Annapolis Green is kicking off a year-long series of discussions on climate change to address the essential questions related to the global phenomena.

“Tread Lightly on the Earth” is the series title and encompasses the breadth of the topics to be presented starting Wednesday, with considerable help from co-sponsor Hannon Armstrong, an Annapolis firm that supports alternative energies, and other sustainable practices through investment.

“It is clear that the climate is changing rapidly,” said Elvia Thompson, president of Annapolis Green. “The Chesapeake is already being affected by sea level rise, severe weather and other aspects of Climate Change. But what does this mean to the average person?”

Thompson said climate change is a huge subject jammed with multiple issues.

“But we are taking one bite at a time in this series,” she said. “And our goal is to talk about the issues in layman’s terms, so everyone can access the information and act.”

She said the effort is aiming at people who are really not in touch with the subject. Who ask,’Here I am just one person, what can I do?”

Thompson said the series hopes to help people leave with a positive note.

“There are things you can do,” she said.

She said one thing the series of discussions won’t be is political. “Science is not political. Science is science,” she said.

The first topic is “Climate Change 101: What does it mean to me?” and begins at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Maritime Museum.

Speakers include Astrid Caldas, a senior climate scientist with the Climate & Energy program at the Union of Concerned Scientists whose research focuses on Climate Change adaptation with practical policy implications for ecosystems, the economy, and society.

Ron Kaltenbaugh, a network engineer for a Fortune 500 company and president of the Electric Vehicle Association of Greater Washington DC (EVADC), Chair of the Frederick County Sustainability Commission, and is a graduate of the Climate Reality Corps

Thompson, co-founder and president of Annapolis Green, and a well-known speaker on environmental issues. Retired from federal government service, she is active in local environmental issues and is a Master Watershed Steward and a graduate of Leadership Anne Arundel.

Charlotte Wallace, is a community health nurse and Sustainability Coordinator at Anne Arundel Medical Center. Her passion for pediatrics and the environment has led her to initiate and chair the environmental health program at AAMC.

The moderator is Dave Buemi, who spent the last 22 years in solar and renewable energy globally provides a unique perspective on the challenge of energy as the main driver of climate change.

pfurgurson@capgaznews.com