Chautauqua Climate Change Initiative: April 2025
150 for 150: Chautauqua’s “Teach-In” for the Earth
In December 1969, building on the UNESCO conference “Man and His Environment: A View Towards Survival” held the previous month in San Francisco, U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson proposed the idea to hold a nationwide environmental teach-in on April 22, 1970. In a crucial move, Nelson, a Democrat, recruited Republican Senator Paul McCloskey to serve as co-chair of what became the first Earth Day.
As we celebrated the 55th Earth Day in April, the idea has evolved far beyond a teach-in. Today one billion people around the globe engage in thousands of actions, from improving the sustainability of agriculture, to advancing clean energy, to addressing the scourge of plastic pollution. But at its heart, Earth Day remains an opportunity for all of us to learn about the challenges facing our planet and how we can help build a more sustainable future.
And what better place than Chautauqua to advance learning and engagement critical to the survival of our planet? After all, our mission commits us to explore the important issues of our time and stimulate provocative, thoughtful involvement of individuals and families in creative response to such issues. In this spirit, Chautauqua launched its Climate Change Initiative (CCI) right around Earth Day in 2021 with the intention to engage our staff, partners and audiences in dialog about climate change causes, effects and solutions, and inspire them to take positive actions that protect our lake, our communities and the natural world.
As Chautauqua celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2024 I did a little math to figure out just how big a “teach-in” we’ve accomplished since the CCI began in 2021, and…drumroll please…it’s about 150 distinct programs! That’s everything from our annual lake science conference, to speakers at the Chautauqua Lecture Series, Interfaith Lecture Series, and CLSC, to collaborations with the Chautauqua Bird, Tree & Garden Club, Chautauqua Science Group, and Western NY Sustainable Business Roundtable, to Visual and Performing Arts, Special Studies and Youth and Family Programs.
In keeping with both Chautauqua tradition and the key insights of senators Nelson and McClosky, these programs have represented many diverse perspectives, not only from the left and right, but also from the arts, sciences and industry, and from global to national and local voices.
And so, in celebration of Earth Day and Chautauqua’s powerful voice for our planet, here are my top five favorite programs since the inception of Chautauqua’s Climate Change Initiative.
Bob Inglis, executive director of RepublicEn, “home of the eco-right” (Chautauqua Lecture Series 2022): One of the first speakers I recruited for the Chautauqua Lecture Series, Bob is a former Republican congressman from South Carolina who went from climate denier to climate champion after deeply examining his faith and listening to his children’s concerns for their future. His “conversion” cost him his Congressional seat, but he went on to found the most influential conservative climate organization in America. Bob’s story was so inspiring for me and no doubt for the thousands in the Amphitheater that day, giving us hope that it is possible for people to come together across differences and solve the climate crisis.
Rahwa Ghirmatzion, executive director of People United for Sustainable Housing (PUSH) Buffalo (Chautauqua Lecture Series 2022): Born in Eritrea, in the middle of a civil war, Rahwa came with her family to western New York as a refugee from Sudan when she was eight. After completing her education, she worked for more than 20 years with community-based organizations that promote socially-just community development, eventually leading PUSH Buffalo, a pioneer in converting dilapidated unused buildings into environmentally sustainable housing. Rahwa was my introduction to the amazing community of individuals in western New York — who are not only imagining a more sustainable future for our region — but using their remarkable talents to make it happen.
Robin Wall Kimmerer, botanist, professor, and author (Chautauqua Literary & Scientific Circle 2022): When I arrived at Chautauqua at the start of the 2021 season, I know almost no one. Lucky for me, two of the first people I met were Susan McKee and Hal Simmons. They hosted a small dinner party for me where I was presented with a book signed by all the guests with well wishes for me and the brand-new Climate Change Initiative. That book? Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teaching of Plants, a lyrical exploration of reciprocal relationships between humans and the land in both Native American and Western European traditions. After reading it, I knew we HAD to have Robin at Chautauqua. Her lecture, in the Hall of Philosophy on a gorgeous summer afternoon, with a gentle wind blowing through the trees and the sound of bird song, is something I’ll never forget.
Washed Ashore: Art to Save the Sea (Chautauqua Visual Arts and Children’s School 2023): When Chautauqua opened for the 2023 summer assembly season, our guests were greeted by the other-worldly sight of larger-than-life sea creatures made entirely of plastic waste that washes up on our beaches by the ton every hour of every day. The stunning beauty of these one-of-a-kind sculptures drew visitors irresistibly closer, whereupon they discovered the tragic story of the damage plastic waste is doing to our environment, and to us. The Washed Ashore exhibit at Chautauqua became a cornerstone of our multi-year effort to reduce single use plastic at the Institution. But the most moving part for me was seeing how Chautauqua’s Children’s School took the message to heart as they created their own “trash-ter-piece” from plastic waste.
Bill McKibben, climate activist and author, and Frank Sesno, director of George Washington University’s Alliance for a Sustainable Future (Chautauqua Lecture Series 2024): Either Bill McKibben or Frank Sesno on their own would have delivered a blockbuster talk, but together they truly made some magic at the Amp in July 2024. McKibben, who founded Third Act, an organization that involves people over 60 in protecting the planet, and Sesno, who founded Planet Forward, an organization that involves college students in environmental storytelling, had an amazing conversation about how to bring the generations together to help solve the climate crisis. Better yet, they both stayed the week, with McKibben engaging with the Chautauqua faith community and having pizza with young adults down by the lake; and Sesno leading an intergenerational climate storytelling workshop.
Each of these programs and so many others at Chautauqua give me hope that Americans from all walks of life deeply care about our world and are coming up with solutions that will create a more sustainable future. I’d love to tell you the other 145 inspiring stories, but you’ll have to buy me a beer next time I see you. In the meantime, and with your help, let’s keep the great Chautauqua Earth care “teach-in” going.
Top photo source: Library of Congress