#100: 100 small steps

On small actions that contribute to big change

Jan 22, 2024

Mōrena, and happy Tuesday! We hope you’re staying safe out there in the intense heat around the country 😬 With climate scientists confirming another record-breaking year (are you sick of hearing that?), it’s clear that there’s a lot to be done in 2024.

There are two panels. On the left we see an image of Bart Simpson slouching sadly against a background of the sunset. White text across the top says “This is the hottest summer of my life.” On the right panel, Homer Simpson joins Bart, and we see him holding a finger up. The text across the image says “This is the hottest summer of your life, so far.”

Taking action can feel hard, especially when folks around you don’t seem to be as worried as you are. But the first few actions are always the hardest. Then it becomes your new normal, just another habit each week, and before long you’re doing your 100th action. These small steps contribute to big change, especially when 80% of the population cares about climate change.

Small, regular habits have been transformative for us too, as we’ve just reached our 100th issue! So this week, we thought we’d share a) how our small habit has impacted some of you, and b) how you’ve taken that and applied it to your own journeys of small & consistent climate action:

“You've been my personal springboard for a bunch of actions including emailing my KiwiSaver fund manager, emailing politicians and giving better informed feedback to the AKL have your says.”
“I don’t really have words for how important and cool it feels to me, not just the newsletter itself and the way it makes effective action easier, but the more meta part where you do this for us so that we can do stuff for everyone. It’s beautiful.”
“[Climate Club] makes wading into climate change news not just bearable but empowering.”

There are so many people who care and are giving climate action a go, often for the first time, just like you. Thank you to the 1000s of readers for the 100s of feedback emails, sharing with your workmates, friends and family, and 100,000s of views (!!) over the past 100 issues. We’re growing this movement together for a better future 🤝

What can we do today?

The most-clicked link from last week’s issue was a link to subscribe to Climate Club, which over 100 people did! 💛

🐝 If you have 5 minutes: Be the spokes-person for bikes

The Aotearoa Bike Challenge is coming up next month! It gamifies bike trips by recording your bike trips online and showing your team fares compared to other organisations around the country. It helps collect data on bike usage, builds the case for better cycleways, and helps reduce transport pollution (20% of NZ’s emissions!).
Action: Share the hype with your coworkers or friends!
The current government is considering reopening offshore oil and gas exploration. This is completely incompatible with meeting our climate goals.
Action: Add your name to the open letter rejecting oil and gas exploration in NZ

🐇 If you have 15 minutes: Tell Exxon their ads are toxxic

Recently there’s been news about climate disinformation spreading on YouTube. Tech giants like YouTube have a lot of power in determining the information people see, and therefore the views people hold. For some (scary!) context, in 2018, Exxon spent more on Facebook ads than the IPCC’s entire budget, and this is just one company and one platform. We deserve better from these companies which make money off our time and attention.
Action: Sign the open letter against climate disinformation

💃🏽 If you have 30 minutes or more: Week can do anything

It’s been a big week for tangata whenua, and we know this year’s going to be more important than ever to learn about honouring Te Tiriti. As we’ve touched on before, honouring Māori right to self-governance is a key step in developing future-proof, equitable solutions to climate change. So that we’re well equipped to play an active, positive role in a transformative vision for the future, here are some resources to get started:
- Action: Learn how to have effective conversations about Te Tiriti, decolonisation, and anti-racism with Tauiwi Tautoko’s award-winning courses. Sign up for the free self-paced course or the next cohort programme here. For a quick action, read one of their freely available resources
- Action: We loved this comprehensive list of advice and actions from the Auckland Women Centre’s wāhine Māori kōrero, on how we can respond constructively to policies that undermine both Te Tiriti & climate action.
Climate action is best done together. The Week is a three-evening experience that guides a group through our climate future, and what we can do about it. They provide you with resources and a viewing plan you can go through in 3 x 1-hour sessions.
Action: Sign up to The Week with a friend or organise viewings for a group

Save the date

April 5th: The School Strike for Environmental, Indigenous and Social Justice is coming up, and it will be a nationwide strike. Add it to your calendars! (and maybe your work/team calendar too? 💁🏽‍♀️)

Climate Club