Why is #WeAreClimate bringing a positive approach to climate change?
Pivoting is an important part of what we are learning at the Tow-Knight Entrepreneurial Journalism Program, at CUNY. “Be realistic,” “face your own challenges,” and “look at your own skills and learn how to create from the things that really motivate you” are three of the most important lessons I’ve learned so far.
And I am applying them. That’s why, being aware of what my real area of expertise is and what I can offer to my audience, I pivoted and gave life to WeAreClimate.com
We Are Climate is a weekly newsletter and media outlet to educate and bring solutions for the climate change problem. A positive perspective is really necessary in the media landscape nowadays. That’s especially true when the audience is feeling hopeless and sometimes even depressed when they encounter this type of news.
This idea actually was born in 2013 when I was living in Patagonia, Argentina, and I was invited to give an “Environmental workshop.” The place was a rural school, difficult to access in an isolated spot, with no mobile signal. The kids live there from Monday to Friday. This means that they eat, play, study and sleep at school five days a week. It’s free for them.
Here, they are connected to the world thanks to the Internet, and the free laptops that the government provided them. With some help from Google Translator, you can read their blog and understand their perspective: “We feel that the school permanently challenges us to find UNITY in DIVERSITY,” the school’s director says.
The workshop— imparted by my co-founder and me— consisted in teaching the children how the atmosphere works and the real effect that global warming and climate change have on our lives. But even though we showed them some cool maps and entertained them with an AR game, the truth is that the real ones that learned were us.
The kids living in Pichi Leufu are already protecting the place they inhabit and the planet as a whole. The scarcity makes them appreciate what surrounds them. They:
- Harvest their own food and do compost
- Recycle
- Reduce the use of water, even when they live by the river
- Reuse as much as they can
- Understand the real value of the earth and clean air they have access to.
At Pichi Leufu we were inspired by the changes this kids are making in their daily lives. They are truly connected to the world through these small acts where they show they care about the environment. We understood that we all have the power to change, and that’s the main reason why we are today creating #WeAreClimate.
We were lucky enough to be in touch with powerful people, the ones who can make the decision to live in a more sustainable world. And we also know that there are much more inspiring stories happening around the world. That’s why we decided to share them with you.
Pichi Leufu inspired us. That’s why our mission is simple and complex at the same time: climate change is not a Chinese hoax. Droughts, floods, sea-level rise, unexpected snow storms, destructive tornadoes, heat waves, lack of water, air and ocean pollution. The list goes on. This crisis is happening now. And if you are wondering what can we do about it? The answer is simple: we have the power. Climate change is caused by human behavior and we all have the responsibility to solve this problem.
How? You can start by changing little habits in your daily life, like these kids are doing, that will make the difference. You can also be aware of what you buy, what you really need, and how much you are increasing or decreasing your carbon footprint. At #WeAreClimate will be there to educate you, help, and give you ideas.
We want to be there to help you understand this problem. Our planet is a beautifully connected system; forests and bees are equally important for us humans and our climate.
Our solution is simple: we learn, we are aware, we take action. The power is in our hands and we still have time to change. If we change our behavior, if we can understand the real value of our Earth, we together could live in a more sustainable world. Because, yes, #WeAreClimate
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