Clover Hogan’s Post

You know you've triggered Elon Musk when he turns you into a meme ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

The most insidious form of climate denial is no longer, "It's not happening," but the belief that incremental or technological solutions will solve this crisis. Take electric vehicles. As demand grows each year, so does the need for cobalt; 70% of which is mined in the DRC. This has led to an explosion in human rights abuses; from child labour, to miners being buried alive when tunnels cave in. Workers make as little as £2 per day (meanwhile, the EV market was valued at £388+ billion last year). In the pursuit of shiny, silver bullet solutions, we are inadvertently doubling down on deeply-entrenched injustices. What if we zoomed out from the combustion engine and asked, "How do we redesign mobility?" This is a much more exciting question, because then we can focus on solutions that are accessible and serve the majority of people; not the handful who can afford a new Tesla. In fact, if we made cities LESS car-friendly, they could be both safer and greener. The average car spends 95% of its life parked; imagine if we repurposed all that space, as well as roads, for community allotments, local gardens, playgrounds, cycling infrastructure, public transport... which lead to cleaner air, improved climate resilience, and healthier, happier people. "Sustainability" should not the end goal; but the means to creating a fairer, more equitable society. . . . . . . #justice #equity #climateaction #activism #action #speaker #business #sustainablebusiness #technology #leaders #leadership #people #sustainability #ecoanxiety #science #EVs #ElectricVehicles #climatedenial

Hi friends 👋 I come to you with big personal update... which is that I will soon be stepping down as Executive Director of Force of Nature. 2023 was one of the hardest years of my life personally and professionally. Only when I was forced to press pause did I realise that I hadn't been able to show up for myself, or as the leader Force of Nature needed, for some time. It has been a rollercoaster but I am so proud of the impact we've made and grateful for the team I've gotten to work alongside. And as we enter this next chapter, we're creating space for a new generation of leadership to step up: which starts with hiring another Executive Director. So, I am now turning to you, our wonderful community, and asking for your help in finding this person. The job application is in the comments below, so please do share with anyone who you think might be a good fit (or know someone who is!) Thank you all 🙌 💛 And the biggest shoutout of all to the team who have made it all possible... Kat Hamilton, Phoebe Hanson, Megan Stillwell, Hannah Hooper, Sacha Wright, Rachel Keane, Janine Walker, Claire Low Qian Ling, Vamshi Krishna Yelugam, Nadia Moussaoui. . . . . . . #climateaction #activism #action #speaker #business #nonprofit #burnout #mentalhealth #sustainablebusiness #technology #leaders #leadership #people #sustainability #ecoanxiety #HR #culture #hiring #executivedirector #CEO #greenjobs

This is terrifying. Not the headline... I'm familiar with the science. No, what's terrifying is how far I had to dig through my news notifications to find this story. What's terrifying is that this headline is not #trending on every social media platform. What's terrifying is that I've seen more mentions of it being "international pet day" than I have the fact the fact we're on the brink of climate collapse. What's terrifying is that in our biggest ever election year, the #climatecrisis is not at the top of every political agenda. What's terrifying is the number of times in the past month I've been asked to be "less radical" in my speeches. I was told to avoid using the term "crisis", so as to not make anyone "anxious". Today on a briefing call, I was asked not to "be negative," "point fingers" or "make anyone out to be the bad guy". WHAT?! If there's one thing you do today, let it be sharing this headline. Share it on social media, with a colleague, or at the dinner table. It is on all of us to sound the alarm. We've run out of time for silence. ~ Credit to Simon Stiell for relaying the science, and Kate Abnett and Simon Jessop of Reuters for reporting on it. . . . . . . #justice #equity #climateaction #activism #action #speaker #business #sustainablebusiness #technology #leaders #leadership #people #sustainability #ecoanxiety #science #reporting #journalism

Much of the climate movement was eerily silent in the days following October 7; as well as in the months and years preceding it. This is, in part, down to ignorance. I count myself in this category. It wasn’t until I was in my twenties that I learnt about the genocide in Palestine via friends and social justice activists. They were loud when the rest of the world was silent. Yet this speaks to a deeper issue within "sustainability". We’ve allowed this movement to centre around polar bears, ice caps and emission graphs, instead of a fight for justice, for human rights. Since I started posting consistently about Palestine, I’ve been told to ‘stay in my lane’ or asked, “What does this have to do with climate?” Who is this movement for, exactly, if not the most vulnerable in our society? What are we trying to achieve, if not ending a war machine that serves to profit powerful people by executing thousands of innocent civilians? Why lobby to protect the rights of nature, but not the rights of your fellow human? Our movement must be intersectional and grounded in justice. We will fail if we don’t understand that the system destroying our forests, polluting our air, and drying our rivers is the same system responsible for the erasure of cultures, the exploitation of poor people, and genocides like the one unfolding in Palestine. We need an immediate, permanent ceasefire in Gaza. We need boycotts, divestment, sanctions. We need humanitarian aid. And those of us who have the privilege of not fearing for our lives, every day: we must not be silent. In the words of civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer, “Nobody's free until everybody's free." . . . . . . . . . . #climatecrisis #climateaction #activism #action #climateanxiety #ecoanxiety #leadership #people #inspiration #courage #ceasefire #gaza #ceasefirenow #ceasefirenow🇵🇸 #humanrights #socialjustice

There were 2,456 oil and gas lobbyists at COP28. How many will we allow at #COP29? We won't solve the climate crisis with the same thinking that created it; or by relying on processes that have been so deeply infiltrated by people who benefit from business-as-usual. It sounds obvious, but we need decision-making structures that centre the people who are most affected: young people, people seeking asylum, women, BIPOC communities. And not only because these groups are vulnerable, or because they're victimised by the current system, but because they are the best placed to design inclusive and intersectional solutions. They have lived experience of being failed by the system, and they know what needs to change. We urgently need their perspectives, their wisdom, and their ingenuity. ~ Speaking at the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights in Vienna last month. . . . . . . #justice #equity #climatecrisis #climateaction #activism #action #speaker #business #sustainablebusiness #technology #leaders #leadership #people #sustainability

The climate crisis is a product of inequality. Last year, a report found that the richest 1% account for more carbon emissions than the poorest 66%. Still, people argue that “overpopulation” is to blame… and point the finger at countries like India and China, while their own governments double down on fossil fuels. Take the UK government, which last year approved #Rosebank — the largest untapped oil and gas field. It alone will produce the emissions of 28 low-income countries, home to 700 million people, including Uganda, Ethiopia and Mozambique. The very places most vulnerable to the climate crisis. This is when we have access to clean, renewable technology, which would legitimately curb emissions, create jobs and bring down the cost of energy. We can’t talk about #climatechange without addressing the root cause: a system that profits off inequality. . . . . . . #justice #equity #climatecrisis #climateaction #activism #action #speaker #business #sustainablebusiness #technology #leaders #leadership #people #sustainability