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What were you hoping to hear from the presentation but didn't?

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What were you hoping to hear from the presentation but didn't?

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If you were hoping for something specific, do you think you could find that with a followup for the speaker or ETS staff? Perhaps a member of the cohort did hear what you might have missed - it doesn't hurt to ask!

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What did the presentation make you feel initially and then upon further reflection?

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What did the presentation make you feel initially and then upon further reflection?

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Were you surprised? Did you learn anything new? How might you apply what you heard to your own climate change interpretation?

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What would you like to know more about from our speaker?

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What would you like to know more about from our speaker?

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Maybe your question didn't come up in the Q&A, maybe we ran out of time, or maybe you didn't think about it until after some reflection. Post it here and we will followup for you.

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thrilled to hear that Jason is available to support working with us with our audiences... I'll be reaching out

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I loved his presentation. We talk a lot about how we shouldn't be doom and gloom, I struggle with how climate stories that are sad (not being able to play basketball, worried about your kids, not enjoying the new city you move to because it's too hot to be there..) are not equivalent to "doom and gloom." I had the same question when we watched the man talking about not seeing as many ducks.

How do we strike that balance of sharing these stories but them not being sad but them also hitting that same chord within the audience?

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There was a side convo in the chat about the decision to raise kids in this very complex world. Jeff offered to discuss this topic further in office hours, which I think is great. I am so glad we have the options we do today to decide for ourselves when, how, and why or why not we would like to raise kids, whether biological, adopted, fostered, and/or mentored. The one thing I have learned from working with littles and teens is that, given the time, space, and support, they are amazingly resilient and creative, and they find joy and connection in ways that can inspire the rest of us. We can absolutely mourn the changes we see on the planet, but we must also celebrate and support the infinite ingenuity of children (though one doesn't have to become a parent to do this). I have so much hope for the future because of all my experiences with today's youth. This video is from the warm winter of Jan 2012, which made me sad and anxious, until I realized that it gave my kids new ways of playing with their environment.

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Sarah Johnson's Climate Stories Project story

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Sarah Johnson's Climate Stories Project story

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It's excellent!

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Sarah R. Johnson, Basalt, Colorado by Climate Stories Project

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Climate Stories Ambassador participant, Sarah R. Johnson, begins her climate story by reflecting on the extraordinary snowfall in the winter she was born and how she will likely never experience such snowfall again in her lifetime.

As a park ranger and environmental educator, Sarah works to educate people about the sustained mega-drought and the significance of water in the US west. She sees dry, warming rivers, and the smokey haze of wildfires as evidence of climate change in her community. 

Although she occasionally experiences dispair knowing the severity of climate change and how it is impacting her local community and communities around the world, she draws strength from the relationships she has formed in her climate work. Sarah has an unwavering resolve to use her position as an environmental educator to create and facilitate initiatives that will effect positive change in the world.

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We are very lucky in our rural region to have a designated Climate Reporter, Chloe Bennett, who writes for the Adirondack Explorer magazine (she'll be with our ETS team in Nov). In addition to her regular reporting, she has been making climate story videos. I'm in one of the videos, but the one that is very cool to watch and read the article about is that of Keely Jock, a recent Paul Smith's College grad. For her senior project, she compared the EPA's wetland assessment protocol with an Indigenous perspective protocol. Wetlands that would have ranked as very low-value through the EPA lens (due to an impacted watershed, impaired hydrology, invasives, etc.) ranked as very valuable through the Indigenous ethnobotanical assessment Keely developed.

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The Adirondacks' environment is changing, with warming temperatures, declining animal species, milder winters and more. The Explorer works each week to keep you informed on how global climate change is impacting the park at a local level.

But there's good news, too.

Your neighbors are working on research, education, solutions and more in the climate space. That's why we launched Climate Voices of the Adirondacks.

For the next several weeks, we're spotlighting the people working toward a more resilient and sustainable future. Check out their stories below.

Watch this introduction video to learn more about the series:

LJ Mills

Prioritizing long-term climate data
LJ Mills has spent seven years collecting data on ecosystems in Huntington Wildlife Forest, owned by the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. The biogeochemical research support specialist is just one of many people who have contributed to the decades-long project.

"Long-term monitoring is probably the best body of evidence that we have to detect climate change in the future," he said. "Without all this baseline data, it's going to be basically impossible to tell what's changing and how much it's changing."
Read more about Mills and his work. WATCH: Mills visits a long-term monitoring site and explains why the work is vital to climate resilience.
Saikat Chakraborty

Saikat Chakraborty, a professor at Paul Smith's College with his dog during an Adirondack winter. Photo provided
Forming climate education beyond science
Saikat Chakraborty is a professor at Paul Smith's College in the Adirondacks. After visiting the park while living in Rochester for several years, Chakraborty decided to call Saranac Lake home.

In graduate school, he found himself in the climate space by chance after taking a research position in a lab focused on renewable energy.

Now he educates college students through a mix of science and humanities. He also runs a blog with writing and photography anchored in the Adirondack environment.
WATCH: Saikat describes how he incorporates climate into his chemistry and photography classes at Paul Smith's College.
Jennifer Perry

Uniting under compost
Meet Jennifer Perry, an Adirondacker who helps run two composting programs in the area. Climate change is here, she said, and this is one way to make a difference.

"Everybody wants to garden. Everybody composts or wants to compost. It doesn't trigger any of the divisions that we see anymore."

Composting diverts food waste from landfills where it lacks oxygen and emits significant amounts of methane, a potent greenhouse gas. The material Perry makes is used for gardening and increased carbon storage.

Perry has worked as an environmental educator with local colleges and in renewable energy with the Adirondack North Country Association.

Now, she's spreading the word about turning food waste into better soil for the park.
WATCH: Jennifer Perry on compost as a climate solution and how it unifies everyone. YOUR SUGGESTIONS WELCOME!
Want to nominate someone for our series? Send a brief email with details to: chloe@adirondackexplorer.org

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Climate Voices: A video series highlighting residents working toward a better planet in the Adirondack Park.

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I found Jason's presentation very powerful. I liked the idea of our personal stories as intersections with our life and climate change. The music paired with the personal stories provides that emotional engagement that pairs well and really compliments the more typical fact based persuasion.