JCAN

June 10th Statewide Rally-- People Over Utility Profits
2026-06-10 13:00 - 17:00 (America/New_York) | Eversource HQ (see description for more locations), 800 Boylston Street, Boston, 02116, United States
Energy utility corporations are raking in record profits while we’re struggling to pay our energy bills. With our money in hand, utilities like Eversource, National Grid, and Berkshire Gas are attempting to increase our reliance on expensive and polluting fossil fuels, destroying our health and our planet. These utilities spend hundreds of thousands of dollars a year lobbying Massachusetts legislators to cut back on climate goals and allow them to keep polluting as much as they want.
On June 10th, Mass Power Forward is holding a statewide rally with three locations across MA asking legislators to cut our ties to utilities and pass a climate bill that puts people over utility profits.
At the time of the rally, legislators will have just 50 days to pass climate legislation to help make energy clean and affordable. Join us and make your voice heard!
RSVP here
Rally Locations for June 10th
Boston: 1pm. Meet at the Eversource HQ at 800 Boylston St (the Prudential) take a “follow the money” tour through Boston to the Statehouse. We will rally at the Statehouse at 2:30pm. We are holding two art builds in Somerville to support the Boston rally on June 5th from 5pm-7pm and June 7th from 2pm-6pm. RSVP here
Pittsfield: 1pm. Rally outside of the Berkshire Gas HQ. Meet at Allendale Plaza.
Springfield: 5:30pm. Rally outside of the Eversource Western MA HQ at 300 Cadwell Drive, Springfield.
We hope to see you there.

Climate Conversations: Visual Notes on a Changing Planet
2026-06-15 17:30 - 19:30 | West Roxbury Branch, Boston Public Library, 1961 Centre St, West Roxbury, MA, 02132, United States
Join local artist Lisa Link on Monday, June 15, 2026, for the opening celebration of Climate Conversations: Visual Notes on a Changing Planet at the West Roxbury Branch of the Boston Public Library.
Through interviews, photography, and visual storytelling, this exhibition explores how people respond to environmental challenges in their communities, daily lives, and public work. Created through a Jewish cultural lens while welcoming audiences of all backgrounds, the project highlights shared concerns about climate, justice, resilience, and our collective future.
Lisa’s photo-montage exhibition features 2D works inspired by conversations with environmental advocates, Jewish farmers & educators, and community members. Blending research, art, and personal narratives, the exhibition invites viewers to reflect on the human dimensions of climate change and the many ways people seek hope, connection, and action during a time of ecological transformation.
The opening gathering will offer an opportunity for community members from all backgrounds and cultures to connect, exchange ideas, and celebrate the role of art in fostering dialogue and understanding.

Digging Deep: How Two Congregations Decided to Go Geothermal
2026-06-23 19:00 - 20:00
Join us for a geothermal webinar co-hosted by MassIPL, PA IPL, and GreenerU. Geothermal installations still qualify for a 30-40%+ federal direct pay incentive, often making them cost-competitive when replacing a fossil fuel heating system. You’ll hear directly from two congregations — Wellesley Village Church (MA) and St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church (PA) — about how they went through a discernment process and decided geothermal was right for them.

Tell your MA Senators to make S.3143 a better bill!
2026-07-01 11:00 - 17:00
Debate on the Senate version of An Act to Save People Money, Repair the Climate and Grow the Economy, also known as S.3143 begins today, and a vote will follow shortly after.
Before the environmental bill goes from the Senate to the Conference Committee, we feel that including several proposed amendments would improve it. Our allies at Mass Power Forward and Massachusetts Climate Action Network have suggested amendments that should be supported and others that should be opposed.
We urge you to contact your state senator and ask them to co-sponsor and vote for the following amendments:

99 Embodied Carbon Reduction in large state construction

25 Closes Loophole incentivizing polluting biomass for MLPs

26 Halting Gas Expansion

37 Prohibition on Charging Ratepayers for Advertising

62 & 162 Data Centers

1 Protection From Unreasonable Utility Profits

78 Labor Peace for Thermal Energy Network

106 Self-Attestation of Income

77 End Gas Line Extension Subsidies

82 Remove “renewable natural gas blending”

25 Closes Loophole incentivizing polluting biomass for MLPs

99 Embodied Carbon Reduction in large state construction

15 Allowing Massachusetts to restrict refrigerants that have high Global Warming Potential or are PFAS.

Please also ask your state senator to oppose the following amendments:

17, 121, 171 and any other amendments that would cut Mass Save’s budget

139 which would remove good sections around GSEP phase out

114 which would take money away from crucial programs

52 MLP Consent required

23 and 67 which would remove municipalities’ ability to ban third suppliers

Massachusetts is a leader in climate and energy policy because its voters have demanded that we be. Please keep up the good work and contact your senator ASAP!

Making a Mini-Forest: Documentary Screening
2026-07-15 19:00 - 21:00
Overview

Discover the people and projects behind Europe’s growing miniforest movement and the spread of the Miyawaki Method of afforestation.

Wednesday, July 15, 2026 | 7:00–9:00 PM ET | Virtual
Join us for a special screening of filmmaker Angelina Lee’s documentary Making a Mini-Forest, narrated by Hannah Lewis, award-winning author of Mini-Forest Revolution, followed by a live conversation and audience Q&A.
The film follows organizations in Europe as they plan, plant, and care for miniforests—while tracing the Miyawaki Method’s roots in Japan and the growing civic movement to regreen cities.
Following the screening, filmmaker Angelina Lee will join us live for a conversation about the making of the film and the growing international miniforest movement, followed by audience Q&A.
This event is part of the 2026 Northeast Miniforest Summit, a multi-day gathering bringing together the people planting, studying, stewarding, teaching, measuring, and documenting miniforests across the Northeast U.S. and beyond.
Learn more at miniforests.bio4climate.org
About the Film
People around the world are embracing the Miyawaki Method to plant “mini-forests.” Narrated by Hannah Lewis, award-winning author of Mini-Forest Revolution, the film zigzags across land and sea to meet ten different organizations in four languages in France, Belgium, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands.
The film observes in real time the brainstorming, planning, planting, and establishment care that goes into making a mini-forest, as well as the Miyawaki Method’s 50 year history in Japan. Each story contributes to a bigger picture, that of passionate individuals taking civic action to regreen their cities. One person sparks the imagination of another, and another, and a robust network of foresters emerges.
What is the Miyawaki Method?
Developed by Japanese ecologist Dr. Akira Miyawaki, the Miyawaki Method creates dense, diverse miniforests using native trees and shrubs. By preparing the soil and planting at high density, these forests can establish quickly—even in urban environments—supporting biodiversity, improving soil health, retaining water, cooling neighborhoods, and creating opportunities for community stewardship.
Watch this video to learn more:
This urban forest becomes self-sufficient in three years
This event is organized by Biodiversity for a Livable Climate.For more information, visit miniforests.bio4climate.org or email miniforests@bio4climate.org with any questions.
About Biodiversity For a Livable Climate
For more than a decade, Biodiversity for a Livable Climate has worked to raise awareness about the vital role of biodiversity and nature-based solutions in regulating the Earth’s climate.
A pioneer of the Miyawaki Method in the United States, the organization helped bring this approach to New England, launching the region’s first miniforest in 2021 in collaboration with SUGi and the City of Cambridge. Since then, it has supported the planting of eight miniforests across Massachusetts, demonstrating how this approach can take root across diverse urban sites. In 2025, Bio4Climate convened the inaugural Northeast Miniforest Summit—mobilizing a regional network of practitioners to exchange knowledge, build relationships, and support the continued emergence of miniforests across the region.

2026 Northeast Miniforest Bus Tour
2026-07-18 08:30 - 17:00 | Somerville High School, 81 Highland Ave, Somerville, 02143, United States
Overview

Visit four Massachusetts miniforests and explore how the Miyawaki Method is being adapted across diverse landscapes and communities.

Saturday, July 18, 2026 | 8:30 AM–5:00 PM ET
Starting and ending at Somerville High School, Somerville, MA
Join us on Saturday, July 18, for a full-day tour of four Massachusetts miniforests that showcase the diverse ways the Miyawaki Method is being adapted across the region.
From dense urban neighborhoods and school campuses to restored agricultural land and post-industrial landscapes, participants will visit sites at different stages of development and learn directly from the practitioners, researchers, municipal leaders, and community members who helped bring them to life.
Space is limited and advance registration is required.We kindly ask participants to arrive between 8:30 and 8:45 AM so that we can begin the tour promptly. A boxed lunch will be provided.
The bus tour is part of the 2026 Northeast Miniforest Summit. Bringing together practitioners, researchers, educators, landscape architects, municipal leaders, and community organizers, the Summit creates space to share experiences, exchange knowledge, and learn from projects unfolding across diverse ecological and social contexts.
Building on the momentum of the inaugural 2025 Summit, this year’s program includes two virtual half-days, an in-person bus tour of Massachusetts miniforests, and a special pre-Summit screening of filmmaker Angelina Lee’s documentary Making a Mini-Forest.
Learn more at miniforests.bio4climate.org
What is the Miyawaki Method?
Developed by Japanese ecologist Dr. Akira Miyawaki, the Miyawaki Method creates dense, diverse miniforests using native trees and shrubs. By preparing the soil and planting at high density, these forests can establish quickly—even in urban environments—supporting biodiversity, improving soil health, retaining water, cooling neighborhoods, and creating opportunities for community stewardship.
Watch this video to learn more:
This urban forest becomes self-sufficient in three years
This event is organized by Biodiversity for a Livable Climate.For more information, visit miniforests.bio4climate.org or email miniforests@bio4climate.org with any questions.
About Biodiversity For a Livable Climate
For more than a decade, Biodiversity for a Livable Climate has worked to raise awareness about the vital role of biodiversity and nature-based solutions in regulating the Earth’s climate.
A pioneer of the Miyawaki Method in the United States, the organization helped bring this approach to New England, launching the region’s first miniforest in 2021 in collaboration with SUGi and the City of Cambridge. Since then, it has supported the planting of eight miniforests across Massachusetts, demonstrating how this approach can take root across diverse urban sites. In 2025, Bio4Climate convened the inaugural Northeast Miniforest Summit—mobilizing a regional network of practitioners to exchange knowledge, build relationships, and support the continued emergence of miniforests across the region.

Jewish Earth Alliance 2026 Pre-Tisha B’av Virtual Lobby Day
2026-07-21
Although we still mourn the destruction of the Temple on Tisha B’av, we know that this tragic day was the beginning of a transformation that enabled our people to survive and thrive. From the ashes of the Temple, Jews built a new center of Judaism in Yavneh. Their innovations became the rabbinic Judaism that we practice today.
Things may look bleak now—but when have we ever backed down from “doing the work”? And while there are many challenges, there are also genuine opportunities, including:

This session of Congress isn’t over. The Farm Bill just passed the House and will now be debated in the Senate.
Congress is under pressure to lower gas and electricity prices. Today, the best way to affordability is cheap, clean energy from sun and wind.
The Administration just released a long-awaited report on FEMA. Now the pressure is on Congress to act to protect communities suffering from climate-fueled disasters.
We can win, and in important ways, we already are! The vast majority of new electricity generation is from renewables, and sales of electric cars are growing.

Tisha B’av is not only a day of mourning for what has been lost. It is also a day when we recall how our ancestors picked up the pieces and built for the future. Let’s honor this legacy by advocating for the country and the world we want: A world with healthy air and water, safe homes and communities, and a thriving web of life to support us and our neighbors around the world.
Please join JCAN-MA and other activists in Massachusetts to lobby Senators Markey and Warren on July 21. They’re leaders on science-based climate and energy policy, but they still need to hear from us about how important it is that they continue to fight for us and our ecosystems.
Please register here! Also, please let us know if you know anyone in Alabama, Arizona, Delaware, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, or West Virginia who would like to get involved.
Exact times to be determined; each call will last no more than 30 minutes.
Please send questions and comments to deborahnamkrane@proton.me

2026 Northeast Miniforest Summit
2026-07-22 12:00 - 18:00, 2026-07-23 12:00 - 2026-07-24 17:00
Overview

A multi-day gathering bringing together those planting, studying, and supporting miniforests across the Northeast U.S. and beyond.

The 2026 Northeast Miniforest Summit is a multi-day gathering bringing together the people planting, studying, stewarding, teaching, measuring, and documenting miniforests across the Northeast U.S. and beyond to share experiences, exchange knowledge, and explore emerging questions through presentations, panel discussions, and community conversations.
Bringing together practitioners, researchers, educators, landscape architects, municipal leaders, and community organizers, the Summit creates space to share experiences, exchange knowledge, and learn from projects unfolding across diverse ecological and social contexts.
Building on the momentum of the inaugural 2025 Summit, this year’s program includes two virtual half-days, an in-person bus tour of Massachusetts miniforests, and a special pre-Summit screening of filmmaker Angelina Lee’s documentary Making a Mini-Forest.
The Summit will feature keynote presentations by Ethan Tapper, forester and author of How to Love a Forest, and Mio Urata, a leading practitioner of the Miyawaki Method in Japan.
Grounded in curiosity, collaboration, and care for place, the Summit brings together a growing network of people working to restore ecological function, strengthen community stewardship, and deepen relationships with the living systems that sustain us.
Learn more at miniforests.bio4climate.org
Schedule:

Virtual Documentary Screening: July 15
In-Person Bus Tour: Saturday, July 18
Virtual Summit Day 1: Wednesday, July 22
Virtual Summit Day 2: Thursday, July 23

Who Should Attend?
Practitioners, researchers, educators, students, landscape architects, municipal leaders, nonprofit professionals, and community members interested in miniforests, ecological restoration, urban forestry, and community stewardship.
What is the Miyawaki Method?
Developed by Japanese ecologist Dr. Akira Miyawaki, the Miyawaki Method creates dense, diverse miniforests using native trees and shrubs. By preparing the soil and planting at high density, these forests can establish quickly—even in urban environments—supporting biodiversity, improving soil health, retaining water, cooling neighborhoods, and creating opportunities for community stewardship.
This event is organized by Biodiversity for a Livable Climate.For more information, visit miniforests.bio4climate.org or email miniforests@bio4climate.org with any questions.
About Biodiversity For a Livable Climate
For more than a decade, Biodiversity for a Livable Climate has worked to raise awareness about the vital role of biodiversity and nature-based solutions in regulating the Earth’s climate.
A pioneer of the Miyawaki Method in the United States, the organization helped bring this approach to New England, launching the region’s first miniforest in 2021 in collaboration with SUGi and the City of Cambridge. Since then, it has supported the planting of eight miniforests across Massachusetts, demonstrating how this approach can take root across diverse urban sites. In 2025, Bio4Climate convened the inaugural Northeast Miniforest Summit—mobilizing a regional network of practitioners to exchange knowledge, build relationships, and support the continued emergence of miniforests across the region.

Tisha B’Av Gathering (Hosted by JCAN-MA) - PLEASE NOTE DATE CHANGE
2026-07-22 18:00 - 21:00 | Please register for address, Marblehead, United States
As the sun sets on Tisha B’Av, the most sorrowful day on the Jewish calendar, we will gather to read Eicha (Lamentations)—an ancient text mourning the catastrophic destruction of Jerusalem 2,500 years ago: its women, children, animals, buildings, gates, and walls.
Together, we will take turns reading from the text (bring your phone to follow along), and reflect on its relevance today.
In this era of climate chaos—of floods, fires, and mass displacement—we feel the destruction anew. Tisha B’Av offers us a moment to grieve not only the ruins of the past, but also the devastation happening now across the globe:
Gaza, Lebanon, Haiti, Venezuela, Congo, Sudan, Yemen, Nigeria, Syria—and here, in the United States.
As we mourn, we renew our resolve to take action. The anguished poetry of Lamentations can inspire us to support policies and practices that prevent further harm to our communities and our planet.
We are each part of the long, sacred labor of healing and repair. We refuse to look away.
Let us grieve together. Let us strengthen one another. Let us repair the world.
Schedule
Please note, this event is now on Wednesday, July 22. We apologize for the confusion!
🌊 6:00 PM – Potluck Dinner (Come early (at 4 pm for a swim!))
📖 8:00 PM – 9 PM Reading of Lamentations and Individual Reflection
RSVP Required
Please email Janet at jcan.intern@gmail.com by Monday evening, July 20, 2026 to register.
Those who register will receive the address.

Urban Agriculture & Climate Fair
2026-09-12 11:00 - 15:00 | Roxbury Heritage State Park, 183 Roxbury St, Boston, 02119, United States
The Urban Ag Fair is back!
Calling all urban farmers, gardeners, beekeepers, composters, fruit-tree enthusiasts, climate activists, and anyone interested in learning more about urban agriculture and climate justice in Boston!
An annual celebration of 50+ years of urban agriculture in Boston. Play games, enter contests, and learn directly from local urban farmers, and climate activists who are on the ground feeding our community, and helping us stay connected to mother earth.
Urban agriculture is one of our most powerful tools for climate resilience. It cools the city, captures carbon, holds stormwater, and nurtures the biodiversity that keeps our neighborhoods healthy.
Come see how Boston’s growers are on the front lines of climate action, building a greener, more biodiverse, and more resilient city one garden at a time – and how you can be part of it.
Date & Time: Saturday, September 12th from 11am-3pm
Location: Roxbury Heritage State Park, 183 Roxbury St, Boston, MA
Activities:

Harvest Competition with grand prize
Live agriculture and cooking demos
Learning circles led by local urban farmers
Kids activities
Bees, chickens, pigeons
Games and prizes for all ages
Local vendors and tabling organizations​
Free food
Live DJ ​

If you are interested in tabling, offering a demo, or volunteering, please email arabiyah@thetrustees.org
Free and Open to All

Chutzpah 2026 -- Phone Calls for Our Democracy
2026-10-08 18:00 - 20:00
We have the chutzpah to protect the people and places we love. This fall, it’s all hands on deck to build people power for our climate, our democracy, and a livable future.
The Jewish Climate Action Network of Massachusetts is proud to partner with Jewish Alliance for Law and Social Action, and the Western Massachusetts Dayenu Circle to mobilize every single climate voter to get to the polls for the midterm elections — and put our future before fossil fuel profits.
At each shift, we ground ourselves in Jewish wisdom, go over the scripts, then get to work calling voters.
If you’ve already been trained by Dayenu or the Environmental Voter Project, you can jump right into calling. If this is your first time phonebanking, no worries; we’ll train you before you start calling.
All you need to participate is a phone (landline or cell) and a web-enabled computer or tablet.

Jewish Frameworks for Our Challenging Times
2026-10-12 19:00 - 20:00
We are living in a time of multiple, interlocking challenges that we are experiencing psychologically, socially, and economically, and it is no surprise that these catastrophes are also manifesting in our climate patterns. When wildfires in Canada and the upper Midwestern states leave Boston with hazy skies and the smell of smoke for two days, it’s hard not to feel that we are looking at something close to the end of our world as we’ve known it. We recognize that we are called to pick up our share of the work, but we are increasingly disoriented and unsure of the efficacy of “tried and true” methods. How does a person of conscience proceed?
This is not the first time that the Jewish people have lived through a calamity; we have emerged from ashes and rebuilt many times over. What wisdom can we find in our history and our teachings that can help us get through this moment, and that we can share with the larger community?
Please join Rabbis Nina Cardin, Natan Margalit, and Ashira Stevens to explore the frameworks our ancestors used in other times of catastrophe, as well as new ways of looking at venerable ideas. Come with questions, and be prepared for discussion!

Rabbi Nina Beth Cardin is the chair of the Tzedek Center’s sustainability initiatives for the Conservative/Masorti movement. She also chairs the sustainability initiative of the Baltimore Environmental Sustainability Network and is the author most recently of To Forever Inhabit this Earth: An Ethic of Enoughness.

Rabbi Natan Margalit is a scholar with 30 years of experience in teaching,writing, organizing and congregational leadership. He has taught at Bard College, the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, Hebrew College Rabbinical School, and now is chair of the Rabbinic Texts Department at the Aleph Ordination Program. He is also Director of the Earth-Based Judaism track of the A.O.P., and is founder of the non-profit Organic Torah. He is the author of The Pearl and the Flame: A Journey into Jewish Wisdom and Ecological Thinking (Albion Andalus, 2022). He lives in Newton, Massachusetts with his wife and two sons.

Rabbi Ashira Stevens (she/her), ordained from Hebrew College in 2023, has served as the rabbi and spiritual leader of Temple Emanu-El of Haverhill and as the Director of Congregational Learning at Temple Beth David of Westwood. She finds deep meaning and delight in making Judaism accessible and relevant for people of all ages and backgrounds, whether through exploring sacred texts, sharing meaningful ritual moments, or appreciating and stewarding the wonders of Creation.

Plastic Pollution: Health, Climate, and Solutions
2026-10-20 19:00 - 20:00
The problem with plastic goes way past those ubiquitous and annoying plastic straws and bags. When microplastics are being found in fetal tissue, the scale of the problem isn’t about personal habits but systems–and that’s the scale of the solutions we need.
Did we mention that plastics *are* fossil fuels? And that they’re the industry’s hedge to stay relevant as the world moves away from oil and gas for energy? It’s time for plastics to go!
We are excited to have Eileen Ryan, leader of Beyond Plastics Greater Boston, join us for a webinar about plastic pollution. She is on the steering committee of Plastic Free Mass. In addition to her work educating people about the perils of plastics she uses her creative talents to make costumes and art as a climate and social justice activist. Eileen lives in Watertown and is the mother of three grown children and a grandmother of two.
