JoCo leaders plan summit to address the future: A metro area rocked by climate change

When a United Nations report detailed the irreversible and long-lasting effects of global warming, Shawnee Councilwoman Lindsey Constance found herself fixating on the future of her 8-year-old daughter, Lucy.

The Weather Channel had ranked Kansas City fifth of 25 U.S. cities most likely to be affected by climate change. Scientists say more days above 90 degrees, extreme drought and heavier rains are in store for the metropolitan area.

“I flipped in my head to 2030,” said Constance, referring to the year her daughter graduates high school. “To me it was terrifying to think about the fact that we might not have much of a hopeful future.” After an international group of scientists issued the climate report in October, Constance teamed up with the city of Roeland Park and its mayor, Michael Kelly, to rally local leaders around addressing climate change in the Kansas City area.

What started off as a one-time workshop in December for those interested in studying the problem has since transformed into the Metro KC Climate Action Coalition, which received national recognition this month as it prepares to host a Climate Action Summit it hopes will draw up to 1,000 people in September.