What is the work that needs doing ?
To me, Greta Thunberg’s legacy will always be her chant “read the IPCC report”. She wasn’t picking random pet-projects intuitive to her, and touting them as a solution to focus on. Boomer generation’s idea of nature loving lifestyle – country side cottages, suburban lawns for green patches, anti-nuclear stance, grass fed beef, hatred for urban density, disdain for public transit, policy blindness and individualism, …. are not climate solutions. They are stale ideas that freshmen of Environmental Sciences come to unlearn during their first semester. Should we read the news and figure out the solutions on our own ? NO ! Firstly, too much climate news is detrimental to one’s mental health. Seeing the planet shoot past the critical tipping points can induce doom and gloom. Secondly, solutions are a function of science, economics, politics and policy. The experts have put in years of their life and did the work for us in exchange for our tax payer money. Are we really trying to do better with few hours of browsing the internet ? Learn from the experts on the work that needs doing. Or really really learn the field and propose solutions from first principles.
( If you are on the front lines of climate harm, it’s beyond my pay grade to write generic advice about what one should do. Local orgs know better. I live in an environmental justice community with terrible air quality, massive heat islands, car dependency and decades of underinvestment … Our local org isn’t driven by the global impact of emissions. It’s sole focus is with making lives safer for us asap. )
My Sources of Climate Education :
1. The IPCC Report
The executive summary is a 101 on the state of things as they stand.
2. Climate Scientists
Upgrade from reading hobby-bloggers to experts who can communicate well. This trio is a required minimum.
3. Carbon Commentary
A sample. Read about solutions being deployed.
4. Heated.
An intersection of culture change and politics.
5. A master twitter list.
If you have an area of interest in climate, this list might have folks who are experts.
6. Local newsletters.
Live well in one place and lead locally for impact.
( I am one of the writers of the news letter for Citizens Climate Lobby Oakland + Berkley + San Francisco chapters. It’s our duty to direct the gaze of our members to the specifics of our ecosystems. )
If you find a local letter that you like, do share with your friends and family.
To be continued. Part 3 : Organizations.