There Is No Climate Refuge Except in Each Other: Flooding and Mutual Aid in Vermont

On Monday, July 10, 2023, residents throughout the northeast were flooded by a 1-in-100 year storm, brought on by the climate crisis. A few days later, intense rainfall continued to hit the region, flooding additional towns, washing out roads, and impairing relief efforts that were already underway. Some of the worst flooding took place in Vermont, a state known as one of the best areas to survive climate chaos, demonstrating that no region is safe from the impacts of humanity’s addiction to fossil fuels and ecocidal economics. But as people’s trust in a geographic refuge has weakened, trust in an interwoven, multi-dimensional refuge made up of our love and solidarity for each other is strengthening.