What is climate grief, and how do we respond to it? What happens when we think about the climate crisis in a cultural and historical context, beyond just its scientific aspects? And what if your power in this fight lies not in what you can do as an individual, but in your ability to be part of a collective? In this episode, host Lucy Kalanithi is joined by Mary Annaïse Heglar, climate justice writer and co-host of the podcast Hot Take.
Lucy Kalanithi and Mary Annaïse Heglar explore what becomes possible when we look at the climate crisis differently.
Mary Annaïse Heglar’s essays include “2020: The Year of Converging Crises” (Rolling Stone), “Home is Always Worth It” (Medium), “Climate Change Isn’t The First Existential Threat” (Zora), and “I work in the Environmental Movement. I Don’t Care If You Recycle” (Vox). Listen to Hot Take (co-hosted by Mary Annaïse Heglar and Amy Westervelt) wherever you get your podcasts, and subscribe to their newsletter.
Curious about the poem you heard in this episode? It was “How Dark the Beginning” by Maggie Smith, read by her. Find more of Maggie’s poetry in her latest collection, Goldenrod. You’ll also love Keep Moving and Good Bones.
Dr. Kate Marvel’s essay is “We Need Courage, Not Hope, To Face Climate Change” (On Being). Rebecca Solnit’s quote – “hope is not like a lottery ticket… hope is an ax you break down doors with” – is from Hope In The Dark. For more on climate grief, look to Dr. Renee Lertzman. Dr. Glenn Albrecht’s neologism is solastalgia.
For Drs. Kimberly Nicholas and Seth Wynes’ work on behavior change to shift culture, read “A Hard Look in the Climate Mirror” (Scientific American): “for me, turning my scientific knowledge into action was a little like falling in love. It was a switch that got flipped.” Dr. Nicholas’ book is Under the Sky We Make.
Climate action and activism: The All We Can Save Project, Sunrise Movement, End Climate Silence, 350.org, Project Drawdown, Currently, Extinction Rebellion.
Gravity is produced by Wonder Media Network. Original music by Rachel Wardell. Rekha Murthy is our editor. Jenny Kaplan is our executive producer.
For more on why we’re doing what we're doing, check us out on Instagram and on Twitter. Find Lucy on Twitter at @rocketgirlmd.