A Synopsis of excerpts from Under the Sky We Make
In February the Environmental Justice Team hosted a book discussion of leading global sustainability scientist, Kimberly Nicholas, PhD’s book, Under the Sky We Make: How to Be Human in a Warming World. We had a solid turnout and heartfelt discussion, but this book is just too important to not tell more people about it.
Under the Sky We Make explains that even though climate change is really upsetting and makes many feel helpless and hopeless, there are lots of things we all can do to lessen the impact of climate change, and we really need to do them right now. I urge everyone to read or listen to this book, or even just the 6-page bullet pointed summary at the end. If the description of the current status of the planet is too upsetting, skip that part and move right into the suggestions for how to mitigate climate disaster, adapt a regenerative mindset, and promote the safe and stable environmental conditions necessary to civilization.
Dr. Nicholas points out our feelings of fear, helplessness and hopelessness about climate change are totally normal and valid so we need to allow ourselves to feel them, express them, and discuss them with supportive people we know. But then, basically we need to blow our noses, wash our faces and get to work. Fast. She also points out that joining communities acting to stop the climate from dangerously destabilizing, such as 350.org, which provides one with a group of people with whom to discuss all these things, and that these communities inspire and motivate people to do the work and persevere. We are lucky to have the Environmental Justice Team right here at Edwards to support us around these issues and encourage each other to continue the work.
Many already know that we need to organize, protest, and vote to get our governments to set strict limits on the fossil fuel industry as we diminish our reliance on fossil fuels. We need to push government to invest in, support and utilize alternative energies. We must demand government hold big oil and industry accountable for pollution, and end subsidies to industries such as airlines who are not taxed for fuel.
Agricultural subsidies also worsen the problem of industrial cattle and pork farms which pollute air and waterways and sicken nearby communities. We can push to create societal change by writing our representatives, contacting companies directly, sending editorials to the paper and online forums, and organizing others to do the same.
Dr. Nicolas’s research has found that the “big actions that can cut today’s emissions fast are going flight-, car-, and meat-free…These actions are the personal versions of the systemic changes needed to overhaul the transport and food systems to stabilize the climate.” These changes may feel dramatic for most Americans so she recommends picking the one that is the most feasible and “aim to cut it in half.” To find out the extent one contributes to the problem fill out a survey online. (One interesting tool is the CoolClimateCalculator from the University of California Berkeley. Check it out at https://coolclimate.org/calculator.)
I know how hard it can be to make big changes so I recommend taking any small steps you can in a sincere effort to do what you can to help the planet. I tried the vegan challenge Edwards supported last spring and found the Vegan support group really helped my “growing pains” as I changed my meat loving ways. I was surprised at how many vegetarian meals I continued to prepare over the course of the whole year after the challenge was over, and this year I did “Plant Forward March!” It is still a challenge for me, but we are off beef and nearly off pork, and we have at least one vegetarian meal a week (and we don’t feel hungry!) Most of our meat eating is just habit. I find I can mimic the flavor profile by using chicken or beef flavored bouillon in an otherwise vegetarian soup or stew, or I use just a little bit of meat to flavor a large quantity of otherwise vegetarian meals and it quenches my craving.
Since airline travel is the fastest way to heat the planet people can try to fly only when absolutely necessary, and try to fly less if we must fly at all. We can investigate staying local when possible, and driving less if we must drive. We can also look into alternate travel means such as bicycles, electric buses, electric cars and electric trains, and pushing governments to facilitate better access to cleaner transport both locally and across the country. This means speaking up at city meetings, and voting at local, state and federal elections. I recently took a risk and joined the Climate Action Plan working group for the city. I didn’t get to do as much as I wanted, but at least my voice was heard more than it would have been if I had stayed quiet. Change is hard, but climate change is harder.
Overall, the message is to educate yourself, take action, try different approaches, get involved, and persevere. There are tons of ideas in Under the Sky We Make. Please check it out! Don’t be discouraged. Ask God to grow your faith. And take action.
Ronda Yeomans
Environmental Justice Team