CLIMATE ACTION CLINIC

A participatory performance artwork that addressed climate grief and climate anxiety and that encouraged people to talk about climate change

SITE: Climate Reality NYC’s Our Future Festival @ Nolan Park, Governor’s Island

DATE: Saturday, September 21, 2019

Our second project, Climate Action Clinic, offered visitors a way to see themselves in the climate crisis and to take action at the clinic and beyond. The event was held during NYC Climate Week 2019 as part of Climate Reality NYC’s Our Future Festival NYC: A Day of Climate Action, Ideas and Inspiration. 

Many people are grappling with climate-related anxiety. At the same time, they may be unsure where to start, overwhelmed, and paralyzed by an overabundance of information. The Climate Action Clinic lowered barriers to climate activism by helping people establish a personal connection to the climate crisis. 

Climate Action Clinic offered a comprehensive, peer-reviewed, no-cost examination that pointed visitors to their individual Climate Personality – were they Climate Curious or Climate Furious? Its centerpiece was a 5-minute check-in with a climate counselor followed by activities to connect with others and ways to take action that were tailored to each Climate Personality.

Many visitors walked away proudly wearing a sticker that identified their personality type. Families and groups of friends would laugh, grimace, and sigh as they landed on their Climate Personality. For some, the climate counseling check-in stiffened their resolve. One visitor said, “I didn’t know I was Climate Furious, but apparently I am! I learned something about myself today.” Throughout the day we observed the power of a brief conversation to inspire humor, curiosity, and mutual support. After all, one of the most effective ways to begin engaging with the climate crisis is to start talking about it.

Powerful movements begin quietly in the hopes and anxieties of individuals who forge a personal connection to the crisis at hand. The project was built on the belief that the work of social consciousness begins when we find others who are willing to ask honest questions, draw out a smile, and stand beside us. This year, Climate Week was marked by a new sense of urgency led by the voices of 250,000 children and allies marching for their future on the streets of New York City—part of a global strike of more than across 4,500 locations in 150 countries. Our goal with Climate Action Clinic was to support concurrent events like Global Strike for the Future, Climate Week NYC, and Our Future Festival to generate broad awareness and support for the climate movement and uplift the voices who stand for collective action.

We are grateful to the New York City Chapter of the Climate Reality Project for inviting us to participate in Our Future Festival NYC: A Day of Climate Action, Ideas and Inspiration.