherry trees in the southern part of the state are usually a big draw, but unseasonably cold temperatures devastated crops.

Fenton argued New Hampshire should follow Vermont's lead in helping farmers access both federal and state dollars to survive.

"Everyone comes to New Hampshire to apple pick, and there were no apples to be picked this year," Fenton observed. "If we don't help our farmers, we're going to lose not just food to eat but that agricultural tourism business as well."

Fenton added the state needs to study changes in infrastructure to prepare for more extreme flooding. The University of New Hampshire Extension has also begun a pilot program to help farmers find ways to make their operations more climate resilient.


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Last year, filmmaker Michael Nash achieved the extraordinary when his documentary "Climate Refugees" was sent to the moon as part of a Lunar Museum project. Now, he's on a new mission: getting the faces of climate refugees featured on postage stamps to keep the conversation about climate migration alive.

"Climate Refugees," which premiered at Sundance and was later featured on Netflix, has been a powerful tool for raising awareness about the human impact of climate change. Nash and his team traveled to 48 countries, uncovering stories of forced migration driven by droughts, food shortages and environmental collapse.

"What we found was this intersection where overpopulation, overconsumption, lack of resources, and a changing climate were slamming into each other," Nash explained. "The outcome was forced migration: people running out of water and food in places they'd lived for hundreds, if not thousands, of years."

While the film's journey to the moon in 2024 was a historic milestone, Nash is now focused on a more down-to-earth goal: creating postage stamps featuring the faces of climate refugees, although gaining approval from the U.S. Postal Service's stamp committee will require demonstrating the issue's national relevance and historical significance.

Despite the progress in raising awareness, Nash emphasized the world has not done enough to address climate migration.

"There is not an international law accepted by all countries that gives asylum or protection to people forced to relocate due to climate change," Nash pointed out.

According to the United Nations, more than 20 million people
are displaced annually by climate-related events, making the need for action more pressing than ever.

Nash was a featured speaker at last week's Climate Correction Conference in Orlando. His next project, a film exploring the intersection of artificial intelligence and climate change, is currently in production and set for release in 2026.


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What if your trash could be the key to a more sustainable wardrobe?

The group Keep Orlando Beautiful is proving it is possible with its annual "Trash 2 Trends" initiative, where discarded materials -- literal garbage -- are transformed into stunning, runway-worthy outfits.

It is not just about a flashy event, it is about inspiring everyone to rethink how they consume and dispose of clothing. The fashion industry is one of the largest polluters globally, responsible for 10% of global carbon emissions and nearly 20% of wastewater production. Fast fashion, which relies on synthetic materials such as polyester and nylon, contributes to microplastic pollution.

Madison Szathmary, coordinator for Keep Orlando Beautiful, said many people do not realize their clothes are made out of plastic.

"Every time you're washing something that's made out of spandex, nylon, polyester -- little plastic fiber from the clothing is getting into your washing machine and ending up in the water reclamation stream," Szathmary explained. "We want people to be able to buy used when they can."

You can also recycle what you already have at home, which is known as upcycling. Trash 2 Trends shows creativity can combat climate change by turning waste into wearable art. The creativity is on full display during Keep Orlando Beautiful's annual fundraiser but the real goal is to encourage everyone to embrace sustainable fashion in their daily lives.

You don't have to be a runway artist to make a difference. Szathmary encouraged everyone to embrace "slow fashion," a more intentional approach to clothing, prioritizing quality over quantity.

"Having an intentional closet," Szathmary added. "We call that slow fashion instead of fast fashion. And you can really, once you have a style and once you know what you like, there are opportunities to find that stuff not only at thrift stores but with your friends. You can swap clothing with your friends."

Szathmary noted the effect of small changes can be huge. By reusing and repairing clothing, we can reduce the demand for new textiles, which often rely on fossil fuels and contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. The fashionable trends were on full display at last week's Climate Correction Conference in Orlando.


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Local leaders in California are slamming the Trump administration's moves to gut dozens of environmental policies on climate change and pollution in low-income communities.

Last week Environmental Protection Agency administrator Lee Zeldin said the agency will loosen restrictions on oil and gas and reconsider the "endangerment finding" underpinning regulations on greenhouse gases.

Felipe Perez, city council member and former mayor of Firebaugh, said farmworkers in the Central Valley rely on the feds to limit air pollution from nearby oil rigs.

"The people that work in the field, we have to go to work even though the pollution is too high," Perez pointed out. "We have to go because we have to feed our families."

The EPA also eliminated the department that fights for environmental justice and killed the Biden-era Justice40 plan, which directed 40% of infrastructure money to low-income communities of color.

Daniel Ramos, mayor pro tem of Adelanto in San Bernardino County, said the Trump administration has frozen millions of dollars earmarked by Congress for improvements to the city's wastewater treatment facility.

"Stripping away funding and programs that have already been signed into law, counted on and, in our case awarded, will definitely have a detrimental impact on those Justice 40 communities," Ramos stressed.

Igor Tregub, a city council member in Berkeley who was born in Ukraine, said the move to lift rules promoting electric vehicles increases reliance on oil and gas, which he called a threat to national and international security.

"This is a boost to the kinds of fossil-fuel industries that fund authoritarian forces like Putin's, that have a desire to take over peaceful democracies like Ukraine's," Tregub noted.

Zeldin defended the moves, insisting they will "usher in a golden age of American success" and calling former President Joe Biden's environmental policy a "green new scam."