Hi! I’ve been writing in other places this month. Below is a description of each.
Comparing Climate Narratives
The Green Web Foundation Fellowship Notebook
This essay/table/exercise shows how my understanding of sustainability evolved. At each stage, I was like, “Oh I get it now…. everything makes so much sense.” And then my understanding would shift. So this essay was hard to post & I’m afraid that I’ll find out that I’m wrong on some Twitter thread or Instagram reel, and then I’ll have to go into hiding.
Since you’re here, the main points are:
- Social injustice causes climate change — that is, slavery, colonialism, mining, manufacturing, waste exportation, etc. powers excess consumption, environmental degradation, pollution, etc.
- Climate justice is a demand for holistic, systems-transforming fairness that considers power, place, history, community, culture, systems, local ecology, and so on. It is about putting human rights first, before “efficiency” and “scale”. This might sound abstract & theoretical, but it becomes specific and tangible when you apply it at the community level.
The secret point is that there are so many traps in the way we (i.e., people like me) think about climate — like despair, saviorism, incrementalism, militancy, exoticism, techno-utopianism… I don’t think there are any sure-fire “fixes” except to (a) be aware, (b) challenge your ideas from time to time — especially the ones that feel a little self-righteous, and (c) talk & listen to people with different perspectives and backgrounds.
Climate Action Resources for Architects (CARL)
Writing full-blown, community-reviewed action guides is taking a really long time. So while we’re trying to figure out the process & network, I wanted create a simpler format to publish. This mini-guide is just a little bit of background + links. It’s a little bit like googling “climate action + [your profession]”, but I think that the curation will help folks get started. Also we’ll screen out the bullshit greenwashed content. Also, if everyone googled “climate action + [their profession]”, I would celebrate and have a pizza party.
PPPL website: Civic action over lunch
I’ve been meeting monthly with friends to talk about politics, what’s going on, and what we can do about it. The meeting is just an hour and we spend about 30-40 minutes to take action. Actions can range from learning more about a topic to writing to elected officials to nudging friends & family to vote.
It’s pretty fun since we’re all friends and it’s interesting to hear their perspectives on different issues! I recommend starting your own — the website explains how it works. I think it’s good for people who care about a lot of issues, don’t have time to join a nonprofit/activist group, and need a little extra nudge.
And that’s it! What have you been working on?
GREENWAVER 