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Official podcast for climate heroes from Citizens' Climate Lobby. We're creating the political will for a livable world.
Episodes
Thursday Aug 25, 2022
Thursday Aug 25, 2022
Adrian Rafizadeh is motivated to connect with fellow young conservatives about climate change. “Polling from Frank Luntz found that 75% of Republicans under 40 support a carbon fee and dividend, which is really major,” Adrian explains in the latest episode of Citizens Climate Radio. “That 75% number is something that we're really trying to laser in on and focus on within the Conservative Caucus because there's so much potential there.” He also had advice for Progressive, Liberals, and Moderates who want to connect with climate-concerned conservatives.
When it came to US climate policy, as a high school student, Adrian Rafizadeh strongly opposed one of the first major attempts by the Democrats. The Green New Deal was introduced in 2019 spearheaded by the progressive US member of Congress Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, or AOC. The Green New Deal on the table got a lot of Conservatives thinking, talking, and writing about climate change, including Adrian.
While writing a paper for a class, Adrian sought to debunk the Green New Deal. In doing so, Adrian suddenly saw the issue of climate change differently. He recognized the seriousness of the problem the USA and the world face, and he decided he needed to do something about it. That set Adrian on a quest to find a way to address climate change that also fits into his world view and politics. Adrian politically leans right, and he is a member of the Republican party.
Adrian, a child of Iranian immigrants, shares his climate journey with us. He reveals how he found his way into a climate organization, and he tells what Progressives who want to engage Conservatives in climate conversations can do to open up a dialogue. He talks about one of his favorite climate solutions, carbon fee and dividend.
Adrian Rafizadeh is an incoming student at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. You can learn more about Conservatives engaged in climate work by visiting CCL Conservatives.
If you want to hear more conservatives talking about climate, check out RepublicEN’s EcoRight Speaks Podcast.
The Art House
Randi Hacker is the author of the children’s book, Life on a Different Planet, A Climate Crisis Handbook. The book opens with words in large bold letters that spell out, Welcome to the End of the World. Turn the page to see someone edited the sign to say, Welcome to Beginning of the New World.
Since the early 1990s, Randi has published books and magazines designed to help young people learn about environmental issues and climate change. In the Art House she explains how with all her work she seeks to be honest with young people about the problems we face while also giving them ideas for concrete actions they can take.
Life on a Different Planet, A Climate Crisis Handbook is full of original art work by Ron Barrett, the artist who illustrated the award winning book, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. The illustrations bring a sense of whimsy and playfulness to book while also helping readers come close to hard realities.
Other Resources for Children and Parents
- Citizens’ Climate Education Presents Climate Classroom! This is a flexible, multi-disciplinary middle school curriculum. It is designed to give students a toolkit of advocacy skills for climate solutions.
- What Do We Tell the Children? Episode four of Climate Changed featuring Pacific Islander poet Craig Santos Perez. Ben Yosua Davis chats with P Craig about parenting in a climate changed world.
Click here for a transcript of this episode.
Good News Report
We have two Good News Reports. Nate Abercrombie, Conservative Outreach Coordinator for Citizens Climate Lobby, shares recent successes from CCL’s Conservative Caucus and tells us about a new campaign to reach out to Utah Conservatives.
Dana Nuccitelli, a Research Coordinator at Citizens Climate Lobby Tells us about a very big piece of legislation. The Inflation Reduction Bill passed in both houses of congress. President Joe Biden signed it into law earlier this month. Dana tells us why this bill is so good for the climate. He also talks about possible next steps. To read more about the bill and to read more of Dana’s analysis, check out The Nerd Corner.
If you have Good News to share, email radio @ citizensclimate.org We always welcome your thoughts, questions, suggestions, and recommendations for the show. Leave a message on our listener voicemail line: (619) 512-9646. +1 if calling from outside the USA that number again. (619) 512-9646.
NEW! Listener Survey
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You can hear Citizens’ Climate Radio on:
Also, feel free to connect with other listeners, suggest program ideas, and respond to programs in the Citizens’ Climate Radio Facebook group or on Twitter at @CitizensCRadio.
Monday Aug 15, 2022
Monday Aug 15, 2022
EJ Baker (they/them) and Rae Binstock (she/her) tell us about Good Energy Stories, a story consultancy for the age of climate change. Their mission is to inspire, support, and accelerate stories in scripted TV and film that reflect the world we live in now —and help us envision a better tomorrow.
They talk about the kind of stories and approaches to storytelling that move audiences to feel empathy for those suffering and an enthusiasm for solutions that make the world a better place.
Rae Binstock is a playwright and screenwriter. Her plays include That Heaven’s Vault Should Crack (The New Group, Lark Development Center, T. Schreiber’s Studios), Land of No Mercy (Landing Theatre Company, Salt Lake Acting Company, Princess Grace finalist), and WALKERS (The Shelter, O’Neill Conference semifinalist, Jerome Fellowship finalist). Her work has appeared in Samuel French Off-Off Broadway Festival, Jewish Plays Project, and the Fresh Fruit Festival, among others. Rae’s pilot Homecoming was selected for the 2020 WriteHer List, and she is a two-time semifinalist for the Sundance Episodic Lab.
Rae is a Dramatists Guild Fellow, a Rita Goldberg Playwrights Workshop Fellow at the Lark, and a 2019 NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellow. She has attended numerous residencies, including the Kimmel Harding Nelson Center, the Helene Wurlitzer Foundation, PLAYA Summer Lake, and the Ragdale Foundation. Rae served as the Writers’ Assistant on both FX Networks’ FOSSE/VERDON and Apple+’s shows Schmigadoon and IF/THEN. She is also one of the two authors of the Climate Storytelling Playbook, a writing guide for climate change stories published by Good Energy. She lives in Los Angeles with her cat, Black Cat.
As creative director, EJ Baker talks about the unique color palette they chose for the Good Energy website. They explain why you will not find a spot of green anywhere! They are a co-founder of Maybe Ventures, an art and strategy collective focused on envisioning more just, sustainable, and beautiful new worlds. EJ’s work has been featured in Fast Company, Variety, Typewolf, and Fonts in Use. Hailing from the forests of upstate New York, they now live amongst the urban cottontails and sidewalk dandelions of Somerville, MA.
Monday Aug 01, 2022
Monday Aug 01, 2022
Speaking with five different guests, host, Peterson Toscano, takes a deep dive to explore how climate change and extreme weather affect lesiban, gay, bisexual, transgender, gender non-binary, and queer (LGBTQ+) people.
Leo Goldsmith (he/him) is one of the co-authors of Queer and Present Danger: Understanding the Disparate Impacts of Disasters on LGBTQ+ Communities. Together with Dr. Michael Mendez, Assistant Professor of Environmental Planning and Policy at the University of California, Irvine Vanessa Raditz from Out in Sustainability who is a PhD student at the University of Georgia, they researched the unique vulnerabilities of this community in disaster relief; the myth of gay affluence; how faith-based groups have a history of discriminatory practices in disaster relief; how cohesive is the LGBTQ community and how race is a problem even in LGBTQ groups. Leo also provides practical ways community members and leaders can build stronger, more resilient LGBTQ+ communities that can bounce back from extreme weather events.
Nokwanda Maseko (she/her/they) is a South African economist who identifies as a Queer Black person. As senior economist at Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies, she has written position papers about what a just transition can look like, especially for women and the large sector of the Black South African population who because of unemployment and informal employment are not often part of the conversations around just transition.
Isaias Herandez (he/him) aka Queer Brown Vegan was born in Los Angeles, California, also known as Tongva Land. As someone who grew up in a community that faced environmental injustices, Isaias developed an interest to learn about his environment. Living in Section 8 affordable housing, using food stamps growing up, and witnessing pollution affect his body. Isaias turned his anger and sadness to becoming an environmental educator. He earned a B.S. in Environmental Science at the University of California, Berkeley. He works on a variety of diversity inclusion work in environmental spaces, academic research, and creative work. Isaias’ work is centered on environmental justice with a lens of localization. Isaias works as a full-time content creator and public speaker on QueerBrownVegan.
The Art House
EJ Baker (they/them) and Rae Binstock (she/her) tell us about Good Energy Stories, a story consultancy for the age of climate change. Their mission is to inspire, support, and accelerate stories in scripted TV and film that reflect the world we live in now–and help us envision a better tomorrow.
They talk about the kind of stories and approaches to storytelling that move audiences to feel empathy for those suffering an enthusiasm for solutions that make the world a better place.
Rae Binstock is a playwright and screenwriter. Her plays include That Heaven’s Vault Should Crack (The New Group, Lark Development Center, T. Schreiber’s Studios), land of no mercy (Landing Theatre Company, Salt Lake Acting Company, Princess Grace finalist), and WALKERS (The Shelter, O’Neill Conference semifinalist, Jerome Fellowship finalist). Her work has appeared in Samuel French Off-Off Broadway Festival, Jewish Plays Project, and the Fresh Fruit Festival, among others. Rae’s pilot Homecoming was selected for the 2020 WriteHer List, and she is a two-time semifinalist for the Sundance Episodic Lab.
Rae is a Dramatists Guild Fellow, a Rita Goldberg Playwrights Workshop Fellow at the Lark, and a 2019 NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellow. She has attended numerous residencies, including the Kimmel Harding Nelson Center, the Helene Wurlitzer Foundation, PLAYA Summer Lake, and the Ragdale Foundation. Rae served as the Writers’ Assistant on both FX Networks’ FOSSE/VERDON and Apple+’s shows Schmigadoon and IF/THEN. She is also one of the two authors of the Climate Storytelling Playbook, a writing guide for climate change stories published by Good Energy. She lives in Los Angeles with her cat, Black Cat.
EJ Baker (they/them) i As creative director, EJ talks about the unique color palette they chose for the Good Energy website. They explain why you will not find a spot of green anywhere! They are a co-founder of Maybe Ventures, an art and strategy collective focused on envisioning more just, sustainable, and beautiful new worlds. EJ’s work has been featured in Fast Company, Variety, Typewolf and Fonts in Use. Hailing from the forests of upstate New York, they now live amongst the urban cottontails and sidewalk dandelions of Somerville, MA.
Dig Deeper
- Queer Communities Often Left Out of Disaster Planning, Research Shows on KQED
- Out 4 Sustainability #Qready 72 hour LGBTQ+ check list
- Climate Justice Must Include All Women from Atmos.earth
- Iranti is a Johannesburg-based media-advocacy organisation which advocates for the rights of LGBTI+ persons, with specific focus on lesbian, transgender (including gender non-conforming) and intersex persons in Africa. Iranti works within a human rights framework raising issues on gender identities, and sexuality, through the strategic use of multimedia storytelling, research and activism.
- Just transition in South Africa: the case for a gender just approach by Nokwanda Maseko (TIPS)
- It Doesn’t Have to be This Way, an LGBTQ+ climate novel by South African author Alistair Mackay. Read the interview with the author in Scaffold Culture.
- LGBTQ+ short radio plays about climate change. Bigger Love and Mentoring Session #4
- Unemployment and sustainable livelihoods: Just Transition interventions in the face of inequality by Nokwanda Maseko (TIPS)
- “Queer and Present Danger”: The LGBTQ+ Community Adapts to Climate Change. America Adapts podcast interview with Leo Goldsmith and Dr. Michael Mendez
- CCR Episode 59 Tykee James and Black Birders Week
- Understanding Non-Binary People: How to Be Respectful and Supportive from National Center for Transgender Equality
Good News Report
Leo Goldsmith tells us about QReady, a new resource created by Out for Sustainability (Out4S.) Qready began as a disaster-preparedness packing list specific for the LGBTQ+ community, which you can access below. They are now planning to expand the program to provide multi-scale offerings for individuals, organizations, and disaster professionals to foster the resilience of LGBTQ+ communities, with a focus on the needs of queer and trans Black and Indigenous people of color (QTBIPOC).
This program expansion was developed by Vanessa Raditz through a multi-year fellowship with Out4S and serves as the official Qready Project Director. Vanessa is also the director of Out4S’ first fiscally-sponsored project: “Fire & Flood: Queer Resilience in the era of Climate Change”. The completion of this project is the first step of Out for Sustainability’s expanded Qready initiative!
We always welcome your thoughts, questions, suggestions, and recommendations for the show. Leave a vall our listener voicemail line: (619) 512-9646. +1 if calling from outside the USA that number again. (619) 512-9646.
You can hear Citizens’ Climate Radio on:
Also, feel free to connect with other listeners, suggest program ideas, and respond to programs in the Citizens’ Climate Radio Facebook group or on Twitter at @CitizensCRadio.
Thursday Jun 23, 2022
Thursday Jun 23, 2022
We are celebrating the sixth anniversary of Citizens Climate Radio, and a big theme you will hear in this episode is about break-throughs and transformations. From the very beginning, Citizens Climate Lobby’s mission has been to create the political will for a livable world by enabling individual breakthroughs in the exercise of personal and political power. That was definitely the theme in the very first interviews Citizens Climate Radio’s host, Peterson Toscano, conducted with Marshall Saunders, founder of CCL, and Mark Reynolds, the organization’s first executive director.
Peterson decided to revisit these interviews, remaster them, and share them with you. Marshall and Mark’s personal stories of transformation are inspiring and at times hilarious, especially when they talk about the first tentative and even ridiculous steps they took to start the organization. Their belief in the power of everyday people doing extraordinary things will move you. In fact, you may want to have some tissues nearby as you listen to Marshall and Mark share their stories, and the story of Citizens Climate Lobby’s beginnings.
Madeleine Para, CCL’s current executive director was also featured in that first episode. You will hear her original vision for this podcast.
From the recent past we bring the story forward to today. You will meet one of the newest Citizen’s Climate staff members. Steffanie Munguía is a PhD student researching Coastal Wetlands Management in the Caribbean, her first home. She gives us an update of the many ways the organization has changed over the years all while staying faithful to CCL’s core values of Optimism, Integrity, Relationships, Personal Power, Diversity, and a constant commitment to bipartisanism. These are the values that draw more and more college, high school, and middle school aged volunteers into the organization.
The Art House
Jodi Heights is a singer/songwriter. In the sea of singer-songwriters, Jodi stands out. Not only does she have a classically honed technique that captures a Broadway style in her voice, and contemporary rock in her piano playing, she also writes brilliant lyrics that dive deep into everyday life. Her songs can be playful and heartbreaking.
Recently she was moved to write a song about our world, which is being rocked by the impacts of climate change. In The Iceberg she imagines an alien classroom in the future looking back to the history of earthlings and the lessons they can draw from human error. Jodi tells us about The Iceberg and then performs it for us.
You can hear standalone version of The Art House at Artists and Climate Change
Good News Report
You will hear about a brand new climate curriculum for schools. It will provide engaging, informed, and action-driven lessons for middle-school teachers and students. Sharon Bagatell, Citizens Climate’s National Youth Action Team Coordinator first announced the completion of the new curriculum at this month’s Citizens Climate International Conference. She tells us about the project and just how special the curriculum will be for teachers and learners.
If you have good news to share, contact Peterson radio @ citizensclimate.org
We always welcome your thoughts, questions, suggestions, and recommendations for the show. Leave a vall our listener voicemail line: (619) 512-9646. +1 if calling from outside the USA that number again. (619) 512-9646.
You can hear Citizens’ Climate Radio on:
Also, feel free to connect with other listeners, suggest program ideas, and respond to programs in the Citizens’ Climate Radio Facebook group or on Twitter at @CitizensCRadio.
Thursday May 26, 2022
Thursday May 26, 2022
In today’s show we hear from Conservatives who are concerned about climate change. Not only are they concerned, they are engaged in meaningful action. Hannah Rogers, Trevor Jones, and Kaleb Christensen are three young people with ties to the State of Utah who are part of a growing movement in that State. They are each members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Fusing faith, hope, love for humanity and all nature, these young Conservative Christians are finding their places in the climate movement.
People of faith play a vital role in talking about the causes and impacts of climate change. They also are an essential part of the growing group of citizens and leaders stepping up to propose and pursue solutions. Our guests tell us about their faith and what motivates them to pursue Conservative climate solutions. They also reveal what they bring to the climate movement and why it is essential that they have a seat at the table.
To some they may seem like outliers, Conservatives concerned about climate change. According to a recent Gallup poll of Republican and right-leaning people ages 18-29 reveal that almost two thirds of them acknowledge climate change is caused by humans. Many of these young Conservatives are concerned about this. Older Conservatives though are not on the same page. And Progressives can be dismissive of Conservatives in the climate movement. Hannah, Trevor, and Kaleb believe the LDS Church has a unique role to play in the Republican party and the Conservative movement.
The Art House
You will learn about The Cli-Fi Imaginarium. A group of climate advocates in the UK were tired of so much talk about dreadful climate impacts, and not enough conversations and resources that address actual solutions. They decided that they are over dystopia. Using some of the solutions outlined in Project Drawdown, they organize free monthly on-line workshops for anyone to come and they imagine, What if? In these Intro to Cli-Fi Workshops, they ask, What if we incorporated one of these solutions? How will the world change? How will the neighborhood change?
Some of the topics include District Heating, Tree Intercropping, Refrigeration, Reducing food waste, Alternative Cement, Tidal energy, and solar thermal water. While attending one of the Intro to Cli-Fi Workshops, Citizens Climate Radio’s host, Peterson Toscano, was surprised to see how such wonky solutions inspired engaging creative writing.
Anyone who attends the workshop is eligible to submit a story to the Cli-Fi Imaginarium.
This is a storehouse of creative, inspiring, and sometimes very funny stories all envisioning a world filled with practical and highly effective climate solutions. If you need a shot of inspiration and a positive vision of our future, visit The Cli-Fi Imaginarium.
You can hear standalone versions of The Art House at Artists and Climate Change.
Good News Report
Our Good News Story today comes from Nate Abercrombie, Conservative Outreach Coordinator for Citizens Climate. He has good news to share with us about a recent event that brought Conservatives from all over the country to Washington, DC to talk about climate solutions. The event was a huge success.
In other Good News, Eric Fine, the group leader of the CCL chapter in Greater New Haven, CT told us about a new limited series podcast all about carbon pricing. We hear from Casey Pickett and Naomi Shimberg, hosts of Pricing Nature. They tell us about the show and share some of the conversations they are having.
If you have good news you want to share on the show, or if you have an idea for the art house, email Peterson. Radio @ CitizensClimate.org. Or leave a message our NEW listener voicemail (619) 512-9646
Connect with other listeners, suggest program ideas, and respond to episodes in the Citizens’ Climate Radio Facebook group or on Twitter at @CitizensCRadio.
You can hear Citizens’ Climate Radio on:
Thursday Apr 28, 2022
Thursday Apr 28, 2022
In this episode you will hear a lively conversation between our host, Peterson Toscano, and four South African veterinarians. Like many climate advocates, Peterson couldn’t help himself, and asked Kristine and Roy Page along with their friends and fellow veterinarians Adrian and Ashleigh Tordiffe about climate change in South Africa and how it is affecting household pets and wild animals.
The conversation is rich, informed, and at times hilarious. You will learn about pets in South Africa, and about the many ways animal lovers everywhere can protect their pets from extreme heat, extreme cold, and vector-born illness spread by fleas and ticks. You will hear about the North American ticks that strikes fear in the hearts of all meat-loving South Africans.
Adrian is an academic and researches wildlife populations, and tells us about the adorable and very loud bush baby (also known as galago.) It is one of the very few nocturnal primate, and has two completely diets. In the rainy season it eats fruits and insects, and in the dry month it consumes plant gums produced by certain trees. Twice a year it has to completely transform its digestion system to accommodate its diet.
In addition to demonstrating the signature shrieking sounds the bush baby makes from high up in the trees, Adrian also tells us about how extreme heat and extended drought is making life harder for these amazing creatures.
Join Peterson for a beautiful summer day braai, on the back stoop of Roy and Kristine’s home, as their many dogs roam around and the children play nearby. Joining the four veterinarians is Glen Retief, Peterson’s husband, who grew up among wildlife in South Africa’s Kruger National Park.
The Art House
Krista Hiser is back with another installment of The Ultimate Cli-Fi Book Club. Every few months Krista Hiser shares with us her thoughts about climate-themed literature. This episode Krista looks at the 2010 satirical novel Solar by Ian McEwan.
Michael Beard is a Nobel prize–winning physicist whose best work is behind him. Trading on his reputation, he speaks for enormous fees, lends his name to the letterheads of renowned scientific institutions, and half-heartedly heads a government-backed initiative tackling global warming. While he coasts along in his professional life, Michael’s personal life is another matter entirely. His fifth marriage is crumbling under the weight of his infidelities. But this time the tables are turned: His wife is having an affair, and Michael realizes he is still in love with her.
When Michael’s personal and professional lives begin to intersect in unexpected ways, an opportunity presents itself in the guise of an invitation to travel to New Mexico. Here is a chance for him to extricate himself from his marital problems, reinvigorate his career, and very possibly save the world from environmental disaster. Can a man who has made a mess of his life clean up the messes of humanity? (Goodreads)
Krista is also responding to a hard-hitting research paper Through the Eye of a Needle: An Eco-Heterodox Perspective on the Renewable Energy Transition by Megan K. Seibert and William E. Rees.
Abstract: This analysis makes clear that the pat notion of “affordable clean energy” views the world through a narrow keyhole that is blind to innumerable economic, ecological, and social costs. These undesirable “externalities” can no longer be ignored. To achieve sustainability and salvage civilization, society must embark on a planned, cooperative descent from an extreme state of overshoot in just a decade or two. While it might be easier for the proverbial camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for global society to succeed in this endeavor, history is replete with stellar achievements that have arisen only from a dogged pursuit of the seemingly impossible
This research reveals just how tricky it is to take on climate change. It is a wicked problem with many moving parts we often do not want to see or acknowledge, but Krista encourages us to see the problems in their fullness so we respond with significant and effective solutions.
Dr. Krista Hiser is Sustainability Curriculum Coordinator for the University of Hawaii Office of Sustainability, where she facilitates change management, interdisciplinary dialogue, and professional development opportunities for faculty to design, update and transform courses to integrate sustainability across the curriculum. She serves on the advisory board for the Sustainability Curriculum Consortium (SCC) and on the Steering Committee for the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE).
You can read a written version of Krista’s essay at The Ultimate Cli-Fi Book Club for Sustainability in Higher Education.
You can hear standalone versions of The Art House at Artists and Climate Change.
Good News Report
Our good news report comes from State College, PA, the home of Penn State University.
CCL volunteer Dick Jones and the State College CCL chapter is pleased to report that State College Bureau Council unanimously passed a resolution calling on congress to pass Energy and Innovation Act. It is one of over 100 city councils to pass such a resolution including Allentown, Bethlehem, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, and York, PA.
Thursday Mar 24, 2022
Thursday Mar 24, 2022
Even when he is being serious, comedian, storyteller, and podcast host, Esteban Gast is hilarious. And for climate advocates looking for some hope, perhaps the sweetest spot in the climate change podcast scene right now is Esteban’s new show, Comedians Conquering Climate Change. Only 15 minutes each episode, he features fellow comedians who learn along with the listener. The show is made in collaboration with Generation180.
Comedians Conquering Climate Change is the funniest, friendliest, and shortest podcast addressing today’s critical climate and clean energy topics. Join comedian, writer, and teacher Esteban Gast as he enlists the help of fellow comedians to single-handedly save the planet.
Esteban joins Citizens Climate Radio host, Peterson Toscano, for a lively conversation about the podcast, Esteban’s personal journey into climate communication, and creative ways to engage people who are aware of climate change but do not know where to start. You will also hear excerpts from Esteban’s podcast.
You will laugh, learn, and feel more connected to others taking on climate change.
The Art House
Inspired by Esteban’s comic storytelling, Peterson Toscano shares his own comic story as he grapples with The Weight of Carbon Dioxide and Chihuahuas. He even tries to figure it all out by using his limited math skills, which may be a mistake. How many chihuahua does it take to make a gallon of gasoline? And how can we help people see what is invisible? His math might be a little off, but when it comes to putting a price on carbon, Peterson makes total sense!
You can hear standalone versions of The Art House at Artists and Climate Change.
Good News Report
Lori Byron a co-chair of the Citizens Climate Health Team,The team has hundreds of CCL health care professionals, along with Robert Byron and Lisa Delbuono. Lori serves the point person between the American Academy of Pediatrics and the AAP Chapter Climate Advocates.
If you have good news you want to share on the show, or if you have an idea for the art house, email Peterson. Radio @ CitizensClimate.org.
Or leave a message our NEW listener voicemail (619) 512-9646
You can hear Citizens’ Climate Radio on:
Connect with other listeners, suggest program ideas, and respond to episode in the Citizens’ Climate Radio Facebook group or on Twitter at @CitizensCRadio.
Thursday Feb 24, 2022
Thursday Feb 24, 2022
In episode Episode 9, Quaker activist Eileen Flannagan told us about four roles change agents can play. Advocate, Rebel, Organizer, and Helper. Most of you who listen to Citizens Climate Radio are advocates volunteering your time trying to convince the public and members of congress that we need a price on carbon. You approach congressional members and staff with respect and cordiality as you educate and persuade them to support climate solutions.
And the rebel? The rebel exists to put pressure on those lawmakers to get them to act.
This doesn’t mean we all need to use these rebel tactics.
As Bayard Rustin, the Black Gay Civile Rights leader said,
“We need, in every community, a group of angelic troublemakers.”
In this episode you will hear about UK-based climate change rebel, Caroline Harmon and the non-violent and very disruptive direct actions she and Christian Climate Action use. From kneeling for prayer and halting traffic in front of the Prime Ministers’s residence at 10 Downing Street to holding a worship service outside a coal. They even helped shut down bridges all over London.
From a Christian Pentecostal background, as a child she thought, “For God so loved the world…” a famous passage from John 3:16 meant that God loved the people so much so he sent his sons to save them. As a young adult though someone challenged her to think more expansively. God loves ALL the world including all of the living things on it and the rocks, air, and water. That inspired her to lower her carbon footprint, write letters to members of Parliament, lobby large companies, and contribute to awareness campaigns. For Caroline and some other fellow Christians, that was just not enough.
Hearing Caroline’s story will affirm you in your own climate work while giving you greater appreciation for rebel activists who are playing a vital part that will help us as we seek to have a seat at the table with decision makers.
You can hear and read about personal stories of Christian Climate Action activists in action and talking about why they do what they do, the successes they have had, and what they hope to change.
The Art House
Regular listeners know we feature artists who are using their art to explore climate change. This is an emerging field. Some artists are grappling with just how to integrate climate work into their works of art. Today we feature Sophie and Josies Davis, sisters who grew up on the Coast of Maine who after studying classical violin at conservatory, they are back in Maine. They seek to fuse their love of music and the natural world along with their growing concern for climate change.
Founding members of Halcyon String Quartet based in Maine, USA, they choose to be good citizens as they remain faithful to their art. In speaking with them, we identified six principles for artists addressing climate change might find helpful.
- Know your Stuff (both your craft as an artist and essentials of climate change messaging.)
- Think Locally
- Pursue Collaboration (To date Halcyon String Quartets most successful collaboration was with visual artist Jill Pelto.)
- Pivot to Solutions (Focus less on the many horrible impacts of climate change and instead help your audience experience the future with the beneficial impacts of climate solutions in place.)
- Promote Action (As Katie Patricks, the author of the book and podcast How to Save the World stressed for us on Citizens Climate Radio episode 61—Artists and event organizers have to find ways to offer people the next meaningful step for themselves and their communities.
- Remain Faithful to the Art (Halcyon seeks to straddle the balance between the old time favorites audiences love and new music, music by Black, Indigenous, and people of color. Excellence is the art is essential as they seek to help the public engage in good art and effective climate change discourse.)
About Sophie and Josie
Sophie received degrees in violin performance and environmental studies from Oberlin College and Conservatory. Playing and sharing music are integral to Sophie’s creative and professional practice. She has performed on NPR's "From the Top," at the Kennedy Center, Chicago’s Symphony Hall, the Monte Music Festival in India, and with the Jordan National Orchestra (JOrchestra) in Amman, Jordan. In 2017, Sophie was awarded a Fulbright Research Grant to spend nine months in the South Pacific island nation of Samoa where she explored the ways in which the arts can raise awareness of climate change. In addition to pursuing research, Sophie taught and performed with the National Orchestra of Samoa. Sophie divides her time between musical performance and pedagogy. She serves as violin faculty and chamber music coordinator at Bay Chamber Music School in Rockport and is the co-founder and Artistic Director of Halcyon – an ensemble dedicated to using music and art to cultivate environmental stewardship.
Josie Davis received her undergraduate degrees in violin and sociology at Oberlin College and Conservatory where she was a student of David Bowlin, and her Ed.M from Harvard University. She has performed in a wide-range of venues from Carnegie Hall to the Monte Music Festival in India and has appeared with her sister on NPR’s From the Top. She actively explores ways to share classical music in new contexts and has performed chamber music with Emanuel Ax in a taco shop, played solo Bach for Chris Thile, and is currently a member of Palaver Strings. Her teaching has brought her to Panama, India and Community MusicWorks in Rhode Island where she completed a two-year Fellowship. In past summers, she has studied at the Juilliard String Quartet Seminar, Bowdoin International Music Festival and Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival. She is committed to creating more chamber music opportunities for young people and is the founder and director of summer workshops for young people in Maine and Connecticut. As a violinist, educator and arts administrator, Josie is interested in how the arts can be used as a form of cultural empowerment to build bridges and strengthen communities.
You can hear standalone versions of The Art House at Artists and Climate Change.
Good News Report
We do not have a Good News story to share because we had so much to share from Caroline, Josie, and Sophie. We would LOVE to share good news from your own climate work or a breakthrough your group recently had.
If you have good news you want to share on the show, email me. Radio @ CitizensClimate.org. That Radio @Citizens Climate.org
You can hear Citizens’ Climate Radio on:
If you have an idea about the Art House or any other part of our show, feel free to email Peterson at @Citizens Climate.org
Also, feel free to connect with other listeners, suggest program ideas, and respond to episode in the Citizens’ Climate Radio Facebook group or on Twitter at @CitizensCRadio.
Thursday Jan 27, 2022
Thursday Jan 27, 2022
Deciding what one wants to do and be in life has often been hard for young people in high school and college. Now with a global pandemic in a time of climate change, it is more difficult than ever to answer the questions, What do you want to be when you grow up?
Many graduation speeches exhort us to Pursue our Passions, and many a parent worry that such a pursuit will lead their child into a jobless future.
Flannery Winchester was not put off by the concerns of others. She wanted to study English literature. She had no idea her skills and passion would lead her to taking on a national role in communicating to people about climate change.
As Citizens Climate Lobby’s Communications Director, Flannery Winchester trains and supports volunteers to publish written pieces in local media, appear on TV and radio. She also pitches national media, manages and edits the CCL blog, and keeps our volunteers informed and inspired through social media and regular newsletters.
Flannery came to CCL after content and marketing roles at an email marketing agency, an international software company, and a local women’s magazine in Atlanta. She began volunteering with CCL in 2015 and joined the communications department in 2017. When she’s not working, she’s probably gardening, reading, or spending time outside with her dogs.
The Art House
Krista Hiser is back with another instalment of the Ultimate Cli-Fi Book Club. This time she looks at a book that hits very close to home. She dives into the Pandemic and climate change in Emily St. John Mandel’s novel, Stations Eleven.
You can hear standalone versions of The Art House at Artists and Climate Change
Good News Report
Dr. Anthony Leiserowitz, and this is Climate Connections shares good news. Electric trucks could save lives: Pollution from diesel trucks is associated with health problems, and it disproportionately harms low-income people and communities of color.
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Monday Dec 20, 2021
Monday Dec 20, 2021
Citizens’ Climate Radio is a monthly podcast hosted by CCLer Peterson Toscano. Browse all our past episode recaps here, or listen to past episodes here, and check out the latest episode in the post below.
How can we help the public embrace the science that reveals our climate has been changing dramatically and very quickly? And more than that, how do we make them feel and experience the data so profoundly that it causes them to respond?
These are the questions UK-born artist Caroline Roberts brings to this month’s episode of Citizens’ Climate Radio, and to her art installation, the present of my life looks different under trees. This piece is an immersive installation of cyanotypes that has been exhibited at BOX13 ArtSpace and HCC Southwest in Houston, TX.
Originally from the UK, Caroline moved to Houston, Texas, 18 years ago. She explains that a story about drowned forest thousands of years ago in the UK, along with recent flooding in her city, inspires and informs her artistic work.
“The installation consists of 60 11-feet high panels, each one representing a year of Houston weather data and encircling the Back BOX like a grove of trees. Each varies in width based on the rainfall intensity, as measured by the number of days on which the total rainfall was greater than three inches: the point at which street flooding occurs. The panel color, from ice-blue to blue-black, represents the average nighttime temperature for that year. At first glance the immersive nature of this cyanotype installation provides a cool environment as Houston temperatures fall into autumn. However, a closer look gives the bigger picture: more shocking than any graph, this forest-like environment shows the story of rising temperatures and intensifying rain events.”
While Caroline started her career as a chemical engineer with the faith that science would save the environment, she soon realized that many fields and talents could contribute to environmental advocacy.
Caroline has always relied on science, and after crunching the numbers about the future of the country’s coastline due to climate-related flooding, she found herself in a state of horror and shock for weeks.
Caroline wanted people’s jaws to drop when they saw her art, which visualizes the overwhelming information she has seen predicted for the near future. As environmental conditions over time have grown worse, her installation’s fabric coincides, growing heavy and darker and colder as the fabric winds through history and to the present.
Caroline says that viewers were “gobsmacked” by her forest of fabric, and hopes that all who see her piece will contemplate the view of their own life under trees.
For more information on the data behind this installation please continue to the story and data page.
The Art House
For this month’s segment, you will hear a dramatic reading of Kamil Haque’s play, “Confessions of the Little Match Girl to the Star.” Kamil explains that in creating this piece, he chose to fracture a fairy tale, a nursery rhyme and the calling out to one’s “mama.” These common symbols of innocence form the spine of the play.
To create the heart and soul of this piece, Kamil examined and extracted pieces from the transcripts of Greta Thunberg’s 2019 U.N.'s Climate Action Summit and George Floyd’s final moments in 2020. Through these channels he explores how two people on opposite ends of the age and racial spectrum express grief and anguish at their circumstances. How might their spirit and the spirit of their message live on literally and metaphorically?
“Confessions of the Little Match Girl to the Star” was performed at The BTS Center’s Climate Change Theatre Action 2021 event. It is read by Dr. Natasha DeJarnett, a public health expert and the chair of Citizens’ Climate Education board.
You can hear standalone versions of The Art House at Artists and Climate Change.
Good News Report
Our good news story this month comes from Solemi Herandez, the Southeast coordinator for Citizens’ Climate Lobby. She tells us about her experiences at COP26 and shares good news about Climate Empowerment Article 12 of the Paris agreement. Solemi is hopeful for the future because of the involvement that she saw at COP26, and is hoping that more citizens will get engaged in climate work.
We always welcome your thoughts, questions, suggestions, good news, and recommendations for the show. Leave a voice mail at (518) 595-9414 (+1 if calling from outside the USA). You can email your answers to radio @ citizensclimate.org.
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Also, feel free to connect with other listeners, suggest program ideas, and respond to programs in the Citizens’ Climate Radio Facebook group or on Twitter at @CitizensCRadio.