Let’s Get Started

A Library of Climate Learning

Over the last several months, I’ve been lucky to speak with over 100 people across the world about climate change. These individuals, their inspiring stories, and the learning has transformed me. I’m not the same person who started on sabbatical this summer. In truth, I’m different from two weeks ago. The change has been profound, renewing, and a little scary. I’ve met so many people that my life will never be the same.

I’ve built a multi-pronged library to document my journey of climate learning. There are books, of course. I also log conversations into Excel, organized by individual & date into meeting notes and key insights. My 190-page handwritten journal documents my travels to NYC and Europe. And there are sticky notes everywhere: unorganized, in multiple colors, the physical embodiment of improvised thinking.

This blog, The Green Leap, is yet another aspect of this climate learning library.

Sketch by Reed Omary

Like any other library, I would like this one to provide learning for all. No paywalls. No barriers to entry. And no judging.

A Major Unmet Need

My interviews suggests one major need rises to the top:

We need a way for anyone in healthcare a) to learn relevant information about climate change, b) to feel part of a larger community, and c) to choose the climate actions that will generate the greatest return.

Over and over again, climate advocates in healthcare have told me they feel:

1. Excluded by health systems that aspire to heal patients & yet overlook how they pollute nearby communities and the planet.
2. Dismissed as dreamy, Birkenstock-wearing tree huggers who don’t understand “how healthcare really works”. 
3. Ignored by leaders who view climate action as “nice to have” rather than essential.

If any of these sentiments match you, then you’ve landed in the right place. Enough of the gaslighting: you are correct, not crazy.

To be in healthcare is to serve others. And lots of us serve: 65 million worldwide. As of 2022, US healthcare employs 14.7 million people, accounting for 16% of US gross domestic product, the most of any developed country. According to a multinational survey, 95% of health professionals think climate change is happening. 

Photo by Luis Melendez on Unsplash

That’s a lot of people with untapped power to address climate change.

The problem is that we are unaware that there are others like us. Many of us feel alone. Academics have coined a term for this: “pluralistic ignorance”.

As soon as we recognize that are attitudes are normal rather than fringe, we become empowered, bolder, and stronger. 

Healthcare workers are an immense group of climate advocates hiding in plain sight.

Why a blog, and why now?

The answer is simple: we no longer have the luxury of time. Carbon emissions increasingly threaten the life that we and every other species know. While we’ve made great strides to raise awareness of climate change, we haven’t reduced emissions enough.

We climate folks are Balkanized. Too many programs duplicate efforts, and cannibalize the limited resources of time, people, and money. We will be better off by aligning ourselves under a broad umbrella.

Healthcare, especially in the US, lags behind other sectors in addressing its contributions to climate change.

This blog hopes to address these key issues. In so doing, we can tap into a desire for belonging. We can be part of a large community that recognizes the planet is bigger than ourselves. We can exchange ideas, test solutions, and support one another.

My Asks:

1. Would you like to join me as a guest blogger on The Green Leap? If so, please let me know, as I would be thrilled to share one of your written or video posts with our audience.
2. Do you have suggestions for how to build a stronger community of folks like us? I’m seeking ways to increase our interactions so that we can learn, share, & grow together. 

For anyone in healthcare who asks, “Where do I begin?”, my answer is simple. Start by committing to change. It’s not just a first step, but … a green leap.

Let’s commit to leaping together. For when we do, we will carry others along.

Thank you for creating a greener future, now.

Photo by Reed Omary, Matcha by Sump Coffee, Nashville