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As a young person growing up in Ashland, every summer I have had to deal with the worry of a fire coming to burn down the home that I grew up in, where all my memories are.

I have also grown up with countless empty promises from people in power saying they will work to make changes and reverse the effects of climate change.

Now, youth in Ashland are taking matters into our own hands. A little over four months ago, the youth-led Rogue Climate Action Team organized over 400 students to walk out of school to demand that the city of Ashland take immediate action on climate change.

We collected over 300 petition signatures and launched the Ashland Youth for Electrification Campaign to make all new construction fully electric in Ashland.

Inspired by policies in cities such as Berkeley and Eugene and the need to hold Ashland accountable to its own Clean Energy Action Plan, we brought our demands to the City Council to pass an ordinance that would transition new homes off of fracked gas.

Instead of using unhealthy fracked gas in our homes, building new homes with efficient electric appliances would help Ashland reduce climate-warming emissions, improve public health, and increase energy affordability for residents.

Electrification is not a new concept, as more than 50 cities across the United States have adopted policies that require 100% electric buildings. Building new homes that are fully electric is an important step that Ashland can take to protect our futures as it would help reduce the number of harmful pollutants that are scattered across our atmosphere, and protect our health and climate.

After Berkeley and Eugene took bold action by passing electrification policies to transition new construction off of fossil fuels, the gas industry spent millions to overturn these policies.

Following a gas industry-funded lawsuit, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a ruling that challenged Berkeley’s gas ban. In light of the legal uncertainty from the decision, the Eugene City Council has voted to withdraw their first-in-Oregon electrification ordinance.

Despite efforts by the fossil fuel industry to halt climate action, Eugene is still committed to reaching its climate goals, and legal pathways still remain for bold policy. The city is already planning to focus its energy and resources on other pathways to quickly transition off of fossil fuels, because, as people in both Eugene and Ashland know, there isn’t time to wait.

Now is the time for Ashland to take the lead in creating new opportunities for climate action. The Ashland Youth for Electrification Campaign believes that an emissions standard for new residential buildings is the best option for Ashland because it prioritizes improving public health, provides a clear legal pathway for the city to pursue, and best encapsulates our original goals for this campaign.

We have done a lot of outreach in the community to educate and address public concerns, and have received overwhelming support. We will continue organizing.

Our planet is dying because of our actions and greed, which is why Ashland needs to step up and take action to ensure that we can have a future worth living. We must stop using fracked gas and transition to renewable energy as soon as possible for there to be a chance of stopping climate change.

Passing an electrification and clean air ordinance is a crucial next step.