Other Local Events
Below is a listing of upcoming programs from other like minded organizations in the area.
2025 MARPA and DLS Statewide Municipal Partnerships Conference
Hosted by the Massachusetts Association of Regional Planning Agencies (MARPA) and the Division of Local Services (DLS), the Statewide Municipal Partnerships Conference brings together municipal and regional leaders from across the Commonwealth for a half day of networking, conversations on pressing issues, and the sharing of best practices.
Toxic Chemicals in Plastics
Few people realize that plastics are made with chemicals – a lot of them! There are more than sixteen thousand known chemicals added to plastics to give them various qualities - shiny, matte, flexible, hard, heat resistant, etc. Unfortunately, more than a quarter of these chemicals are known to be toxic. Learn which toxic chemicals are used in plastics that are commonly used to make children’s toys, dishes and kitchenware, clothing, food and beverage packaging, building materials, cosmetics, personal care products, and more.
How Clean Energy Helps Lower Your Energy Bill
Green Energy Consumers Alliance
How does clean energy lower electricity prices? Join us and our partners at the Union of Concerned Scientists and Synapse Energy Economics for a webinar that breaks down the concept of price suppression and how clean energy technologies reduce electricity prices for all of us.
Introducing the Climate Resilience Playbook
Join the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC), Pioneer Valley Planning Commission (PVPC), and Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) for a webinar to officially launch the Climate Resilience Playbook (the Playbook). The Playbook is an online interactive tool that local planners can use to identify and prioritize resilience actions for their communities. During the webinar you will learn more about the collaborative engagement process that shaped the Playbook, its features, and opportunities to help shape this evolving tool.
Sustainability Day at the State House
Hosted by the House Committee on Climate Action & Sustainability, you’re invited to join the inaugural Sustainability Day. This day will bring leaders, advocates, and residents together to highlight climate action across the Commonwealth.
Autumn Initiatives and Actions
Announcing new efforts to further the increasingly vital work of Commonwealth community climate activists:
- LAUNCHING: Climate Goals Tracker, KICKOFF
- Minimizing Embodied Carbon using MCAN's new RFP language
- ORGANIZE NOW: Disappearing Federal Incentives provides moment of opportunity
- RE-FORMED: Better Building Advocates group.
How the Chemical Industry Covered up the Hazards of PFAS
Reporter Mariah Blake, author of They Poisoned the World: Life and Death in the Age of Forever Chemicals, will speak on the secret history of forever chemicals with the moving story of how a lone village took on the chemical giants—and won. Published in May, They Poisoned the World is a gripping, impeccably researched account of how the chemical industry covered up the hazards posed by PFAS.
Is a Used EV Right for You?
Green Energy Consumers Alliance
Used electric vehicles (EVs) provide all the benefits of driving on electricity - lower maintenance costs, lower fuel costs, and better driving experience - at a more affordable upfront price. Every year, there are more and more used EVs and more varied models. Plus, there are incentives available for the purchase of a used electric car in both Massachusetts and Rhode Island, as well as (currently, at least) a federal tax credit! Join Green Energy Consumers Alliance for this hour-long webinar to learn more about shopping for used EVs and everything you need to know to feel confident you're getting a good deal on the right EV for you.
Pollinator Garden Open House
Lincoln Land Conservation Trust and Rural Land Foundation
Drop in at LLCT’s Pollinator Meadow to see the meadow in bloom and ask questions about LLCT’s pollinator initiative. Park at the Lincoln Public School, near the Smith School Tennis Courts 6 Ballfield Rd, Lincoln, MA 01773. Take the trail through the field to the meadow.
Climate Cafe
Enjoy complimentary Le Petit Four Bakery pastries with coffee
Get sustainability tips from Wellesley Energy Coaches and Town staff
Discover ideas and incentives for getting around sustainably, lowering your energy use, and increasing your property value
Learn how to landscape sustainably and reduce waste
Late Spring Nature Walk
Summer is almost here! Please join Jeff Adams for a nature walk at this beautiful property. We’ll primarily focus on Plant ID looking at native species along with a few non-natives. We’ll include some select natural history too and learn about helpful identifiers such as galls, leaf shapes, fruits and diagnostic characteristics that enable us to immediately identify the plant. And maybe we'll discover who named the area ‘Gowing’s Swamp’.
Electric Vehicle Charging On the Go
Green Energy Consumers Alliance
Do you have questions about charging options for electric vehicles (EVs) when you are on the road? Attend our Charging on the Go webinar on June 11!
June Fern Walk
Lincoln Land Conservation Trust and Rural Land Foundation
Ellen and Jim Meadors will lead fern walk in early June. We will take a fairly slow pace, stopping frequently to look at different plant specimens. Participants will leave with the basic fern ID terminology and the tools to ID ferns on their own.
Heat pump: Heat and Cool All in One
Bob Zogg, from the Heat Smart Alliance, and local homeowners will talk about their experiences with heat pumps. There will be time for participant questions. Learn about this lower-emissions alternative to heat and cool your home.
Fix-It First Bicycle Clinic
The Fix-It First Bike Team of Alan Day and Joel Angiolillo will be on hand at Celebrate Weston in front of the AIC on the Weston Town green to help you bring your bike back to life after a long winter. Bring your bike repair questions or just come to watch others work on their bikes.
Electric Vehicle Charging At Home
Green Energy Consumers Alliance
Interested in learning more about charging your electric vehicle (EV) at home? On May 6, we'll have a webinar all about charging at home.
Newton’s Annual Earth Day Festival
Join us for a celebration of all things green for the whole family! Groove to live music and savor delicious food while discovering countless ways to make a positive impact. Explore booths hosted by local businesses and nonprofits, offering guidance on everything from going solar and choosing electric vehicles to home insulation and composting.
Community Solar - No Roof Needed
Electric Vehicle Charging Basics
Green Energy Consumers Allience
Making the switch to an electric car can be intimidating if you're used to refueling with gasoline. Where will you charge? How much will it cost? How can you make sure you're always charged up? The good news is that charging an electric vehicle (EV) is easier than you might think once you know the basics.
Rain Check: Strengthening Stormwater Rules for Climate-Resilient Communities
Charles River Watershed Association (CRWA)
Learn how updated stormwater regulations can enhance climate resilience, protect water quality, and reduce flood risks in the Charles River Watershed.
Water Coalition Lobbying Day
Charles River Watershed Association (CRWA)
Join us for a day of advocacy, camaraderie, and conversation—connect with legislators, gain co-sponsorship support, and enjoy some snacks and conversation along the way!
Upcycling at the Mill: Hand Sewing Workshop
Charles River Museum of Industry & Innovation
Give new life to old textiles in this hands-on workshop at the Charles River Museum of Industry & Innovation! With 11.5 million tons of fabric wasted annually, upcycling offers a creative way to reduce waste while learning hand sewing, embroidery, and darning techniques. Held in the historic mill where America’s textile industry began, this class connects past and present by transforming worn clothing into something new. Bring your own fabric items and reimagine them with sustainability and creativity in mind!
Climate Crisis Cabaret: The Warm-Up
Join an all-volunteer troupe for a new cabaret fusing the arts and climate activism! Come share your hopes, fears, passion, love, and energy, and join the action! Climate Crisis Cabaret is a new group of Boston area theatre artists, scientists and activists who have organized to kindle action on the climate crisis.
Climate Crisis Cabaret: The Warm-Up
Join an all-volunteer troupe for a new cabaret fusing the arts and climate activism! Come share your hopes, fears, passion, love, and energy, and join the action! Climate Crisis Cabaret is a new group of Boston area theatre artists, scientists and activists who have organized to kindle action on the climate crisis.
Why Protect Newton's Trees
Green Newton, Mothers Out Front Newton, Protect Newton Trees, and FUUSN Climate Action Task Force
Join Nobel Prize winning scientist Dr. William R. Moomaw, whose research for the last twenty years has documented the essential ecological services provided by mature forests and large mature urban trees.
Free and open to the public. This is a hybrid event.
Ditch gas, cook better with induction cooktops
Did you know cooking with gas might be making your kitchen air worse than outside pollution? Gas stoves release harmful stuff like nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide, which can even increase asthma risk in kids. And ventilation only helps if your exhaust fan is strong and you actually use it.
When it’s time to replace your stove, consider going electric or induction. Induction stoves heat faster than gas and are super efficient—plus, they’re safer (you can’t burn your hand on the stove!). And with new rebates and tax credits, switching to induction is more affordable than ever.
Andee Krasner (Greater Boston Physicians for Social Responsibility and co-author with Rocky Mountain Institute of a report on gas stoves) will share the facts about gas stove risks and the benefits of induction cooking. We’ll also hear from neighbors using induction cooktops, plus plenty of time for Q&A.
Climate Stories: Empowerment in Times of Despair
Healing Story Alliance and Third Act
A talk by author and environmental educator, and Ghandi Peace Prize winner, Bill McKibben, the founder of 350.org and now Third Act, which organizes people over sixty for climate action and justice. Following Bill’s talk of approximately 40 minutes, Judith Black and Elisa Pearman will lead a 45-minute debrief, sharing their short climate action stories and inviting participants to cull from our broad and collective experience stories (folk, historical, and contemporary) that address climate issues.
Rescue Raptors: Regulate Rat Poison
Mass Audubon and Lincoln Land Conservation Trust
Raptors, coyotes, and other predators balance Massachusetts’ ecosystems. But shocking numbers of these iconic creatures have been sickened and killed after eating poisoned rodents. Mass Audubon supports local initiatives to protect raptors and other predators by regulating rodent poison. Join Rescue MetroWest Wildlife to learn how rat poisons harm wildlife and get involved in the fight to reduce their use.
Deep Dialogue. What Makes Up Massachusetts Electric Rates?
Austin Dawson, Deputy Director of Energy Supply and Rates at the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER), will present on the current status of electric rates in Massachusetts, including what is in electric rates charged to customers and how rates support generating and delivering power to homes and businesses. He'll discuss the various programs that impact the grid and customers. He'll also share how the Massachusetts Interagency Rates Working Group (IRWG), a collaboration between DOER, the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, and the Attorney General, is addressing near- and long-term electric rate design and ratemaking to align with the Commonwealth’s decarbonization goals, by prioritizing the reduction of energy burden while incentivizing electrification.
Hot Water, Cool Savings: Heat Pump Water Heater Webinar
Learn how heat pump water heaters can provide an energy-efficient solution for your home, reduce your utility bills, and lower your climate impact. We’ll be joined by Bob Zogg from HeatSmart Alliance and hear from neighbors who have installed these heat pumps. Join us for an evening of information, learning, and community!
Second Annual Conversation with Massachusetts Climate Chief Melissa Hoffer
How is our commonwealth doing in the climate change battle, and what will it mean for you?
Congregation Or Atid is pleased to host Massachusetts Climate Chief Melissa Hoffer as she shares an update and discusses plans to ameliorate climate change in the Commonwealth.
Forests and Carbon Sequestration
Lincoln Land Conservation Trust
Emerson Conrad Rooney, a PhD student at Boston University, will speak about forests, carbon sequestration, and climate change.