Climate change is a hot topic these days.
Have you ever felt uncomfortable talking about it with family members and friends? Everyone has their own idea about what’s true or isn’t true. How do we handle it as a nation? Is it a crisis or isn’t it? The Nature Conservancy (TNC) wants to make it easier for you to navigate this topic.
TNC has been in operation for more than 65 years. It has a staff of over 500 scientists who work in all 50 states as well as 72 countries in the world. What they’re doing is putting the focus on innovative solutions that will help us avert more damage as well as educate the public to have discussions based on proven facts.
We can’t solve the crisis if we’re unwilling to talk about it. In order to facilitate a discussion, TNC has put together an eBook called Let’s Talk Climate. You can download it simply by entering your name and email on their website. It offers tips on how to start a conversation about climate change with others who may not share your opinions.
I listened to a man from a different heritage than my own recently. Like many of us, his views about the environment are based on his personal experiences in nature, his heritage, and issues in his local community.
He often conducts sacred ceremonies for Earth Day in Los Angeles. I met him at the Chatsworth Nature Preserve Earth Day opening ceremonies where he spoke to community members about climate change, the environment, and the history of his people who had lived there.
While he was there, I videotaped him and this is what he told us:
“We should honor every day when the sun rises, and light enters the land. We should be grateful for the seasons, but we have to ask ourselves why the season of rain passes us by.
“We used to be connected to the world around us. We were related to all living things and now we’re into technology. Our lives are lived behind a computer screen or on text messages, email, social media, and Instagram. We don’t even want to talk anymore.
We can’t forget the fact that we have the sight, the sound, the smell, the taste, the love, the realities of humanity. Are we destroying ourselves because our social skills are disappearing? Is our relationship to the world that sustained us for thousands of years no longer of use to us? The greatest teacher of all has been the environment, the habitats, and our resources. They have taught us how to live and they continue to tell us where we’re going wrong.
You won’t find a starfish on the coast anymore. They’ve been gone for over 5 years. Baby seals get stuck onshore because they can’t dive deep enough to get food. The condors were almost extinct but thanks to people who participated in their capture and recovery there are now over 287 or so.
When do we stand up and be the voice for something that can’t speak for itself? When do we step in and fight for our true right? Or the birthright of our youth? The birthright when they came into the world and they cried “Waaah!” That’s the sound of freedom.
Never be quiet, speak up. That’s your true right. That’s your freedom. Not a document made by a man with conditions of freedom.”
He talked to me later about the evidence you can see at the nature preserve itself of dried and dead trees caused by drought and the fact that the pond was often dry in the summer. He believes that the drought and the recent and very devastating Southern California fires may be a result of the climate change crisis.
I enjoy and learn so much talking to people like him who are in tune with the natural world and its many changes. I feel they’re wise in ways that many of us never experience especially those of us who live in urban environments and don’t see the damage as directly.
At these events, we often meet people who work with wildlife, birdwatchers, activists, community members, and even employees of our local utility company who are in charge of the preserve. All have their own take on the environment, climate change, and how it impacts where we live.
It’s important to realize that whether we’re scientists, climate change skeptics, or active environmental advocates, we all have different views about climate change that are shaped by our own personal experiences, and those views and experiences are valid.
Ask yourself what makes people doubt that climate change is real. Is there something that affects them personally like a job or other source of income? Listen to their answer to try to understand where they’re coming from so you can have an intelligent dialogue with them.
One tip in the guide is to “meet people where they are.” Not everyone is in the same situation and if they’re worried about not being able to take care of their family because they may get fired, it’s a serious consideration.
Download TNC’s eBook Let’s Talk Climate by entering your name and email to learn tips about how to start a conversation on climate change.
This was a collaboration post written by me on behalf of The Nature Conservancy for IZEA Worldwide. All opinions are 100% mine.
People I have talked to who reject Climate change is because they feel it is the work of God. I think this may be sincere to some but lacking teeth. Some of these folks come from a non-questioning point of view of God. Others it is an excuse, a conversation nonstarter they know they are using.
The more we can talk about evidence of climate change the better and the more likely we can make an impression on the nonbelievers.
Here are my 2 examples I always give:
30 years ago when we built our house in a 14 home subdivision, no one put in air-conditioning. In Portland Oregon it never got that hot in the summer and always cooled down at night. No longer. Today only one home does not have central air!
My sister has been going to the same rental in CapeCod for 35 years in June. A beach front property with steps leading down to the ocean. Now only at low tide is there a blanket size beach and at high tide the ocean climbs to the third step!
Thanks so much for addressing this, Haralee. I wouldn’t have thought you would need air conditioning in Portland either. Good to know. And having the ocean go up to your third step in Cap Cod is scary! The San Fernando Valley, where I live has always been hot but never in temperatures of 110 plus, which it has reached several times in the last few years.
The thing about Climate Change is that it is overhyped. The temperature has risen less then half a degree in 135 years. Now the trend is reversing….which is why the name change from global warming to climate change. The underlying cause of all environmental damage is human overpopulation caused by the cultures of developing nations especially in Africa, and S America. The same people that spout off about Climate Change are also pro unchecked immigration. Allowing these people access into the west and giving them incentives to have even more children which our taxes then pay for is going to make the situation much worse. My conclusion is that people who talk about Climate Change really don’t care, they are merely virtue signaling. I know this; Giving government more chance to regulate people and business will only lead to more corruption, job loss, and poverty. So environmental regulations will do nothing to help, and much to hurt. Find a way to stop S Americans from having seven kids and we can talk.
And I live in Minnesota, where our winter is the same as ever, and our summer is the same as ever. And again; Anyone that talks about the environment without mentioning human overpopulation, and how to stop it is virtue signaling, not trying to fix anything, just to give government more power over people with extra regulations; Notice what has happened in France after the Paris Accords made it so the price of gas is more then the poor people can bear, that exasperated by the refugee crisis is causing France to implode.
Hi Martine,
It looks like you have strong views on the subject. I understand that. The Nature Conservancy eBook on how to talk to others about it may be something you may want to look at. We all have to listen to each other about it. A weather person on TV mentioned there is a distinct difference between global warming and climate change. In a nutshell here are the definitions according to Nasa. Global warming: the increase in Earth’s average surface temperature due to rising levels of greenhouse gases. Climate change: a long-term change in the Earth’s climate, or of a region on Earth.
https://pmm.nasa.gov/education/articles/whats-name-global-warming-vs-climate-change
This is a wonderful post because you covered it from so many angles. As far as God is concerned, he entrusted the planet to us and it is our responsibility to
care for it. Allowing climate change to destroy the beauty of this place makes absolutely no sense to me. God would want us to use our brains and strength to prevent the destruction of this amazing world.
Thanks, Beth. It makes no sense to me either, The point of the eBook is that it’s important to try to see things from other people’s points of view to get an idea of why they feel that way. Otherwise, we’re just talking at each other rather than really listening. My hope is that we think ahead and not just for today so that climate change won’t become a catastrophe for future generations.
No one I have met has ever said anything about it being done by God. Many people, including scientists, think that it isn’t really that alarming, because the planet has ALWAYS BEEN IN A STATE OF CLIMATE CHANGE, and many think it is not caused by humanity. But no one I know has said it was “God’s will”. However, most people do believe that Climate Change hysteria is just a way to create more government regulations, which lead to the government having even more control over people’s lives. Bankrupting people by making them pay more for what they need, be it a plastic straw or gasoline is not the answer anyhow. As I said, the most environmental damage does not come from the West anyhow. It comes from China, S America, Africa, and the Middle east. Human Overpopulation is the underlying cause to everything. So stop virtue signaling by pretending you want to talk, or to solve anything. Are you ready to enact stronger immigration laws to prevent the people responsible for overpopulation from emigrating to the West? ……Thought so.
Well, you’re right. I don’t share your views but you have a right to have them. I am concerned with deregulation and how it will affect the environment for future generations. It’s easy to think in the here and now but after we’re dead our children and their children need a safe and clean world to live in as well. I live in Los Angeles but have been to Minnesota. It’s beautiful and there is plenty of open space there. We like our immigrants here. They add to our culture, work hard, and their food is wonderful.
Climate change is perhaps the most profound challenge of humanity in the last years. It is affecting people and the environment and only those who are too stubborn don’t see it.
Hi Kate, I totally agree with you. I’m afraid some people mix it up with the current weather, which isn’t the same thing. It’s a long-term effect but if we don’t take action it will be a short term effect.