Letters to the Editor

Kudos to Kriegman

The article written by Mitchell Kriegman for your March 5, 2020 issue on a new vision for downtown Santa Barbara was amazing! The in-depth background, pictures of the conceptual drawings, and relevant interviews with stakeholders all combined to well-inform the reader.

Thank you for not letting the hard work that was done by so many of our most talented local architects be forgotten. I hope there is a renewed call to action based on your article. I for one will be talking about it to anyone who will listen!

Jeff DeVine
President & CEO

How We Can Help Fight Climate Change

I’m Jordan Schmoller. I’m working on student activism at my school, Montecito Union. I would like you to help me with spreading awareness about climate change and its effect on marine life. I know that many people in Montecito live by the ocean and care about it. This topic is very important to me because I play beach volleyball twice a week and do junior life guards every summer, if that is prevented because of rising sea levels, where do I play and spend a fun time in the summer then? This opportunity can really make a change in our community and maybe the rest of Santa Barbara County. If you can put something into your newspaper, I would like you to put in is:

Many people may not know the effect we have on the environment, for example when we drive our cars, leave a piece of plastic on the floor, or even just breathing. I don’t suggest you stop breathing, but maybe cut down on using fossil based items. The number one cause of carbon dioxide being let off into the atmosphere is from fossil fuel use, like burning coal, gas, and deforestation. You might be thinking “What?! Cutting down trees causes carbon dioxide to be let off into the atmosphere?” Well, yes because a tree is a carbon sink, a place that stores carbon. We use carbon dioxide every day, all of the time. I hope this article changes your mind and hopefully makes a difference in our community. Some things people can do to help out are by planting more trees, cutting down on driving your car (ride a bike or walk), and buying less plastic products.

Again, thank you so much Montecito Journal if you give me this opportunity!

Jordan Schmoller
Montecito Union School