Use it or lose it.
Reflections on the Climate Leader training in Istanbul.
After 8 days in Istanbul, I am home again. Days were jam-packed with presentations and workshops, and the nights were filled with protesting and tear gas. Now, I am reflecting on what I learned during those three days as well as the path ahead. So, what follows are a few thoughts that resonated for me.
Scientists agree, that climate change is now a factor in every single weather-related catastrophic event.
This comes as no surprise. From the recent 1km+ wide tornados in Oklahoma, to the wildfires in Spain and Australia, to the massive flooding that is happening in Calgary as I write this. We can no longer scratch our heads and wonder if the unprecedented levels of CO2 in the atmosphere are responsible for “dirty weather”.
Confront the deniers of the global climate crisis.
Take no prisoners. The folks who deny that climate change is having adverse affects on our world must be challenged. Whether its our mother, our boss or our coach etc…, we can not walk on eggshells so as to avoid confrontation. This affects us all, we must speak about it.
We already have the technology to reverse climate change!
With the key technologies already at hand, we can begin to curb our addiction to fossil fuels and rebuild a world with a bright new future, using clean technologies such as wind and solar. This hope is as real, although no one said its going to be easy. It takes leaders and policy makers with vision, and people like you and me, to elect them.
The path seems simple, practice, practice, practice. I am still processing all the information, the presentation deck, the speeches and presentations provided by Al Gore, and all the climate scientists, grassroots organizers and social media gurus I met. Finding my place within a framework for change which has been passed down to me.
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