The Biden Administration is backing industrial carbon capture schemes that overwhelmingly benefit Big Oil – bolstering their bottom lines and extending a PR lifeline that ensures they can continue polluting – all under the guise of climate action.
Jonathan Foley, Ph.D., is executive director of Project Drawdown and a world-renowned environmental scientist. His work focuses on finding new solutions to sustain the climate, ecosystems, and natural resources. He has published over 130 peer-reviewed scientific articles and had presentations featured at hundreds of international venues. Jon founded the University of Wisconsin Center for Sustainability and the Global Environment, served as the founding director of the University of Minnesota Institute on the Environment, and served as executive director of the California Academy of Sciences.
“Passing the mic” in the context of the climate crisis is all about recognizing that the communities most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change – Black communities, Indigenous communities, and communities of color – are often the least represented in the conversations we have and the stories we tell. Thankfully, a number of platforms are stepping up to amplify the voices that have long been excluded.
Last month, Project Drawdown policy advisor Dan Jasper attended climate negotiations in Bonn to promote climate solutions that also improve human well-being. Hosted by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the negotiations in Bonn provided a space for technical conversations in the lead-up to COP28.
According to climate scientist Katherine Hayhoe, one of the most important things we can do when it comes to climate change is talk about it.
While conversation is a step in the right direction, how we talk about climate and whose voices we uplift also matter. Too often the voices of those on the frontlines of the crisis—including Black communities, Indigenous communities, and communities of color (BIPOC)—are overlooked or ignored. How can we use stories to “pass the mic” to those who frequently go unheard – and, in the process, bring effective solutions to life?
Few topics in the climate community are more charged than the capitalism vs. climate change debate. Is capitalism compatible with a world in the throes of climate change? Can endless economic growth persist on a finite planet? Is it even possible to dismantle our current economic system—and build a new one—in the next seven years?
This article is the sixth in a series introducing the members of Project Drawdown’s science team.
Tina Swanson joined the Drawdown Science team as a visiting scholar in June 2023. An environmental scientist with a background in cross-disciplinary research and engagement at the science/policy interface, she is passionate about applying science to benefit society.
Tina comes to Project Drawdown with more than two decades of experience in the environmental nonprofit arena, including with The Bay Institute and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).
