Today on the show: Ford kills the F150 Lightning EV, cancels its T3, and future electric van projects – while refusing to bring the Ranger PHEV to the U.S., promising a plug-in hybrid Lightning (EREV) to replace the EV variant – and selling its batteries to AI farms.
Plus, Europe backtracks on its ICE car ban, and President Trump’s cabinet prepares to kill one of the world’s premiere climate research bodies.
Watch the show today on YouTube or (if you’d prefer – we would) – PeerTube .
Today’s show is sponsored by the Electric Vehicle Association! Join up to support the electrification of transport today!
And by Energy Sage! Plan your energy independence and insulate yourself from rising energy costs today!
And by you! Stick around to find out how you can help us remain one hundred percent independent!
Welcome back to another episode of TEN — Transport Evolved News! Thanks for joining me for an episode that, I’m afraid, will be a little bit of a hot take and include some strong four-letter words… so a warning if you’re watching with folks who may not need or want to hear that. I hope you are safe, well, and with people you care about who also care about you. And welcome to the last regular edition of TEN for twenty twenty five. You made it. Have a hug, a juicebox and a cookie – sorry AndMayhemEnsued, I’m borrowing that for today as we all need it.
Someone who isn’t getting a cookie or a juicebox is the CEO of Ford. Just two weeks after visiting the White House for an announcement promising the rolling back CAFE standards, he’s confirmed the death of Ford’s F150 Lightning.
That’s right. America’s best-selling electric pickup is dead. The company blamed its lack of profitability, but many, myself included, would disagree on the real reasons… (There’s a video coming on that thorny topic over the holidays.) In its place, Ford plans a future F150 Lightning range-extended EV — aka plug-in hybrid — similar to the RamCharger, something that will increase complexity, probably price, and decrease practicality. Most existing owners are furious. Ford says a compact EV pickup is still coming, but the long-promised T3 pickup is now dead. While the company seems to be leaning into plug-in hybrids, it won’t bring a plug-in hybrid Ranger to the U.S. I am, as you can probably tell, more than a little angry over this. It’s two thousand and four all over again.
More bad news next – and sorry – this will be a trend today, hence the cookie comment – from Europe, where the European Union Commission has bowed to political pressure and lobbyists, and revised its twenty-thirty-five goals for the auto industry.
Originally, the body had stood steadfast against attempts to roll back its planned twenty-thirty-five ban on the sale of all new internal combustion engine vehicles, but now, it’s looking like the ban will be replaced by a CO₂ reduction target of ninety percent compared to twenty-twenty one for twenty twenty five. That translates to fleet emissions of eleven grams of CO₂ per kilometer, instead of zero. Moreover, because it’s a fleet average, it means heavily polluting vehicles are now technically possible, allowing automakers to continue to make and sell internal combustion engines beyond twenty thirty-five. However, the new proposed rules would stipulate that those emissions will need to be offset by the use of emissions credits. Yeah, I know, we’ve been here before. Automakers will apparently get credits if they use green steel or biofuels and e-fuels for their vehicles. I really hate this timeline.
That said, this new regulation from the EU Commission, if voted in – and I want to be clear, it’s not been voted in yet – could come with some good news: improved incentive for automakers to make small, efficient EVs.
And while, let’s be clear, there’s no real, steadfast way to replace a target of zero grams of CO₂ with eleven grams that doesn’t result in less pollution – the new credit scheme proposed would give automakers bonus points if they made small EVs shorter than four point two meters (just under fourteen feet). These vehicles would count as more than one car – about one point three cars – in fleet emissions calculations, meaning an automaker could technically make lots of small EVs to help offset a few larger ICE models. At least, that’s my understanding of it. There are also proposed changes designed to promote more electric company fleets, and a tweaking of CO₂ regulations for trucks. The EU Commission says it believes electric is the future, but… it’s also bowing to pressure from automakers claiming they can’t make the vehicles they already are so… go figure.
These proposed changes, along with the <insert expletive here> policies in the U.S. mean that our global emissions won’t be lowering anywhere near as quickly as they might – and this week, Transport and Environment published figures showing just how bad these changes in policy will be.
The organization states that, having run the numbers on the new EU Commission proposals, automakers could theoretically get away with up to forty-six percent of their annual sales being plug-in hybrids while still meeting the eleven grams of CO₂ per kilometer target. How? Well, importantly, vehicle emissions figures are calculated by WLTP test cycles, and those test cycles are notoriously inaccurate for plug-in hybrids. According to T&E’s own analysis over the last ten years or so, plug-in hybrids can emit up almost five times their claimed emissions, since they tend to have shorter-range battery packs and turn their engines on for very short periods of time, meaning the engines are never properly warmed up – and during that cycle, produce more pollution. If it sounds like a clever accounting trick at the hands of automakers and politicians, you’d be right. It is.
By now I’m guessing you’d all like some good news, and here’s some now: the Volkswagen I.D. Polo is being readied for production, and Volkswagen says it will be offered in four guises.
Due to launch in twenty twenty six, the MEB-based compact car will get a choice of eighty-five kilowatts, ninety-nine kilowatt- or one hundred and fifty-five kilowatt front wheel drivetrain, while the ID. Polo GTi, due later in the year, will top that out with one hundred and sixty-six kilowatts. The two last powerful variants will get a thirty-seven kilowatt-hour LFP battery pack with a ninety kilowatt DC fast charging capabilities, while the more powerful variants will get a fifty-two kilowatt-hour NMC battery pack supporting up to one hundred and thirty kilowatts DC fast charging. On paper, this sounds exactly what we need more of, but until those cars are on the road, we’ll not know for sure how successful Volkswagen has been in bringing its iconic Polo into the electric age.
One of the oft-cited reasons for anti-renewable energy folk for not wanting renewable energy deployment is the claim that electricity prices will soar.
It’s FUD we’ve seen spread far and wide this year, from individual shouty-bobs in the comments through to the President of the U.S., but this week, a new draft report from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) kicks that to the curb. As compiled with help from the Australian Energy Market Operator, it shows verifiable data of new-build electricity generation and proves that renewables don’t increase the cost of wholesale electricity – they lower it. It took current Australian grid mix generation and compared it with a shift to eighty-two percent renewables by twenty-thirty – a goal set by the current Labor government. Today, wholesale electricity costs one hundred and twenty-nine Australian dollars per Megawatt Hour, but if that target is met, the cost would drop to ninety-one Australian dollars per megawatt hour – including transmission costs. Further, the report states that pushing for one hundred percent net zero by twenty-fifty would result in wholesale electricity prices only just above today’s cost.
Waymo has enjoyed quite the year this year, expanding its autonomous robotaxi services across the U.S. while other firms are struggling to gain market purchase. And this week, Waymo announced its next step on expanding its operations further; a massive capital raise.
As announced mid-week, the firm, which was spun out of Google’s self-driving project nearly a decade ago, is looking to raise fifteen billion U.S. dollars in a new funding round. Led by its parent company Alphabet, the company needs that kind of money in order to expand its services further, accelerate its next-generation development, and cement itself as the company people think of when the word “robotaxi” is mentioned. As Electrek noted, a funding round that raises fifteen billion could pay for a forty-times increase in its fleet, making it several orders of magnitude larger than any other autonomous electric robotaxi fleet in the world. And maybe pay for a solution to all those robotaxi standoffs residents of San Francisco are so familiar with…
The New Nissan LEAF has been on sale in the U.S. for a few weeks now – and we have one booked to review in the early part of next year. But this week, Nissan celebrated the start of local production of the same in the UK.
Like the Nissan LEAFs before it, the new LEAF will be built for the European market and the UK market at the Nissan Sunderland facility. Part of a new four hundred and fifty-million pound investment in the facility, the plant received a whole host of upgrades, including new presses, an expansion to its laser welding facility, and a robot in the assembly line that can install a battery into a LEAF – including tightening all bolts – in fifty-six seconds. Nissan also says its LEAF battery packs will be produced at a new facility adjacent to the Sunderland Plant. Operated by AESC – a long-time partner of Nissan’s EV production – the new facility is said to be a significant improvement over the old AESC battery plant used for previous generation LEAF cells.
While twenty twenty five has been something of a mixed year for EVs – we’ve seen records set in some places while EV support has been gutted elsewhere – one of the most frustrating things about this job has been the almost constant stream of automakers announcing cutbacks on EV production and sales.
That’s been nowhere more obvious than in the U.S., where an anti-EV president has cajoled and threatened to stifle the growing EV market. But this week, as other automakers are going back to fossil fuel, Hyundai’s CEO Jose Munoz told the Atlanta Business Chronicle that the company is committed to expanding its EV investments in the U.S. Commenting that the way to overcome the President’s import tariffs was to boost domestic production, he confirmed that the company plans to expand its production capabilities at its Metaplant in Georgia, despite the horrid immigration raids that took place there this summer. Now, while some outlets are claiming this as a total victory for EVs, I’m going to be a little more circumspect: while Hyundai has promised dramatic EV investment in the coming years, it would be remiss of me to not mention that the firm also has a roadmap to expand hybrid production at the Metaplant… so… either I’m feeling very burned, or particularly cautious. You’ve been warned.
And finally for this segment, some more bad news at the hands of the U.S. Administration. Yeah — aside from ramping up tensions with Venezuela, driving up healthcare costs, and having already announced bans on gender-affirming healthcare for trans kids, the White House did something else this week: killed climate research.
Specifically, Russell Vought, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, has announced that the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder Colorado will be disbanded, calling it quote “one of the largest sources of climate alarmism in the country,” end quote. For those unaware, it was Vought who was the primary author of Project twenty twenty-five, the tome that President Trump disavowed until he was inaugurated. To say that the NCAR’s research has been pivotal to global climate science would be an understatement, and its gutting – and the erasure of years of research – is something that we cannot easily rebuild. If you’re a U.S. Citizen who voted this particular dictator and his cronies into the White House, I really hope you get a visit from Jacob Marley next week. Because… Fuck… if you won’t listen to the living, maybe you’ll listen to the dead.
We’ll have our recall reminders and news shorts in a moment, but first a word from show sponsor, Energy Sage!
Energy Sage connects you with local, verified solar installers across the United States — and now heat pump specialists in select markets — who really know their stuff and can help guide you through installing solar panels or getting a heat pump. Not a homeowner? No worries. Energy Sage can still help you green your electricity by joining a community solar program!
We used Energy Sage ourselves when looking for installers willing to put solar panels on our roof, and their verified pros were knowledgeable and even introduced us to a great credit union to finance the project with low monthly payments.
By now you’ll have missed the boat on tax incentives, but energy costs are rising at a scary rate – and are only expected to go up even more as the Trump Administration tries to stop renewables – so if you want to generate your own electricity… now’s the time!
Follow the links below to sign up for Energy Sage’s free, no-obligation service and get started today! And if you choose an Energy Sage installer, we’ll receive a small referral fee — so you’ll be helping us too! Help the grid get greener, save money, gain energy independence, and support our show — it’s a win-win-win-win!
We’re off to Recall Reminders now — and full details are on our website if any of these affect you!
Mercedes-Benz is recalling its high-end AMG EQE SUV to address noncompliance with its pedestrian warning system. A dealer-installed update to the Acoustic Vehicle Alerting System will fix the issue.
Zero Motorcycles is recalling just seven of its DSR and DSX motorcycles to fix an issue with incorrect fasteners fitted to the motor controller system that can lead to a loss of drive power
And finally for the recall reminders, Ford is recalling its all-electric e-transit over an issue with the half shafts and primary drive units used during manufacturing. According to the recall, the half-shafts may be incorrectly inserted, leading to an increased risk of failure and vehicle rollaway.
And those are your recall reminders! Now it’s time for our news shorts. Like our recall reminders, full details of all stories are on our website.
The UK Royal Mail has just celebrated adding its eight thousandth electric vehicle to its delivery fleet. The eight thousandth vehicle joined its Nottingham North Delivery office last week.
The European Union and China have resumed talks on minimum electric vehicle pricing for Chinese-made EVs imported to the EU. It would replace EV import tariffs currently levied against Chinese cars.
Bristol-based battery specialists Anaphase has successfully closed a new funding round with one point four million pounds from the Innovate UK Investor Partnership Program. It will use the funds to expand its DCP technology platform for dry composite powders for NMC cells.
Stellantis has officially delayed the start of Fiat Grande Panda EVs in the UK. Even though it just opened the order book, it says it’s pushing back the UK launch to March to deal with demand elsewhere.
Scania has delivered its first eight by four all-electric heavy tipper with two steerable front axles to LKAB in Sweden. The truck will work at the facilities mine in Malmberget.
Renault has announced it is dropping its entire Mobalize program, choosing instead to integrate Mobilize’s charging station component directly into Renault’s commercial vehicle arm.
As Ford kills off the F150 Lightning, it’s been left with a massive factory capable of making batteries it no-longer needs – so it’s announced it is going to pivot to making battery packs for AI Data Centers instead.
Seattle-based electric bicycle company Rad Power Bikes has officially filed for bankruptcy. Blaming import tariffs and a recent recall, it is hoping it will attract a buyer soon.
Chinese brand Nio has announced it will be entering into the Thailand market next year with three new brands for the country. Its Nio, Onvo, and Firefly marques will all go on sale in Thailand for the first time.
Lucid and KACST have opened the Middle East’s first electric vehicle innovation centre. Located in Saudi Arabia, the facility will focus on EV and autonomous vehicle development.
Chinese brand Changan has expanded its sales into Italy, Spain and Denmark for the first time. The Deepal S05 and S07 are already on sale in Italy and Spain, with deliveries due to start imminently in Denmark.
EVGo has announced that it’s been able to accelerate its EV charging station deployment this year by utilizing the prefabricated modular skids it announced last year. Forty-percent of its installations this year relied on prefab deployment.
I know you’re probably fed up of the Ford nonsense, but in addition to cancelling the F150 Lightning and T3 this week, Ford also cancelled its future electric van. Instead, it’s focusing on gas and hybrid models.
LAZ Parking North America’s largest private parking operator – has announced a strategic investment in Epic Charging. The two aim to deploy fifty-thousand Level 2 charging stations across LAZ sites.
Kia’s been offering purchase discounts on its EVs in the U.S. for some time, but this week we learned it’s spreading to other markets. Deals vary from country to country, but some are pretty sizable.
BYD has teased two new models in the form of the Seal 08 and Sealion 08 this week. Due to debut next year, they’re going to be fitted with the latest in BYD battery and charging tech.
BMW and Encroy have launched a new battery partnership to bring battery recycling into a closed-loop, mechanically and energy-efficient system. It was developed in-house, and allows reuse of raw materials.
The new Chair of the Commercial Vehicle Board of the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association has been announced. It’s the current CEO of Daimler Truck, who is a hydrogen fuel cell fan.
Reporting from China suggests that the country’s government is readying new policies to regulate the EV market in an attempt to stop the more than year-long EV price war. Watch this space.
Renault has officially started sales and deliveries of the Twingo E-Tech Electric. It’s available in launch markets from just under twenty-thousand Euro, depending on spec and purchase country.
Rivian has announced a new software update for its vehicles. In addition to adding apple and android smart key capabilities for compatible devices, it adds hands-off driving for GEN-2 based Rivian models.
Volkswagen has started the next-testing phase of its self-driving research vehicle. Called the Gen.Urban, it’s based on an ID. 3, and paves the way for a future vehicle with no pedals or steering wheel.
BMW has announced the successful checking of its new production line in Munich for its next-generation Neue Klasse EVs. It will begin series production of the i3 there in the second half of next year.
Custom Cells in Germany has left insolvency after successful financial rescue. The saved company says funding from its new investor consortium will help it prioritize its offerings for defence and motorsport, instead of EVs and Aircraft.
Following pressure from the auto industry, the Uk has confirmed it’s going to review its zero-emission vehicle sales targets earlier than planned. It says it will not change its phase-out of ICE vehicles, but where have we heard that before?
While Ford does intend to keep producing its future low-cost EV, its planned cull of the F150 Lightning and some EV development has left it to cancel two battery contracts worth six point five billion dollars with LG Energy Solutions. The contracts were signed just last year.
QuantumScape has announced that it has signed a deal with what it describes as a “Top Ten Global Automaker” for joint development of solid state battery packs moving forward.
The European Union Commission has announced a one point six billion euro aid package to help Germany roll out fast-charging stations for electric trucks on Germany’s autobahn.
Despite reports to the contrary, electric truck firm Windrose is still very much alive, and told reporters this week that it aims to power five percent of the world’s truck fleet by twenty-thirty. That’s a tall goal.
Chinese brand Hongqi has announced it intends to introduce solid-state battery packs to its range of luxury electric cars from twenty twenty-seven. It’s been collaborating with twenty-seven partners in solid-state research.
Seat and Cupra have officially opened their new battery assembly plant in Spain. The facility is capable of assembling one battery every forty-five seconds, and will provide batteries to both Seat and Cupra production lines.
Orbit Clipper, the UK’s first fully-electric zero emissions ferry – has completed its maiden voyage on the Thames in London. It’s owned and operated by Uber Boat by Thames Clippers.
Nio has begun making right-hand drive variants of its Firefly EV, meaning it’s preparing to launch the Firefly in the UK and other right-hand drive markets. Deliveries will start next year.
The Volkswagen Group has decided to keep ID.3 and Cupra production at its Zwickau production facility longer than initially planned. The two models had been due to move to another facility.
Sweden has become the first nation to get the green light from the EU to operate a new Climate Social Plan. Funded by the EU, it will help enable EV ownership for low and middle-income households.
Renault Trucks has officially electrified one of its key logistic routes in France to facilitate parts and supply chain transportation between its factories. It’s using twenty-two Renault E-Tech T Trucks.
Chinese firm WeLion has announced that it has reached an energy density for solid state batteries in excess of eight hundred watt-hours per kilogram. Its looking to hit one thousand watt-hours per kilogram before reaching market readiness.
In a new piece on Jaguar’s Type 00 prototype EVs, Wired reported this week that the company believes that there’s a market for cars priced between one hundred and forty thousand and three hundred thousand – which is where it’s targeting the Type 00. Only time will tell.
A judge in California has ruled that Tesla’s marketing on FSD is deceptive, and called for its license to be revoked. The California DMV has given the automaker sixty days to fix its marketing, or lose its right to sell in the state.
Fortescue has celebrated welcoming its second Infinity train to its Australian mines. Each train uses regenerative braking traveling downhill with a full load to recapture enough energy to drive back up hill empty.
Lucid has officially launched its own in-house ‘reborn’ program for rectifying pre-loved models. Vehicles under six years old with fewer than sixty-two thousand miles can be eligible for the program.
Polestar has officially begun deliveries of its Polestar 4 in the U.S. and Canada. Originally, the car had been planned to launch in North America earlier, but tariffs and anti-EV policies slowed its market debut.
Motiv and Workhorse have joined forces in an official all-stock merger to try and provide a more unified front in the EV commercial truck market. Motiv’s controlling investor has become majority owner in the new company.
And finally, a new analysis from think tank Ember has shown that as of October, the average price of utility-scale battery storage costs hit sixty-five U.S. dollars per megawatt-hours in markets outside of the U.S. and China. It predicts prices will continue to dramatically fall in most of the world.
And that’s it for your news shorts, there will be more, next year!
Our final two stories are next, but first, a word from you.
For over fifteen years—ten in the U.S.—I and the TE team have been bringing you news on cleaner, greener, safer, smarter, and more equitable transportation and energy. We’re not backed by corporations, and we don’t have huge production budgets. Our tiny team—three full-time and one part-time member—works hard every week to bring you well-researched, honest content.
Since our inception, we’ve avoided taking advertorial money, and our videos focus on content, not revenue. When we started, YouTube ad revenue helped pay our bills, but as YouTube has shadow banned content creators from minority communities, and AI fluff has taken ad dollars, we’re now wholly reliant on your support through Patreon, Kofi and Mech.
But as we drag ourselves over the finishing line of twenty twenty five and ready for another year – and the anti-trans, anti-renewable, anti-EV rhetoric from the U.S. Government continues, our ability to survive on this platform is severely limited. Now, we do keep ourselves operating on a tight budget – and this year (there’s a video coming on it soon) we’ve survived. But in order for us to grow and cover increasing bills for everything from travel to healthcare costs, we need to ask all of you to help us with a big lift. We need to increase our income by about twenty percent in the next few months, or we’re going to find it increasingly difficult to survive. So if you like our content, please share it with others, engage with us on social media, and if you’re able – and I do mean only if you are able – consider supporting us from the equivalent of two fancy coffees a year. Our Patreon tiers are due to increase a little in January – so you’ve got a few weeks left to lock in the old rate. And if you do support us… thank you so very much. You’re the reason we’re still here.
And now… it’s time for those last two stories!
It feels like, this year, we’ve seen a lot of automakers in the U.S. argue that nobody wants electric pickup trucks – and using that as an excuse to slow down or stop EV production plans.
But as registration data collected multiple sources shows, EV pickup sales in other markets are actually on the rise, with both all-electric and plug-in hybrid pickup trucks gaining market interest. According to the China Automobile Dealers Association, twenty twenty-five saw record pickup truck sales in China – with many of them being all-electric or plug-in hybrid. Meanwhile, in Korea, sales of electric trucks like the KGM Musso EV are on rise – and in markets like Australia, the BYD Shark Plug-in Hybrid is selling well. So what’s the difference? Well, for a start, there’s no Cybertruck – and second, unlike American automakers, who are focusing on high-end luxury full-size pickups, other markets seem to be focusing on usable, affordable, and practical electric pickup trucks. So next time an automaker like Ford claims nobody wants electric pickups.. remind them it’s not the vehicle – it’s the price point and over-the-top features that work-truck owners just don’t want.
And finally,
And finally, the last regular story of twenty twenty five for TEN.
And what else could we finish with but the debunking of the claim that nobody wants to buy EVs. We’ve heard it so many times this year – mostly from politicians we’d prefer weren’t in power… but the actual data blows those claims out of the water.
Think Tank Ember calculated the growth of EVs this year – and it says that we’ll finish the year with EVs now accounting for one quarter of all new cars sold worldwide. What’s more, it shows that the fastest-growing markets in the world are ones you might not expect. For example, Uruguay has just hit a twenty-seven percent EV market share, while Singapore and Vietnam celebrated EV sales of forty-percent, overtaking EV sales in the EU and the UK. Thailand sold more EVs in the first three quarters of this year than Denmark, and even Turkey – a nation not traditionally known for EVs, has become Europe’s fourth largest EV market by volume. Looking deeper, Ember also detailed the nations where EV ownership is drastically reducing a nation’s fossil fuel reliance, with Brazil, the UK, Vietnam, China, India, and Indonesia representing the most environmental benefit to national emission from going electric. The U.S. might be led by an incompetent man child, but other nations are making good progress… And on that, I can happily finish today’s show.
But first, a huge thank you to the Electric Vehicle Association for sponsoring today’s show. The EVA has been advocating for electric vehicles since nineteen sixty-seven and remains firmly committed to a cleaner, greener future for all. Join the EVA today to find out how to become an EV educator, meet like-minded fans, and get help to make your own transition to electric, help that includes a low-interest loan program to help finance your next step! Find out more at myeva dot org.
And thanks to EnergySage! Follow the link below to plan your own energy-independent future before those tax credits vanish.
And thanks to you – if you can, please consider supporting us from just one dollar and fifty cents a month on Patreon. And remember that supporting us can also include sharing our content, joining our Discord chat room, promoting us on social media, or using our affiliate links — all in the down below. Oh, and for those looking to make one-off donations, don’t forget we have a PO Box – and a Ko-Fi – both of which are great ways to make one-off payments!
We publish every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday here — and every Sunday we drop two videos on Transport Evolved Take Two!
As this is the last episode of ‘regular’ TEN for this year, I want to thank all of you for watching and supporting the channel this year – and remind you that while we’re not doing any breaking-news videos for the next two weeks, we do have some great specials lined up.
Next week, we’re going to have a video on some of my side quests, an interview with two lovely folk who drove a Bolt to the Arctic Ocean, and this time next week, a special episode of some of our silliest or funniest stories of the year. It’s not a clip show, but I hope you’ll enjoy it.
The following week, we’ll be doing a video detailing how TE has done this year, my frank reaction to Ford’s cancellation of the F150 Lightning – and a special orange episode of TEN. Yeah. I’m sorry/ not sorry – but I think, as the U.S. is preparing mid-term elections next year – we need a not-so-quiet reminder of all of the horrid things that have happened to EVs and renewables this year at the hands of the orange one – and his pet billionaire. You’re free to watch… or not. And of course, Take Two is going to do its usual video drops throughout the holidays – and I’ve pre-recorded them already!
And in closing, some important words:
You are valid. You are loved. You belong. You have a purpose.
This week has seen more marginalization, more hate, and more othering of people in our lives and our communities. More bans, more threatened deportations and worse. And while the person in charge doesn’t already represent a nation or even the majority of people in it, it can be hard to want to carry on carrying on. But in order to change history – we need resistance – and intentionality.
Engage in Tactical Frivolity. Don’t surrender to fear, hate, or misinformation. That’s as true in Portland, Oregon, as it is anywhere power and greed seek to crush the will of ordinary people. Don’t buy into division and cruelty. Empathy is a skill we must practice daily to preserve our shared humanity. Just like humor, it’s an act of radical resistance.
But everyone needs time out. Unplug, get outside, dive into a good book, go gardening, or do a run, and recharge. Care for yourself and your loved ones now, so you can return ready to fight for decency, community, justice, and a better world. Let your light shine — in or outside an inflatable frog costume.
Wherever you are, whoever you are, whoever you love — you are not alone. Be an ally. Be kind. Be the change you want to see. Don’t let hate or ignorance win. Happy Holidays, and as always, keep evolving!
Source link