"Return what you borrow in better condition"
Linda, a psychiatrist, and Bob, a pulmonary/critical care/sleep medicine physician moved their young family to Billings in 1991 to be part of the Billings Clinic and for the clean environment and open spaces. They quickly fell in love with the friendly people and the mountains but were sickened (figuratively for Bob but literally for Linda) by refinery related sulfur dioxide air pollution. They got involved. The Billings community worked with the feds, the state, and the refineries and by the end of the 90's SO2 emissions were markedly reduced and the air was healthier. This reaffirmed their long-held belief that communities working together, grounded in science, can assure better lives for their children.
Linda and Bob met in the late 70s, at New York Medical College, in the highly romantic environment of the dissecting room over a shared cadaver, and found they shared concerns for the earth and a belief in working for a better future. Backpacking through the Adirondacks during Summer break they had an "oh, shit" moment. They spend hours during that trip fishing the lakes and streams. They never got even a rise or a strike. Asking around they learned "acid rain" had sterilized the lakes and was killing the forests. Both had worked on environmental issues but neither appreciated the magnitude of inadvertent harm humanity could cause.
With Linda from New York City and Bob from the Bay Area they disagreed on which region has the stronger environmental ethic. She proudly points out that the Adirondacks are the largest publicly protected area in the lower 48, and the impact the Hudson School of art had on the national mindset of conservation. Bob maintains the West, while traditionally focused on an extraction economy has been learning by firsthand experience from the resultant losses.
They both agree that events of the 60s and 70s shaped their views of the world. They came of age during the first Earth Days, the Wilderness Act, and the strong bipartisan passage of the Clean Air Act. The toxic inversions layers Bob saw growing up in the Bay Area were clearing up. People coming together makes a difference.
Climate Change has been the "Oh, shit" moment of the 80's, 90's, 00's, 10's, and 20's. Frustrations related to problem solving with political polarization has caused them, at times, to retreat into the comfortable focus of their careers and family. But groups like MHPHC and CCL prove to them again the difference we can make by coming together.
"We have seen arts and culture shift the national mindset for generations. We have seen science driven policy clean up acid rain, restore fisheries and forests. We have seen Billings tackle its SO2 (sulfur dioxide) problem. As part of MHPHC and CCL we are committed to leaving the world a better place than when we got here."
Linda, a psychiatrist, and Bob, a pulmonary/critical care/sleep medicine physician moved their young family to Billings in 1991 to be part of the Billings Clinic and for the clean environment and open spaces. They quickly fell in love with the friendly people and the mountains but were sickened (figuratively for Bob but literally for Linda) by refinery related sulfur dioxide air pollution. They got involved. The Billings community worked with the feds, the state, and the refineries and by the end of the 90's SO2 emissions were markedly reduced and the air was healthier. This reaffirmed their long-held belief that communities working together, grounded in science, can assure better lives for their children.
Linda and Bob met in the late 70s, at New York Medical College, in the highly romantic environment of the dissecting room over a shared cadaver, and found they shared concerns for the earth and a belief in working for a better future. Backpacking through the Adirondacks during Summer break they had an "oh, shit" moment. They spend hours during that trip fishing the lakes and streams. They never got even a rise or a strike. Asking around they learned "acid rain" had sterilized the lakes and was killing the forests. Both had worked on environmental issues but neither appreciated the magnitude of inadvertent harm humanity could cause.
With Linda from New York City and Bob from the Bay Area they disagreed on which region has the stronger environmental ethic. She proudly points out that the Adirondacks are the largest publicly protected area in the lower 48, and the impact the Hudson School of art had on the national mindset of conservation. Bob maintains the West, while traditionally focused on an extraction economy has been learning by firsthand experience from the resultant losses.
They both agree that events of the 60s and 70s shaped their views of the world. They came of age during the first Earth Days, the Wilderness Act, and the strong bipartisan passage of the Clean Air Act. The toxic inversions layers Bob saw growing up in the Bay Area were clearing up. People coming together makes a difference.
Climate Change has been the "Oh, shit" moment of the 80's, 90's, 00's, 10's, and 20's. Frustrations related to problem solving with political polarization has caused them, at times, to retreat into the comfortable focus of their careers and family. But groups like MHPHC and CCL prove to them again the difference we can make by coming together.
"We have seen arts and culture shift the national mindset for generations. We have seen science driven policy clean up acid rain, restore fisheries and forests. We have seen Billings tackle its SO2 (sulfur dioxide) problem. As part of MHPHC and CCL we are committed to leaving the world a better place than when we got here."
