Climate Change: One-on-One
ASLA-NCC was pleased to host a panel of environmental designers and design activists who engaged our members in a conversation about climate change in a way that recognized the issue is not just a global one, but a human one. Sponsored by StopWaste.org, the well-attended event took place on Thursday, November 10, just two days after our national presidential election. Emotions were running high, but despite the atmosphere of uncertainty and fear of regressive environmental policies, panelists stressed that each and every one of us has the power, and the responsibility, to affect positive change.
Amy Leedham, from Atelier Ten, discussed climate change in the context of Education, Mitigation and Prevention. She spoke of the Architecture 2030 Commitment to reduce carbon emissions from design projects and practices, and provided data on the economic effectiveness of energy modeling. Claire Napawan reiterated that climate action is not just a 'top-down' process, and that awareness at the local level is critical for change. The audience was moved by examples from her social media project #OurChangingClimate, which encourages diverse communities to critique their everyday environment through the lens of climate change. Lastly, a team from Citizens' Climate Lobby, an international, grassroots, nonpartisan organization, presented a market-based solution-the Carbon Fee and Dividend Proposal-to reduce carbon emissions. They concluded the evening on a positive note by listing important gains made in the past year. More information is available at https://citizensclimatelobby.org.
Now more than ever it is important for ASLA-NCC members to stand together and advocate for what we value. Get involved at http://advocate.asla.org/.
