For our action project, my group decided to create a website to help spread awareness of climate refugees. Our site looks at the issue from many different angles, including the environment, law and policy, infrastructure, and social cohesion. We feature original and professional material as we wanted to speak about climate refugees in our own words. A contemplative practices page was also added to our site because our group found practices helpful in cultivating a group mind. The reason we chose climate refugees as our topic was to appeal to a different segment of the population who may be more interested in issues such as national security and immigration rather than climate refugees. This way, we would be spreading awareness of the Anthropocene to people who otherwise might not be interested. While I learned lots about the implications of climate refugees on a global level, I also learned practical skills through working in a group setting. Our group dynamic helped to create the confidence to convey bold ideas without the fear of being shot down.
The website we created has the potential to spread to a large audience. Our advertising, however, fell short of our expectations as we simply ran out of time. We do plan to continue advertising by posting QR codes around campus. I learned lessons through our failed attempts at organizing a speaking event; I had no idea how many steps one has to take to pull off even a small-scale event at the University of Washington. Through our project, I discovered that political agency does not have to be large scale to be successful, but one does have to take action to make the changes they want to see. While our project might not been seen by many, it was a learning experience for us any may have influenced those close to us. Also, our website has the opportunity to be seen by many if our QR code advertising campaign is successful.
Before completing my action project, my views on citizenship revolved around obligations towards one’s home country. Although my former beliefs may still be valid, this course has challenged me to think bigger, and acknowledge the needs for global citizenship. If countries could somehow drop the “us” and “them” mentality nationalism can create, significant measures towards reducing climate change might be achieved faster. Finally, citizenship requires taking a stand when change cannot wait any longer, which I am proud to have done through my action project.
For a link to our website, click here
Picture Credits
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