In Kansas, it seems, the first rule of climate change is: Don’t talk about climate change.

That’s what EnergyNOW found in this segment (originally aired in August) on Kansas towns that have embraced renewable energy and conservation efforts in large part by avoiding politically divisive conversations about global warming.

Take, for example, Father Kerry Ninemire of Salina, who was heavily involved in the formation of Interfaith Power and Light, a religious group formed to fight climate change. Ninemire was unable to convince his own congregation to sign on with the organization (“It got associated a little bit more with the Democrat party. And Kansas is very Republican.”), but they nevertheless adopted efficiency measures that helped the church cut energy use by 10 percent.

Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy, and has led the project from its inception as Midwest Energy News in 2009. Prior to joining Fresh Energy, he was the managing editor for online news at Minnesota Public Radio. He started his journalism career in 2002 as a copy editor for the Duluth News Tribune before spending five years at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, where he held a variety of editing, production, and leadership roles, and played a key role in the newspaper's transition to digital-first publishing. A Nebraska native, Ken has a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree from the University of Oregon.

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