Climate Conversation Livestream Events

Not everything that is faced can be changed,
but nothing can be changed until it is faced.
James Baldwin

According to a 2024 EPIC-AP/NORC Public Opinion Poll, most Americans (US) believe climate change is real, although the causes they still find debatable. Despite this acknowledgment, many remain reluctant and fearful to talk about it. According to the Yale Center for Climate Communications, while over 70% of people in the US believe climate change is happening and over 60% are concerned, most (67%) rarely or never talk about their concerns with anyone (this data was gathered before the LA fires and Hurricanes and flooding in North Carolina).

Yet as James Baldwin so eloquently pointed out, any potential for change requires us to face that which we so desperately wish to avoid. These Conversations about Climate are intended to provide a safe space to befriend, witness and honor our feelings, to connect with others, and in the midst of it all, continue to face the present moment fully. These participant-directed gatherings are free from judgment without pressure to take action or come up with solutions.


This is a free, online, participant-directed conversation, open to all.

Resources

Meditations

Five Remembrances

While I have used this meditation for contemplation of death and impermanence, I believe this is fitting to help us tolerate and transform our eco- and climate- anxiety

This intention behind this meditation practice is to help us come to terms with the inevitable realities of life. Through contemplation and silent repetition of these phrases, we learn to imagine and tolerate our discomfort around these realities:

  • I am of the nature to grow old. There is no way to escape growing old.

  • I am of the nature to become ill. There is no way to escape having ill health.

  • I am of the nature to die. There is no way to escape death.

  • All that is dear to me and everyone I love are of the nature to change. There is no way to escape being separated from them.

  • My actions are the only thing I truly own. I cannot escape the consequences of my actions.

Listen Now:

Weblinks

United Nations Climate Action Page

This website not only provides information about the science of climate change (including myth busters), it also solutions, opportunities for engagement, events and further resources. If you want to be informed and take actions, this is an awesome resource.

University of Chicago EPIC (Energy Policy Institute)

Want to know what a breakdown of the the American’s (US) views on climate change, environmental policies, and more? The data is from a 2024 poll with The Associated Press–NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. View the 12 charts from the poll to see where you land.

The Work that Reconnects

This website and network is for anyone who wants to serve the healing of our world. In the words of founder, Joanna Macy, “The Work That Reconnects helps people discover and experience their innate connections with each other and the self-healing powers of the web of life, transforming despair and overwhelm into inspired, collaborative action.”

Katharine Hayhoe Climate Scientist

With each newsletter, Katharine offers the Good News, the Not-so-Good, and What You Can Do section, so you are not focused only on what is going wrong. You can learn, and you can learn how to take action.

Citizen’s Climate Lobby (CCL)

Want to get involved in your local area or beyond? The Citizen’s Climate Lobby is a grassroots, nonpartisan, nonprofit advocacy climate change organization which trains and supports volunteers on national policies to address the national and global climate crisis. From their website, “Our consistently respectful, nonpartisan approach to climate education is designed to create a broad, sustainable foundation to drive climate action across all geographic regions and political inclinations. By building upon shared values rather than partisan divides, and empowering our supporters to work in keeping with the concerns of their local communities, we work towards the adoption of fair, effective, and sustainable climate change solutions.”

Zero Podcast (Bloomberg Green)

I appreciate the interviews, writings and thought of Bloomberg Green’s award-winning climate reporter Akshat Rathi. With Zero, Akshat and colleagues confronts all the challenges of creating a zero emission world during this escalating crisis and all politics, policies and practices we face.

This is only a short list of the several organizations, scientists, reporters I follow.
Have a favorite and inspiring resources you would like to share? Email me and I will add it to the list.