Senator Mike Barrett

With 12 chargers and 15 electric vans, Minute Man is “blazing a leadership path,” state Sen. Michael Barrett said.

Chasing EV goals, locals mark wins and headwinds As the state urges wider electric vehicle adoption, Concord groups are weighing their own projects.

The leaders of Minute Man Arc, a non-profit that supports people with disabilities, are excited about their recent swing toward an electric van fleet. As the state urges wider electric vehicle adoption, other Concord groups are weighing their own projects.

Brooksby Village, a senior living community in Peabody, is home to some terrific climate advocates. Members of Brooksby’s climate change committee -- Dan Greenberg, Jean Wright, and Tom Bracewell -- dropped by the State House to discuss EV chargers, solar panels, and other clean energy projects.

Some of their recent projects: collecting gifts for low-income seniors, cleaning up a local park, and organizing a food drive for the Lexington Food Pantry. Impressive stuff. Thanks to Bridge’s Heather Kinney for organizing.

If you’re looking for future presidents, Bridge Elementary School in Lexington is a good place to start. I met with fifth graders from Bridge's student government program, who filled me in on what they've been working on.

We can keep pushing forward on climate regardless of the headwinds coming out of Washington. Nonprofits like Minute Man are planting the seeds of progress that will enable Massachusetts to continue decarbonizing through the Trump years.

Minute Man Arc, a nonprofit that supports people with disabilities in the Concord area, just unveiled its new fleet of electric vans. I helped lift the giant scissors at the ribbon-cutting.

“Fernald and its kin held people of all ages without their consent. It served as the site of ghastly violations of human rights. Yet much of Fernald’s story remains unknown. … This measure will enable researchers to excavate the histories of people at Fernald and elsewhere.”

“The [Special Commission on State Institutions] opened a long-neglected inquiry into the troubling history of these facilities, including the Fernald School in Waltham,” Barrett said.

The legislation, championed by State Sen. Michael J. Barrett, seeks to shed light on the untold histories of thousands who lived and died in such facilities across Massachusetts.

State lawmakers pass historic bill to open records of state institutions including the Fernald school – Waltham Times Classroom, Massachusetts School for the Feeble-Minded, ca. 1890s. Courtesy Massachusetts Archives. Following decades of secrecy surrounding former state

Following decades of secrecy surrounding former state institutions for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, a new bill poised for the governor’s signature promises to open long-shuttered records, including those from the Walter E. Fernald Developmental Center in Waltham.

“I’m feeling very good, that the House and the Senate made sure that this good, kind, sensible idea did not get lost,” he said. “This should give us more confidence that government works once in a while. It certainly is working in this case.”

State Sen. Michael Barrett, who spearheaded the legislation in the Senate, said the goal of the bill is to serve families who have long been left in the dark while balancing privacy concerns.

Lawmakers poised to open up state disability records to families, researchers Gov. Healey is expected to sign legislation giving family members access to the medical records of their developmentally disabled loved ones who lived in Massachusetts institutional housing.

Massachusetts lawmakers have reached an agreement on a bill that would make it easier for family members to obtain records of their disabled loved ones who lived in institutional housing. The governor is expected to sign it into law.

Just passed in the State Senate: safeguards against book bans.

Thanks to the commission, a similar provision was filed by the Governor and included in a recent Senate bill. I’m pushing to get it across the finish line.

Thanks to Alex Green, Anne Fracht, and Hezzy Smith for a wonderful conversation.

Most of these records remain in the custody of the state, but due to privacy laws, they remain largely inaccessible to the public. One of the commission's recommendations: pass a bill that Rep. Garballey and I have filed to open these records to the public after a certain amount of time has passed.

The report, written by the Special Commission on State Institutions, found that barriers persist for members of the public -- including relatives and researchers -- who have tried and failed to access the records of people who lived and died in these institutions.

A new report sheds light on the troubling history of Massachusetts facilities for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities. Rep. Sean Garballey and I joined a panel hosted by the Harvard Law School Project on Disability to discuss it.

I joined community members at the temple to mark the fifth anniversary of the canopies’ installation.

Trump is slowing down offshore wind. Solar can step in and fill a vacuum. A great example: Temple Emunah in Lexington hosts the largest solar installation of any synagogue in Massachusetts. And half of the energy generated goes to a community solar program that others can buy into.

Joined a big crowd in Chelmsford on Saturday to demand No Kings! Lorena Betts, you and your colleagues really know how to organize. So pleased to be a part of this!

In addition to Barrett, speakers included State Rep. Carmine Gentile, Chuck Collins of the Institute for Policy Studies, Claire Karl Müller of Mass Power Forward, and Alex Chatfield and Lara Sullivan of SPJE.

Thanks to the efforts of a local group, Stop Private Jet Expansion at Hanscom or Anywhere (SPJE), the State House rally drew residents from across the state.

“In seriously entertaining this proposal, Massport is on the verge of a terrible two-fer: aiding and abetting the warming of the planet and pandering to the concentration of private wealth.”

“No way can you put in a bunch of garages for private jets and still claim ever again to be concerned about climate. This is it. This is the inflection point for Massport,” said Barrett, who represents the four towns adjacent to Hanscom.

They urged Massport to reject a proposal “to house private jets that would let a handful of super-rich people super-pollute,” in the words of State Senator Mike Barrett.

A coalition of community groups, legislators, and concerned citizens rallied at the State House on Tuesday against building multiple private jet hangars at Hanscom Field.

Photo credit: Marilyn Humphries

Jamie Van Nostrand has put the "public" back into the Department of Public Utilities. We gathered to honor him recently and to express profound thanks.

From left to right: Garrett Casey, Elizabeth Van Nostrand, Jamie Van Nostrand, host Marilyn Ray Smith, Ania Camargo, and Nathan Phillips.

Pictures from the Waltham Land Trust’s newest addition: a beautiful plot of land next to Hardy Pond designated for conservation and recreation. I joined Sonja Wadman and other WLT leaders to celebrate the purchase. Photo credit: Sonja Wadman.