TERRY GIBBS: Building Hope in Times of Climate Change

This article, first published in the Cape Breton Post, is the debut piece in the CCTF’s series on local climate change issues. Terry Gibbs is a professor of international politics at Cape Breton University, an advocate for social and ecological justice, and a founding member of the CCTF.

Six years ago, I wrote an article about climate change called “Dumb Ways to Die: Welcome to our Mass Suicide.” It may have sounded polemical at the time but six years later, the question on my mind is: are we becoming used to, and a little desensitized by, radical statements about the state of the planet? This potentially apathetic reality is particularly disturbing given that these radical statements are not only coming from activists and environmentalists but from mainstream national and global institutions.

In 2022, the UN Secretary General António Guterres, noted: “Half of humanity is in the danger zone, from floods, droughts, extreme storms, and wildfires. No nation is immune. Yet we continue to feed our fossil fuel addiction… We have a choice. Collective action or collective suicide. It is in our hands.” And when scientists claiming to be “conservative” in their analyses tell us that species population declines and destruction can be described as a “biological annihilation” and “a frightening assault on the foundations of human civilization,” it behooves us to pay attention.

In order to address this climate emergency, it is essential that we change the way we live in this world, not only as individuals but as communities and societies. We must change the way we eat, the way we travel, the way we produce goods, and the way we consume them (issues that we will address in future columns). But how do we achieve such a systemic shift away from our fossil-fuel addicted lifestyles? Simply making people aware of the terrifying “facts” doesn’t necessarily change behaviour.

Many people feel helpless in the face of what seem like faceless global systems whose levers are not entirely controlled by democratically elected representatives and certainly don’t feel controlled by “us.” And the reality is that much of humanity, and sadly those least responsible for the climate crisis, are busy struggling just to survive and are not in a place to challenge global systems. And for those with varying levels of privilege―in terms of income, education, race, physical ability, and geographical location―the message that we’re not doing enough or that we are bad people because of our consumption and dietary choices does not sit well.

What we do know from experiences such as Hurricane Fiona, is that in Unama’ki/Cape Breton, people do come together in times of crisis. But the question is: do we have to wait for the next crisis before we take action regarding climate change? Should we be waiting around for politicians to make the right decisions? Or are there ways that we can, in the here and now, from wherever we find ourselves, start to turn this ship around?

The reality is that many in our local community are already making changes in their individual lives, homes, and workplaces. Community organizations are protecting and restoring land, tackling coastal erosion, and building skills to tackle climate change. Vibrant community gardens are popping up around the island, and the Cape Breton Food Hub and the Farmer’s Market continue to support the development of our local food economy. There is increasing discussion and work being done on how to create a vibrant, green economy that will take our future generations into account. But not everyone out there is aware of where to start, how to learn more, or how to get more actively involved.

A couple of years ago a number of us came together to form the Climate Change Task Force Unama’ki/Cape Breton (CCTF) with the aim of figuring out the most useful ways that we could be active locally. The CCTF’s key goal is to promote environmental awareness and concrete action to confront climate change through education, advocacy, community mobilization, and investment in local green initiatives. We also support political actions to advocate for changes in policy and regulation, concrete strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and practical approaches in adapting to the consequences of climate change. We believe that even if we weren’t in a climate emergency, taking care of the land and other species and building a resilient community are valuable goals in and of themselves.

We come from many sectors, backgrounds, and political orientations with a desire to work collaboratively for a hopeful and environmentally sound future for ourselves and for future generations. We strive to form relationships with individuals, organizations, and communities inside and outside of our region who share a belief in advancing the right to a healthy environment.

This work involves everything from responding to “urgent” situations affecting our community to collaborating with various levels of government, business, educational institutions, and community organizations to prioritize actions that will lead to a greener, more equitable future. Various aspects of our work so far, and the groups, institutions, and individuals involved, are documented on the CCTF website. We hope you will join us on this journey! Please stay tuned for future CCTF columns.

This article was first published in the Cape Breton Post on July 31st, 2024.