The Citizens’ Climate Education hosted the first Faith Meets Business: Climate Solutions for the Common Good on Saturday, February 8, at the McWane Center in Birmingham. This event was orchestrated in part by longtime Sierra Club member Joyce Lanning with her co-chair John Northrop.
The focus of the event was to overcome psychological boundaries in talking about climate change. Guests included religious leaders from the Birmingham Islamic Society and Episcopal Diocese of Alabama. All ages were present with Stella Tarrant, an 8th grade climate activist, introducing key speakers. There was even political diversity with representatives from the utility and solar industry in attendance.
Joyce explained, “The inspiration for this event came from Katharine Hayhoe and James McClintock. Jim is a polar and marine biologist and Katharine is a climate scientist and evangelical Christian. She talks about how to have a constructive conversation about climate change despite the boundaries we think exist by focusing on common interests and values.”
Katharine Hayhoe, recipient of the Sierra Club’s Distinguished Service Award in 2016, gave an engaging talk. Her call to action is reflected in her TED talk where she urged people to just talk about climate change.
While it sounds like a simple task, few of us do so in such a polarized world. We do not seek out difficult conversations as reflected by the numbers. Hayhoe cites that two-thirds of people say they never talk about climate issues.
Hayhoe commented, “It’s encouraging to see so many people in the heart of a red state concerned about climate change. Everyone here is so excited about climate action that they would spend their Saturday in a packed room with no windows to talk about how we can change our community, our states, and our world for the better of all of us.”
While many people may feel hopeless about the climate crisis, this event did not leave participants feeling discouraged. Through productive talks and periodic table discussions, participants crowdsourced how individuals could tackle climate change.
Many people expressed appreciation for the event, but it did not go without criticism. The afternoon speakers focused on racial imbalances in the climate change movement, even calling out the event itself and its lack of diversity.
Reverend Michael Malcom, Executive Director of the Alabama Interfaith Power and Light and one of two African American speakers at the event, implored, “Look around. There are not a lot of people that look like me here today.”
His calls did not fall on deaf ears, however. He finished his speech to a standing ovation with calls to “raise hell because righteousness means right.”
While there’s always room for improvement, as Lanning said, “There’s no silver bullet for climate change. There’s only silver buckshot.”
Many attendees were intrigued by the Sierra Club which embodies an all-encompassing approach to climate change. Through the mission to enjoy, explore, and protect, Sierra Club events focus on outings, advocacy, and education. These three approaches are key to learning more about our surroundings and acting to protect it. By being present at these summits, the Sierra Club will continue to be a part of the dialogue for solutions to the climate crisis.
To see the program and some of the suggested climate solutions go to https://climatesolutionsforall.org/