NY Climate Tech: Aug 21 - Aug 28
NY Climate Tech: Aug 21 - Aug 28
Climate goes back-to-school, our (sold-out!) meetup, and a new way to buy us a coffee
Hi friends,
We’re excited to see so many of you tomorrow at the 🗽 NY Climate Tech Summer Meetup! For a Tuesday in the doldrums of August, we’re astounded to say we are sold out. If you have a ticket and can’t make it, please cancel it so others can come. We just set up a waitlist on Eventbrite, so join it there and we’ll see what we can do!
As the summer draws to a close and we all go back to school (in one way or another), we’re have an incredible article this week from children’s book author extraordinaire, Petya Georgieva Miller, on how to talk to kids about eco-anxiety. When she’s not working with the young ones, Petya also helps us with all our marketing efforts at Climate Tech Cities and we don’t know where we’d be without her!
In other news: we have a big announcement to make! If you love NY Climate Tech, you can now become a paid subscriber!
We won’t be changing these weekly emails at all. Instead, we’ll be giving paid subscribers additional, early-access content. If you can expense it, support us with a business subscription and forward these emails to your team guilt-free.
Our first subscriber post is coming this week: A Guide to Climate Week. Paid subscribers will get access two weeks before regular subscribers, so you can start planning now! We’ll also be updating it as we go, with subscribers getting early access to new events as we learn about them.
Now without further ado, here are our picks for the week:
Just can’t get enough of corporate sustainability standards? Tune into 🌎 Updates to the GHG Protocol on Wednesday to learn about upcoming changes to the world’s most prominent reporting framework.
Want a fun summer fling? Check out 💚 Carbon Dating: Looking for Love in the Climate Crisis on Wednesday. Their email address is adultinganthropocene@gmail.com. What else could you ask for?!
Then bring that summer fling to a 🎉 Climate Town Town Hall later in the evening, complete with new videos, music, and much else!
Close it out on Saturday with the 🥳 Climate Movement Summer Celebration at legendary DIY party spot Rubulad.
As always, scroll down for the full list of upcoming events.
Cheers,
The Climate Tech Cities Team
🌎 Climate Tech Cities and Streetlife Ventures Startup and Talent Platforms
Climate Tech Cities and Streetlife Ventures are launching new platforms to support climate founders, funders, and career transitioners! There is no shortage of great companies raising money for their groundbreaking ideas, great investors looking to support with capital, and great talent living the mantra that every job is a climate job. We can’t wait to hear from you!
Managing Eco-Anxiety With Children 👧🏻 🌎 👦🏽
As the impact of climate change continues to unfold, its reach extends beyond physical landscapes and into the realm of mental health. The growing awareness of this phenomenon has given rise to a complex emotional experience known as eco-anxiety. While not a clinical diagnosis, eco-anxiety reflects the profound emotional responses that individuals, including children, may feel in the face of environmental challenges.
Emotions such as sadness, fear, anxiety, anger, powerlessness, hopelessness, and even depression can arise when contemplating the daunting realities of climate change. These feelings are not confined to adults only but can also affect children, who often possess an innate sense of empathy and concern for the world around them.
Dr. Patrick Kennedy-Williams, a clinical psychologist, shared an example of his six-year-old child asking him a heart-wrenching question: "Daddy, are we winning the war against climate change?" Sadly, more and more studies provide arguments that climate change has negative effects on children's mental health.
As we are approaching the back-to-school season, our focus turns to examining the effects of climate change on kids. We'll explore how parents and teachers can engage in conversations about this issue, all while fostering resilience in the face of growing eco-anxiety.
The Good in the Bad
While the emotional toll of eco-anxiety is undeniable, there is a silver lining. Kids who have eco-anxiety are actually capable of experiencing it because they are emphatic, aware, and socially connected — all qualities that are important for raising the next generation of good human beings. In addition to these, other positive qualities can emerge from this challenging experience — such as humanity, awareness, care, willingness to help, proactivity, and the potential to build agency. It is an opportunity for parents to nurture these qualities in children and show them how to transform the feelings of helplessness into a driving force for positive action.
Open Communication and Empowerment
Rather than shielding children from the realities of climate change, we encourage parents to create space for caring conversations and realistic actions. By empowering children to understand the challenges they face, parents can help them develop a sense of agency and ownership over their future. This process involves several essential steps derived from childhood psychology:
🧘🏼♂️ Acknowledge and Heal: Begin by acknowledging the emotions associated with eco-anxiety and engage in intentional healing practices, such as mindfulness and emotional expression.
🗣 Open Conversations: Encourage open and caring discussions about climate change, allowing children to express their thoughts, fears, and questions. Don’t be afraid to share that you don’t know everything and embark on a path of learning together with them. Giving them a personal example that learning is a life-long process is such a valuable lesson to remember.
👦🏽 Avoid Minimizing: Instead of downplaying their concerns, actively listen to your children and validate their feelings. This fosters trust and creates an environment of understanding.
👯♂️ Foster Community: Connect with like-minded people and engage in community efforts to address environmental challenges. This sense of belonging can provide comfort and support.
🌳 Embrace Green Practices: Implement eco-friendly behaviors as a family, demonstrating a commitment to making a positive impact on the environment.
🎤 Take Action: Transform anxiety into productive energy by engaging in proactive efforts such as volunteering, activism, and participating in local initiatives.
💆🏽♀️ Self-Care: Prioritize regular self-care routines that encompass mental, physical, and environmental well-being.
The Power of Self-Efficacy and Learning Together
Drawing upon self-efficacy theory, parents and teachers can emphasize the importance of being active shapers of their environment. This perspective reinforces the idea that individuals have the capacity to make meaningful change when equipped with belief in their ideas and capabilities. It is crucial to remember that parents do not need to be climate experts; embracing a spirit of learning together can deepen familial connections and inspire children's curiosity. Don’t forget that children follow their parents’ examples after all.
Supporting Different Age Groups
Younger children can engage in learning about nature and climate through play, art, and local volunteering efforts. Setting achievable goals as a family and celebrating incremental progress helps instill a sense of accomplishment and perseverance.
Other Practical Steps for Younger Kids
Keep your efforts local
Engage with friends and school community
Focus on different activities, but keep it small
Follow progress together
Remind them changes take time
Spend time in nature
Teenagers
For parents with teenagers, a constructive approach involves active listening, encouraging their activism, and offering guidance based on personal experiences. Acknowledging how much they know, showing them that you want to learn from them, and praising their advocating for political involvement can truly empower teens to realize their potential as change-makers.
Practical Support for Teens
Hold space to listen to them. Have conversations with them. Look out for signs of depression.
Encourage them to volunteer and to be activists.
Set practical goals as a family, adopt eco-friendly behaviors to show that you hear them. Follow progress together.
Point out times of history when critical events turned out for the better. Recommend inspiring books based on real stories.
Remind them that changes take time.
Encourage them to be politically involved.
No matter the age of your kids, always support their proactivity and actions and don’t forget to express how proud you are of them. Reminding them that change takes time and encouraging them to spend time in nature are other necessary practices when dealing with eco-anxiety.
Eco-anxiety is a complex emotional response to the challenges posed by witnessing all the effects of climate change around the world. However, by fostering open communication, empowerment, and a sense of agency, parents can transform eco-anxiety into a catalyst for positive change. Nurturing empathy, resilience, and proactivity equips children with the tools they need to shape a more sustainable future for themselves and the planet. Through these efforts, parents play a crucial role in raising a generation that is not only aware of the environmental challenges but also driven to overcome them.
Books to Consider:
How to Talk to Your Kids About Climate Change, by Harriet Shugarman. Shugarman is founder and executive director of the US campaign group ClimateMama. “Our children are watching us; their present and future is truly in our hands,” she writes in the book’s introduction. “Let’s begin by telling our children the truth.”
Healthy Earth, by our own Petya Georgieva Miller, is an educational coloring book providing more than 60 practical tips on how to live more sustainably every day. Both kids and adults love it! Coloring has a calming effect, expands attention, helps to improve memory, and is a calming method recommended by psychologists.
The Climate Optimist by Anne Therese Gennari, offers encouragement, wisdom, and practical tools to help us let go of fear and the dismal truth of today to build toward a world that can be better and more beautiful than anything we’ve yet seen.
Community Shoutouts
💧 DUE THIS WEEK! Environmental Tech Lab Challenges
Applications are open for the inaugural Environmental Tech Lab, a public-private initiative between the NYC Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Partnership Fund for New York City to test new technologies to help solve pressing challenges facing the city’s water and wastewater network. This year’s challenges focus on helping DEP better utilize data and technology and improve operational efficiency at New York City’s water and wastewater utility.
🚴♀️ NYC Bike Bus
The NYC Bike Bus is a youth-centered bike bus run by Emily Stutts who’s aim is to empower families, kids, and youth to choose sustainable, active modes of transportation which are also safe, fast, and fun!
✊Fridays for Future NYC
Fridays For Future (FFF) is an international, intersectional movement of students striking for climate. FFF began in August 2018 after 15 year old Greta Thunberg sat in front of the Swedish parliament every school day for three weeks to protest against the lack of action on the climate crisis. Since then, millions of people have participated in Fridays For Future strikes around the world.
Events This Week
🗽 NY Climate Tech Summer Meetup: Tue, Aug 22
🌎 GHG Protocol: Findings from Corporate Surveys: Wed, Aug 23
💚 Carbon Dating: Looking for Love in the Climate Crisis: Wed, Aug 23
🎉 Climate Town Town Hall: Wed, Aug 23
👩🔬 Activate New York Open House: Wed, Aug 23
🖼️ Botanical Drawing an Urban Meadow w/ NCL Artist Resident Jessica Dalyrmple: Thu, Aug 24
🎭 Loom Ensemble Presents: Tell Me How You Breathe: Fri, Aug 25
🌳 Climate Resiliency in Community Gardens: Sat, Aug 26
🥳 Climate Movement Summer Celebration: Sat, Aug 26
Read on for more details about this week’s happenings and upcoming events this month
Upcoming Events
✨ Climate Ready Uptown Plan Workshop: Mon, Aug 28
💚 How to shop at more people and planet friendly businesses: Tue, Aug 29
🏡 Passive House Tour with AIA Brooklyn CRAN (Boerum Hill): Thu, Aug 31
🙋♀️ Women in Carbon Launch Event: Thu, Sep 7
💩 Park Tours: Compost Center: Thu, Sep 7
🌍 Muslims for Climate Justice: The Earth as our Amaanah: Sat, Sep 9
⚖️ Climate, Politics, and Corporate Power: A Conversation with Steven Donziger: Tue, Sep 12
🥬 Food and Agriculture as a Solution to the Climate Crisis: Thu, Sep 14
🧶 Meet emerging Nordic fashion brands and sustainability leaders: Thu, Sep 14
🪴 7th NYC Green School Conference 2023: Fri, Sep 15
⛓️ Blockchain / Web3 for Climate Community Networking Event @ Climate Week NYC: Fri, Sep 15
🎭 Climate Change Action Theater: Sun, Sep 17
🌍 New Yorkers and the Climate Movement: Mon, Sep 18
🌎 The Nest Climate Campus, Official Event Partner of Climate Week NYC 2023: Tue, Sep 19
❇️ How the Global North can Take Responsibility for the Climate Crisis and Act: Tue, Sep 19
💃 SAVE HER! the Environmental Drag Show: Tue, Sep 19
🌱 Regenerative, Carbon Neutral and Just Communities with Actionable Outcomes: Wed, Sep 20
Event Details
🗽 NY Climate Tech Summer Meetup
When: Tue, Aug 22nd from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Where: citizenM Bowery Hotel, 189 Bowery, New York, NY
Join NY Climate Tech for our summer meetup! This monthly meetup is a casual and accessible way to connect with others in the climate community. At this event, you'll have the opportunity to network, exchange ideas, and learn more about what's happening in the world of climate tech. So come on out and be a part of building a better future for our city and beyond!
🌎 GHG Protocol: Findings from Corporate Surveys
When: Wed, Aug 23 from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM
Where: Online
In this webinar, the GHG Protocol secretariat will review key themes that emerged in the recently concluded Corporate Standard and Scope 3 Standard surveys. Participants will have a chance to submit questions for the speakers in advance as well as during the live session. This session will be recorded for those who are unable to join the live session.
💚 Carbon Dating: Looking for Love in the Climate Crisis
When: Wed, Aug 23rd from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Where: Wild East Brewing Co., 623 Sackett Street, Brooklyn, NY
It’s time to turn up the heat on the hottest summer on record and melt that permafrost in your heart! If you have a healthy dose of climate dread, a healthy skepticism of “green capitalism,” and are looking for someone to set your world on fire (in a good way), this event is for you. This will be a very chill (no pun intended!) way to meet a partner for the apocalypse, a socialist summer fling, or just make some climate comrades! NOTE: this event is open to all ages, sexualities and genders, however we do skew more towards people in their 20’s-40’s. We have decided to charge a small ticket fee this time around to cover our expenses, but we will not turn anyone away for lack of funds. If the ticket price is financially difficult for you, please email us at adultinganthropocene@gmail.com.
🎉 Climate Town Town Hall
When: Wed, Aug 23rd from 7:30 PM to 9:00 PM
Where: The Bell House, 149 7th Street, Brooklyn, NY
Climate Town will release a brand new video at this show. We are promising that.But what is Climate Town? Rollie Williams and the Climate Town team make comedy videos about the climate crisis for their 482,000 YouTube subscribers. Now, after two years and millions of views, they're bringing that same climate change comedy to the stage, where you can see it the way it has never before been seen: LIVE. And remember: we will release a brand new video at this show. We are promising that. With Special Guests: Peter Smith Ena Da (Park Slope Arsonist), Ben Boult, Matt Nelsen
🖼️ Botanical Drawing an Urban Meadow w/ NCL Artist Resident Jessica Dalyrmple
When: Thu, Aug 24th from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Where: Naval Cemetery Landscape, 63 Williamsburg Street West, Brooklyn, NY
At this free workshop style event Jessica will lead participants to zoom in for a closer look at the specific plants and trees at the NCL. Time will be spent discussing the wildlife and native plants in the NCL, concentrating on those aspects of the plant palette related to its natural history and that support sustainability and biodiversity. Participants will choose a plant specimen to draw and in doing so will learn about its morphology and additionally about conditions under which it thrives, declines, and how it affects the other plants and wildlife. This workshop will touch on how painting/sketching can be a vehicle for observation and how the act of quieting down and focusing our attention enlivens our subject, allowing a kind of symbiosis to occur while deepening our connection to nature.
🎭 Loom Ensemble Presents: Tell Me How You Breathe
When: Fri, Aug 25th from 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM
Where: Fort Tryon Park's Dongan Lawn, Broadway, New York, NY
The Loom Ensemble Presents: Tell Me How You Breathe: A New Musical about Climate Justice. Join us for a free, family-friendly, outdoor performance filled with live music and dance, playful humor, and beautiful storytelling. This musical directly responds to climate change and invites audiences to collectively imagine a more just and beautiful future.
🌳 Climate Resiliency in Community Gardens
When: Sat, Aug 26th from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Where: The Garden by the Bay, 4-80 Beach 43rd Street, Queens, NY
Climate change is one of the most pressing issues of our time. Learn about design principles, green infrastructure, native plants, and other strategies to enhance climate resiliency in community gardens facing changing seasonal temperatures and flooding. Learn about the role that community gardens play in addressing climate change through biodiversity and sustainable gardening practices. Garden by the Bay is the first TestBeds (testbeds.org) site, an initiative that reuses architectural prototypes in new community garden structures. Participants can explore their new structure: a combination of a greenhouse, community room, storage shed, and covered outdoor space, completed in September 2022. This workshop is presented in partnership with the Urban Park Rangers.
Join the Fun!
Submit Events
We know all of you are cooking up great events across that highlight the latest and greatest in our collective effort to save our city - and our planet! 🌍 We would love to spread the word. Please share any event details and we'll add them to the list!
A Global Network of Local Communities
We are expanding! We started as an 8-person dinner and now have over 8,000 members in our community. We’ve had people across the world reach out to us to start their own chapters - so we’re launching a new Climate Tech Cities organization this year! If you have friends who are interested in becoming chapter leads, please share the word. Here’s to a global network of local communities making a positive impact!