Former Billings mayor urges Missoula residents to act on climate change; organizers seek signatures from local businesses

Chuck Tully, former mayor of Billings, told a Missoula community meeting that climate change is already affecting the planet and urged local action, offering data and practical steps people and businesses can take to reduce greenhouse gases. Tully described melting glaciers, rising sea levels and shifting ecological cycles and said familiar technologies and behavior changes can reduce emissions.

Tully, who said he has trained with Al Gore as part of The Climate Project, summarized scientific findings and trends at length and encouraged attendees to adopt multiple measures rather than look for a single fix. "If we implement all these things that we already know how to do, we can decrease our greenhouse gases," he said during the presentation.

The presentation reviewed multiple lines of evidence Tully cited, including shrinking mountain glaciers, Arctic ice cracks, rising carbon dioxide concentrations and the connection between sea-surface temperatures and storm intensity. He referenced a contemporary CO2 reading he described as "381 parts per million" and pointed to comparisons of historic photographs showing glacier retreat. He also cited economic signals such as changing market capitalization across automakers to argue that businesses that pursue cleaner technologies have market advantages.

Tully urged personal and community actions ranging from choosing higher‑efficiency vehicles and compact fluorescent or LED lighting to supporting renewable energy. He offered a concrete local example: "Just 50 windmills produce enough power for 24,000 homes," and recommended energy audits and taking incremental steps (check something you already do, add one new habit, repeat).

Anna Swanson, Montana representative for the National Environmental Trust, asked attendees to support outreach to elected officials by signing a letter from the business community to the congressional delegation. "We have a letter from the business community to the office. And if you are interested, it would be great if you could sign it and you could give it back to me and we can mail it in," she said. Swanson said the trade-letter effort was meant to show congressional offices that Montana businesses care about curbing greenhouse gases.

Organizers distributed a one‑page checklist of actions residents can take at home and at work; Tully directed attendees to the table materials and a handout at the door. During a brief question-and-answer period, attendees asked about measuring personal carbon footprints and about the strategy for scaling local influence. Tully described a strategy of training community "influencers" and mobilizing them alongside committed environmental advocates.

The meeting also included announcements for local events and volunteer efforts related to downtown and park maintenance. Organizers asked community members to consider participating in a Caras Park pavilion spruce-up day and a volunteer session to refurbish holiday decorations; attendees were given contact information to sign up.

No formal motions or votes were taken at the meeting; the presentation and the request to sign the business‑community letter were informational and intended to spur voluntary community action. Attendees were encouraged to contact elected officials and to return signed letter forms to Swanson or to organizers for mailing.