Be the change you want to see in the world
~ Gandhi

Turning Climate Anxiety Into Action:
A New Coaching Program

The first thing that hits you is the air…., the air is hot, heavy and depending on the day, clogged with particulate pollution. Your eyes often water. Your cough never disappears… You often wear a mask to protect yourself from air pollution. You can no longer simply walk out of your front door and breathe fresh air: there might not be any. Instead, before opening doors or windows in the morning, you check your phone to see what the air quality may be… When storms and heat waves overlap and cluster, the air pollution and intensified surface ozone levels can make it dangerous to go outside…even indoors the air can taste slightly acidic, sometimes making you feel nauseated.

I omitted the first sentence from this chapter:

It is 2050. Beyond the emissions reductions registered in 2015, no further efforts were made to control emissions. We are heading for a world that will be more than 3 degrees warmer by 2100.

But wait a minute, we are not in 2050 but in 2020, and this description is as close as it gets to what we are experiencing this summer in California and on the entire West Coast of the US. The authors go on with other points:

..there are few forests left, most of them logged or consumed by wildfire, and the permafrost is belching greenhouse gases into an already burdened atmosphere.

Sounds familiar? And further in the same chapter:

Those living within stable countries may be safe, yes, but the psychological toll is mounting. With each tipping point passed, they feel hope slipping away… Melting permafrost is also releasing ancient microbes that today’s humans have never been exposed to- and as a result have no resistance to.

Again, these dire descriptions of what the world would most surely be like in 2050 looks eerily real and near, not thirty years away. Now, in the following chapter titled “The World We Must Create”, a different picture is painted:

It is 2050. We have been successful at halving emissions every decade since 2020. We are heading for a world that will be no more than 1.5 degrees Celsius warmer by 2100.

In most places in the world, the air is moist and fresh, even in cities. It feels a lot like walking through a forest, and very likely it’s exactly what you are doing. The air is cleaner than it has been since the Industrial Revolution.
We have trees to thank for that. They are everywhere…

The climate crisis of the beginning of the century jolted us out of our stupor. As we worked to rebuild and care for our environment, it was only natural that we also turned to each other with greater care and concern.. We emerged from the climate crisis as more mature members of the community of life, capable not only of restoring ecosystems but also unfolding our dormant potentials of human strength and discernment.

The rest of the book goes on to describe the required mindsets and ten SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound) actions we each can take to bring this world into reality. It also outlines a timeline for this action plan so we can fulfill this vision of a regenerative world.
We are in the critical decade.

Inspired and emboldened by a training I took this Spring with the UK-based organization Climate Change Coaches, and given the urgency of the issue as witnessed in my own life in California this Summer, I am introducing a Climate Change Coaching program, THE FUTURE WE CHOOSE.

I want to empower you to understand how you can act and advocate for thIs World We Must Create and to help you move you from eco-anxiety, grief or apathy into action. This 6-session coaching program is for you if:

• you have been worrying about the climate crisis, but so far have staid on the sideline, unsure on what to do

• you are feeling like this is too big for you to engage with

• you believe your effort would not make any difference

• you have cognitive dissonance about the way you live and what you know is needed

• you have started designing your climate action plan and need an accountability partner

• you have a need to talk about this existential threat to someone else who understands it

In our first session, we begin with an assessment of your relationship to the climate crisis and of your engagement to-date. We also inquire into how this issue aligns with your life purpose. On subsequent sessions, we embrace practices that develop the mindsets of stubborn optimism, endless abundance and radical regeneration that Figueres and Rivett-Carnac deem necessary for climate crisis action. Then, in sessions 4 to 6, we dive into the nitty-gritty of YOUR CLIMATE ACTION PLAN. Additional sessions can be purchased for follow-up and accountability every 3 or 6 months, or as needed.

The cost of the program is $500. Given the economic difficulties that some of us are experiencing and the urgency of climate action, if you are interested in engaging, but cannot afford these fees, please email me explaining your situation and motivation. Also, if the 6-session program is not what you have in mind, but you want to talk about your situation and engage with the topic, individual sessions are also available at $120 a session. If you are ready for (THE FUTURE WE CHOOSE) program, you can register with this link.
For more information and questions, please email me.

I look forward to sharing this climate journey with you.

Warmly,

Anne-Marie

Poem: The Good News by Thich Nhat Hanh

Friends Page

In my last newsletter, I introduced some resources in meditation, mindfulness, and resilience. As many of you are regularly asking for these, I have started a Friends Page where I will capture these resources.
If you are a friend, and would like to be featured, please contact me.