“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. One of them is Pattrn, a digital platform in partnership with The Weather Channel, “for those who love the earth, fight for its future, and want to learn more about how to protect it.” Recently, Pattrn added Drawdown’s Neighborhood, the climate solutions short documentary series presented by Project Drawdown centering the underrepresented climate heroes that have often gone unheard, to its lineup. Project Drawdown’s Director of Storytelling & Engagement Matt Scott, who created and hosts Drawdown’s Neighborhood, recently spoke with Stephanie Abrams and Jordan Steele on The Weather Channel’s Pattrn Show about Drawdown’s Neighborhood and the significance of telling stories like those featured in the series. “For so long, as [climate] storytellers, we’ve thought that what we need to do is scare people,” Scott says during the interview. “[But] while we need to bring in the story of the problem and the crisis and those realities so people know it’s there, we also need to bring in the other half of the story of the solutions and what people can do.”  To date, the series has interviewed 48 climate heroes across seven locations with 11 of those stories set to premiere this fall. “There are so many voices and stories, and I’m just so thankful that some of them can be out there through Pattrn and The Weather Channel,” Scott says. Pattrn's mission is to explore, inform, engage, and revel in the patterns of our amazing planet. Since Pattrn's launch, the brand has evolved from a social media community to a free ad-supported streaming TV channel whose content is dedicated to climate and sustainability news and programming.  

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. Sitting in a surreal daze, I couldn’t help but look back and forth between the conference screen and my phone. On the conference screen, delegates argued about the importance of including historical emissions data in the upcoming Global Stocktake report (the first assessment of how far we’ve come since the Paris Agreement). One delegate chided the suggestion that the data be included, stating it would be “confusing for the public.” On my phone screen, texts from friends back home in Washington, D.C., with chilling pictures of the wildfire smoke blanketing the National Mall and iconic monuments. One text from a friend in New York offered an orange view from her hotel room; the text read simply, “Our world is dying.” This seemed to contradict the delegate’s point. Climate change is visible now; it’s no longer hidden by the depth of science, it’s a lived reality for much of the planet. The dual screens before me painted a clear picture: The focus of these talks must shift to urgent, scalable solutions for people and the planet, or these forums will lose all buy-in from many countries and the public. That scene is, unfortunately, indicative of the confusing lack of progress made in Bonn this year. Parties (read “countries”) failed to even agree on an agenda until the second to last day of the two-week conference. While conversations carried on under provisional agendas for subsidiary bodies, the clash over the program reveals a widening chasm between countries that want to focus on mitigating greenhouse gas emissions (mainly high-income countries, or HICs) and those that want to focus on adapting as well as dealing with the losses and damages that climate change has already brought for many of the world’s most vulnerable (mainly low- and middle-income countries, or LMICs). 

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? In this webinar, we invite you to join director of storytelling & engagement Matt Scott to learn how and why Project Drawdown is embracing storytelling and “passing the mic” to unheard voices. Learn about the work of the Drawdown Stories program and the Drawdown’s Neighborhood documentary series, which has featured nearly 50 everyday climate heroes to date across the United States. What is the problem with the climate stories we currently tell? Why do stories matter in climate solutions? How can stories help build power, shape culture, and change behavior? Why are BIPOC voices critical to the dialogue? How can you and your communities leverage stories to address climate change? Watch this webinar now for those answers, and to walk away with a better understanding of the power of stories in solutions. This webinar is part of Project Drawdown’s new monthly Drawdown Ignite webinar series. Drawdown Ignite provides information and inspiration to guide your climate solutions journey. Visit drawdown.org/events for updates on future webinars.