A note from MiCCA on wildfire smoke
- MiCCA Admin
- Jul 21
- 3 min read
Updated: Jul 23
With wildfire smoke blanketing the state, I hope everyone is staying safe and keeping their spirits up. I know many of us are feeling a mix of grief and anger.
Grief: The generally temperate, pleasant summers we’re used to enjoying are now marked with increasingly toxic bouts of air. It’s saddening to think that children today and tomorrow will know the orange sun, the N-95 masks, and warnings to stay inside – as normal.
Anger: We’re frustrated that despite the experts’ calls and well-documented climate predictions, our leaders failed to prevent this. Even when the changing climate’s impact on our lives is undeniable, they are resorting to bad-faith arguments and blaming Canada while acting complacent.
Our message about the health impacts of fossil fuel pollution is more salient now than ever, so we’re encouraging you to channel your feelings into action.
Stay strong,
Teresa Homsi, MiCCA Executive Director
Contact your reps
With wildfire smoke on everyone’s mind, this is the time to contact your state representatives in support of clean energy solutions. You can find your state rep’s contact here, and we’ve created this draft message that you can personalize. You can also attach this one-pager we created for state legislators about how fossil fuels harm the public’s health.
On the federal level, you can submit this form to tell your congressional representatives to support the Energy Bills Relief Act, which proposes to:
Modernize and strengthen our electrical grid.
Take steps to protect us from data centers driving up energy costs.
Stop propping up expensive, dirty fossil fuel power plants ready for retirement
Expand LIHEAP so low-income families don’t see their heat or air conditioning shut off
Restore the clean energy tax credits that were eliminated in 2025
Join our fast-action response team
MiCCA has been fielding a lot of media calls recently related to extreme heat and wildfire smoke. I’ve already reached out to several members to see if they’re available to speak to reporters or write opinion pieces, connecting their expertise to current events. Whether it’s during smoke events, flooding, extreme heat – please submit this form if you’d like to be contacted for a fast-action response.
Review resources for health providers
For resources related to wildfire smoke, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services has an extensive page. Some highlights:
For healthcare providers, check out the Climate Resilience for Frontline Clinics Toolkit, which includes a section on wildfires
Information on how to advise patients on air quality concerns
Follow us on social media & share out our posts
We also recently published a couple of videos on how to build an effective, lower-cost DIY air purifier. Please follow us on our socials (Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, YouTube) and share these videos!
Support MiCCA
If you’d like to support our small team in getting our messaging out there, consider donating to MiCCA. If you’re a health professional and haven’t yet registered under our new self-selected membership dues system, you can do so here. Reach out to Teresa at teresa@michigancca.com for any questions about membership.
A mid-year update, in 2026 so far, we have:
Organized and participated in 35 events, reaching more than 900 individuals
Engaged with our state and federal decision-makers on 52 times
Published four opinion pieces in major outlets
Appeared in 15 news articles
We’re already on track to exceed our 2025 accomplishments, and that’s thanks to your support!
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