#101: From the worlds that have ended before

On finding shovels and getting blisters

Mōrena, and happy Tuesday!

There is an understandable sense of grief and overwhelm that can be seen in the climate space. When or if that grief turns into hopelessness, one shift that I found helpful from Jenny Odell’s new book, Saving Time, is to remember and listen to those whose worlds have ended many times over in the past. Nadine Anne Hura puts it best in this recent essay:

In environmental spaces, you’ll often hear the phrase “climate change is going to hit indigenous communities first and worst”. Invariably, it isn’t Māori saying it. That’s because the climate crisis isn’t imminent. Ever since the arrival of settlers and the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, marae, hapū and iwi have been responding to catastrophic environmental changes caused by human activities. The only difference now is the consequences have become so widespread and severe, governments can no longer deny it is a crisis.”

Many communities have already experienced the end of their way of life, either through colonisation or through climate changes that have already impacted environments they rely on. When asked about climate depression, Māori climate activist Haylee Koroi said:

“Without invalidating those that feel that way, the reality is that through colonisation, we’ve been experiencing the symptoms of climate crisis for generations.”

When we cannot see past the end of the world, it may be time to centre perspectives from communities who already have, and continue to, grapple with the challenge of adapting to a changing environment over and over again. 

“...Hope isn’t a passive thing you sit around and wait for. It is pragmatic. It’s sober. To quote Simmonds again: “Me raupā ōku ringa kia whai ai i ngā wawata.” Or as I like to paraphrase: hope is shaped like a shovel and will give you blisters.”

Just a note that there will be no newsletter next Tuesday, on Waitangi Day. We might see some of you at a hīkoi or other Waitangi event!

What can we do today?

The most-clicked link from last week’s issue was the open letter to the oil and gas industry, with 122 of you all signing to show we will never allow offshore oil and gas exploration to recommence in Aotearoa 💪🏾

🐝 If you have 5 minutes: Climate needs Common sense 

• Ōtautahi Christchurch City Council have just voted for considering hosting the 2030 Commonwealth Games in Aotearoa. Hosting the games in a geographically isolated spot such as Aotearoa will cause massive climate pollution from a huge number of long-haul flights. And it will be expensive - diverting sorely-needed funds away from more climate and community-friendly projects.
  Action: Send a quick note to the councillors that voted no 💛, or ask why they voted yes with a quick climate explainer.

🐇 If you have 15 minutes: From quiet quitting to quitting emitting

• For people who work in companies: Want to help fight climate change but don’t want to quit your day job? Turns out finding ways to make an impact in your role can be super impactful - and Project Drawdown have done the mahi and created specific job-related climate action resources for every role! If you’ve seen this before, just an FYI they’ve added new categories for Product Design and Product Management!
  Action: Look up your role and take an action from the Drawdown Job Guides 

• Calling all wāhine: Women in Urbanism have put a survey together to better understand how women/wāhine and girls/kōtiro feel while moving around their cities. This is a group of local experts on transport, urban planning, and infrastructure who do great advocacy for safer, cleaner cities, and are often consulted by the government, so this is a great one to contribute to!
  Due Friday 16 Feb: Share your experiences in urban areas

💃🏽 If you have 30 minutes or more: A protest for Waitangi

• Te Whanganui-a-tara Wellington, Tuesday Feb 6th: Rather than their usual Tuesday protest on the Parliament lawn, next Tuesday the Fridays for Future Wellington team are supporting tangata whenua by joining the Waitangi Solidarity Hīkoi. Honouring Māori right to self-governance is key to climate adaptation that is sustainable and equitable.
  Action: Join the protest at Pukeahu Memorial (Buckle Street) 10:30am next Tuesday (Waitangi Day)

In case you missed it!

• The Aotearoa Bike Challenge is coming up next month! It helps collect data on bike usage, builds the case for better cycleways, and reduces transport pollution (20% of NZ’s emissions!). Get your workplace involved!

Save the date

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

Wins!

• The EU continues its epic crackdown on greenwashing, by banning terms like “climate neutral” or “climate positive” if they rely on offsets.

• The US has paused all new approvals of LNG (liquefied “natural” gas) exports, on the basis that it doesn’t align with science or the public’s interests (given that… runaway climate change is not great for the public). Commentary by Bill McKibben here (founder of 350.org) and detailed analysis by climate journalists here.

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That’s all for today, folks 👋🏽 Thanks for taking action. Enjoy this excellent piece of journalism by Bernard Hickey and Catherine Dyer on the changing attitudes of New Zealanders towards climate change, and specifically the changing tactics of deniers.

See you next week, 

Dhanya & the Climate Club team

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