“We need to strengthen the conviction that we are one single human family. There are no frontiers of barriers, political or social, behind which we can hide, still less is there room for the globalization of indifference.”
These words from Pope Francis’ Encyclical Laudato Si: On Care for Our Common Home (among others from the same text) sit at the heart of Stephanie Cardon’s UNLESS.
UNLESS is meant to bring us together to confront the realities of climate change and our role in it, individually and collectively. With it’s engaging and urgent call for us to create a more sustainable life and a more just approach to how we treat our planet and each other, this project asks us to put the common good ahead of personal gain to shape a more equitable future.
Photo by Ryan McMahon
As Stephanie created UNLESS she sought the council and knowledge of sustainability experts and asked them to lend their their voices to this timely call-to-action. Below hear from Dr. Julian Agyeman about the meaning of “just sustainability” — listen to educator Eric Van Vlandren talk about waste and it’s growing impact on our world — and learn from Mia Mansfield, Climate Preparedness Program Manager for the City of Boston about how climate change is affecting and will continue to affect Boston.
"I could see a Green Planet that was deeply socially unjust, and if it were socially unjust would it really be sustainable?" - Dr. Julian Agyeman
"Everything you put in the trash took physical material to make and if you throw it in the trash, it is wasted that material and the energy it took to make the thing." - Eric Van Vlandren
"Climate resilience is an opportunity to invest in our city and make it work better for everyone." - Mia Mansfield
In her own words during a recent interview with Boston Art Review, Stephanie shared, “My hope is to energize people…anyone who is concerned about climate change…I also want people to consider how environmental justice enters into the conversation: those least responsible for the crisis we are experiencing as a planet are the first impacted.”
It can’t be denied that now is the time to activate an intersectional and grassroots movement to fight against climate change. Not only for ourselves but for all in our “one human family”. You can start creating positive change today by joining our customized text-message action program — just text the code WEACT to 555888 and stand with us as advocates for climate justice.