When I imagine our region 20 years from now, I see central Virginians collectively working together for climate justice.
I left secondary school in 2008 just as the bottom fell out of the Irish economy with the bursting of the Irish property bubble. Over the years that followed, I felt the effects of economic destabilization at the hands of powerful banks and corporations as the Irish people were forced to cover private investor losses. Engaging in grassroots organizing for debt justice in my home parish of Ballyhea transformed my anger into empowerment.
Like so many of my generation in Ireland, I was forced to leave home in search of work. The years of grassroots activism for debt justice led to my passion for climate justice. I eventually came to find a new home in central Virginia after I joined C3, the Community Climate Collaborative.
Even in my short time here, I’ve seen Virginia experience the impacts of a changing climate, from Canadian wildfire smoke and extended allergy seasons to flash floods and unpredictable hurricanes. In 20 years, I see a network of communities across central Virginia that truly understand their power to fight for climate justice.
I also see a place shaped by choices made today. We’re at a turning point: the decisions we make today — about new gas plants, energy infrastructure and resource use — will shape our air, our energy costs and our climate for decades.
Here is my vision to strengthen our central Virginia communities by 2045: Charlottesville will reimagine its municipal energy utility and focus on renewable energy, affordability and sustainability. Fluvanna County will stand in its power, refusing to let a multibillion-dollar corporation more than double its impact at the expense of our land, our air and the health of our neighbors. Landowners and solar production companies will develop shared solar projects across Albemarle County that reduce energy bills, while landowners grow food or raise livestock among solar panels.
Having set a bold model for withstanding federal climate funding cuts by committing local funding after the cancellation of its EPA grant, Resilient Together — a climate planning partnership between Charlottesville and Albemarle — will establish readiness and resilience protocols that result in tighter, more connected communities across the region — and across ideologies.
These aren’t just possibilities. Through my work with C3, where I helped establish a progressive solar ordinance in Albemarle County, and where I’m supporting residents of Fluvanna County who oppose a second Tenaska power plant, I’ve seen firsthand that a different future is possible. It’s this collective work that gives me confidence to say that, in 20 years, central Virginia can be a network of communities that truly understand their power.
Many know this, but it’s worth saying directly: harmful environmental policies in the United States have detrimental effects across the globe. Through my international work, I have heard everyday people’s frustration about the impact of the United States’ more disastrous decisions, such as its sudden withdrawal from the Paris Agreement and dozens of other agreements. Even local decisions made by the Board of Supervisors in Fluvanna County can have ripple effects, as they serve as examples for other counties and cities across the nation.
When I look around me, I see a path that gives me real hope. That path appears when the people of central Virginia choose to fight for their communities, with the understanding that local decisions impact their own lives, and also the lives of people in other communities. The answer to progress in chaotic times is not waiting for distant leaders to act — it’s community action.
For me, climate justice isn’t an abstract idea; it’s a lived commitment. True strength is resilience, and resilience is earned only when we finally come to see ourselves as one part of a whole.
The first step to creating our shared future is imagining it.
For Charlottesville Tomorrow’s 20th anniversary, we are inviting central Virginians to share their visions for the next 20 years.
