Protesters Interrupt Mass. Chief Climate Officer at Radcliffe Institute Talk

Six climate protesters interrupted a conversation featuring Massachusetts Climate Chief Melissa Hoffer at the Radcliffe Institute Monday evening to challenge the proposed expansion of Hanscom Field, a publicly owned airport in Bedford, Mass.

Hoffer was speaking at the keynote session of “Power Shift,” a two-day symposium focused on the topics of energy innovation, sustainability, and equity. Protesters began chanting and took the stage with a banner reading, “No Hanscom airfield expansion, stop private jets.”

Earlier this year, the Massachusetts Port Authority proposed building 17 new hangars and storage for an additional 15,000 gallons of fuel at Hanscom, which is home to the most private jets in New England. Protesters said the proposal would raise greenhouse gas emissions and diminish air quality while benefiting the most wealthy travelers.

“You and the governor have not publicly taken a position on the expansion of Hanscom private jet facility,” one protester said. “We demand that you publicly announce opposition to the expansion.”

Hoffer expressed sympathy toward the protesters but said she would not comment on proposals actively undergoing administrative review.

“I think the first thing I wanna say is I’m not your age, and I imagine if I was, I might be doing the same thing,” Hoffer said.

“Because this is an administrative process, no one can comment on it. And that would be the same case if it were any project,” Hoffer added.

MassPort submitted an environmental impact statement on the proposal, which the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs decided did not sufficiently consider potential effects on greenhouse gas emissions. MassPort is expected to submit a revised statement.

The protesters identified themselves as affiliates of Extinction Rebellion Boston, an autonomous chapter of the international grassroots movement, Extinction Rebellion, which started in London in 2018.

The protest follows other efforts by the group to stop the expansion of Hanscom Field, including a petition with more than 10,000 signatures delivered to Governor Maura T. Healey ’92 on Oct. 2, 2023, and an act of civil disobedience in which protestors blocked planes from accessing Hanscom’s runway on Apr. 20, 2024.

Event organizers repeatedly played prerecorded messages that acknowledged protesters’ right to demonstrate but asked them not to interfere with the discussion. Soon it was announced that the remaining programming would be postponed.

Attendees responded to the announcement with a mix of emotions.

“I’m all for protest,” audience member Susan Barrett said. “I’m actually against Hanscom as well. But I also raced here after work on public transit and I really wanted to hear what the secretary had to say, not just on this but on many other topics, and I’ve lost this opportunity.”

Bob L. Keener, one of the protesters, said, “We’re trying to call Chief Hoffer’s attention to the fact that she has not made a decision, has not made any public effort to make a decision…and so we’re specifically targeting her. Unfortunately, that’s a disruption that has to happen.”

When the protest continued, attendees were escorted out of the building. The discussion ultimately resumed a short time later with a significantly smaller audience. It ended with comments on the state’s capability to be a leader in addressing the climate crisis.

“Massachusetts has led in a million different ways,” Hoffer said. “We know how to do it.”

—Staff writer Caroline E. Curran can be reached at caroline.curran@thecrimson.com.