Climate change is here. It’s happening and it’s affecting us all. Findings from the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report show that the world is now locked into severe climate change effects that will inevitably impact most people. It’s a bleak outlook but activists offer hope, saying that reductions in greenhouse gas emissions in the coming decades could still mitigate some effects of global warming and its catastrophic impacts on those most affected. Every little change we make matters.
Abdourahamane Ly
Animal rights and climate justice activist, Abdourahamane Ly. Photo: Courtesy of Abdourahamane Ly
People discover an injustice and rightly want to tackle it, but they often fail to take into account systemic issues that prevent people from making changes. Being able to consider where your food comes from is a privilege. We need to acknowledge that poorer communities, and often communities of color, often lack access to fresh and healthy food. In order for the vegan movement to become truly inclusive, we need to improve accessibility, which means that addressing poverty, racism, and inequality, are vital to the movement. Intersectionality in the movement is essential if we want to create systemic change for animals.“In order for the vegan movement to become truly inclusive, we need to improve accessibility, which means that addressing poverty, racism, and inequality, are vital to the movement.”
Ayisha Siddiqa
Ayisha Siddiqa, co-founder and executive director of Polluters Out. Photo: Courtesy of Ayisha Siddiqa
This isn’t an attack on her—I’m friends with Greta—but rather a critique on how she’s received. We shouldn’t aspire to call ourselves the Gretas of anything, because it’s not a brand. The moment you allow one person to be the sole arbitrator of justice, justice in and of itself is in question. To build a more inclusive climate movement, we ought to look at climate movements that existed long before school strikes—Indigenous actions.“The moment you allow one person to be the sole arbitrator of justice, justice in and of itself is in question.”
Orion Camero
Orion Camero, executive director of SustainUS. Photo: Courtesy of Orion Camero
Queer liberation and climate justice are connected because the oppression comes from the same place: colonialism and upholding the status quo. These forces that push queerness into the margins also prevent us from seeing beyond what we are conditioned to see, towards the systemic changes that need to happen to solve the climate crisis. Colonialism is the root cause of the climate crisis, and it is also a system that has actively erased the beautiful role queerness played in pre-colonial society.We must create a cross-cultural, inter-identity coalition to massively transform where we’re at. Queer folks’ perspectives are essential to success because our communities experience hardship and marginalization. We have a unique contribution to understanding the climate crisis and providing radically imaginative solutions.“Colonialism is the root cause of the climate crisis, and it is also a system that has actively erased the beautiful role queerness played in pre-colonial society.”
Marinel Sumook Ubaldo
Marinel Sumook Ubaldo, climate justice activist and registered social worker. Photo: Courtesy of Marinel Sumook Ubaldo
Putting the burden on the individual is historically a greenwashing technique used by big corporations. Instead, I always advocate for system change. After all, we won’t have climate justice if major fossil fuel companies continue with business as usual. We need to call on our leaders to take drastic action on that front because they have the power, authority, and resources to enact systemic change. While individuals have to do their part, too, it’s the system that needs to change.“While individuals have to do their part, too, it’s the system that needs to change.”
Stefanie Lyn Kaufman-Mthimkhulu
Stefanie Lyn Kaufman-Mthimkhulu, founding director of Project LETS. Photo: Courtesy of Stefanie Lyn Kaufman-Mthimkhulu
It’s classic to pick an individual behavior—like not using plastic straws—and say that it will move us towards the solution, without looking at the larger structural patterns and behaviors that are impacting the climate in profoundly more destructive ways. The fact that that happened shows us that there’s very little cross-movement solidarity, that many are not in genuine relationship and community with Disabled people, and that ableism is still the underbelly of every system of oppression.We need to talk more deeply about how Disabled people are more vulnerable to the climate crisis due to our ableist society that fails to value our lives, and not because we use wheelchairs, have chronic pain, or need oxygen machines. Disabled people have valuable skills, like interdependence, that we can share while navigating apocalyptic times.Interviews have been edited for length and clarity. Follow Tammy Gan on Instagram.“Disabled people have valuable skills, like interdependence, that we can share while navigating apocalyptic times.”