Resource Type: Tips & How-Tos

Tribal communities, commercial fishermen, and conservation groups in Alaska are celebrating a recent EPA announcement outlining new protections for the Bristol Bay Watershed – protections that could (finally) end the decades-long fight to stop Pebble Mine. Alannah Hurley, Executive Director of the United Tribes of Bristol Bay (UTBB), reflected, “As stewards of these lands and waters since time immemorial, our people welcome this step towards permanent protections for our waters and way of life… We appreciate EPA’s efforts to address the threat Pebble poses to our lands, waters and way of life in Bristol Bay, and hope to see the agency finalize strong protections this year.” (Please consider standing in solidarity with UTBB by submitting your own public comment to the EPA!)
In response to this growing challenge, Alaska Conservation Foundation (ACF) reached out to the Lab earlier this year for support. Specifically, ACF was eager to explore the role of narrative, both as a tool wielded by the opposition (mining industry and pro-mining decision-makers) to push the necessity and “inevitably” of unchecked mining expansion and as a tool for advocates statewide to put forward an alternate vision for prosperity, sustainability, and self-determination through the coming energy transition. Read on for key learnings and insights from the work we did together!

The Climate Advocacy Lab is excited to pilot a 4-Day Workweek because we believe in the sustainability of our people as well as the planet. The Lab team feels deeply privileged to do work in service of our mission: to equip the US climate movement with the evidence-based insights, skills, and connections needed to build durable power and win equitable solutions.
However (as you all know well) working in the climate movement means we absorb an extreme level of anxiety-provoking news and grapple daily with existential questions about our place in this world and long-term viability of our planet. These threats and anxieties are even greater, of course, for our friends and colleagues working on the frontlines, dealing with the pain and trauma of too many intersecting crises. The ongoing pandemic has forced all of us to re-evaluate the boundaries between work and rest — as well as the balance between professional development and professional sustainability. As a result of exploring different models for how the Lab works toward our mission that allows us to consider the long-term health of our team, we have decided to pilot a Monday-Thursday four-day workweek (4DWW).

The world can be a dangerous place, especially when you’re trying to solve a climate crisis. Disinformation – from the fossil fuel industry, conspiracy theorists, or their partisan accomplices – pollutes the discourse and draws attention away from actual climate solutions. Unfortunately, we’re now all responsible for pushing back against lies, dirty tricks, and bad-faith arguments in order to protect our audiences.
Building off of our March webinar on Fighting Digital Climate Disinformation, we want to arm advocates with what they’ll need to fight disinformation in their work, whether that looks like organizing volunteers on social media to amplify inoculation messages, debunking misleading information in frontline communities, or building a dedicated program to conduct anti-disinformation research. Participants will leave this webinar equipped with the knowledge and instructions to protect their organization and their base.

For both those who are planning on climate deep canvassing, as well as those just curious about it, an all-star panel guides you through the ins and outs of designing, running, and evaluating a climate deep canvassing program, including a walkthrough of the entire deep canvassing design process; a haul of instructional materials, tipsheets, and sample scripts.

This interactive session covered how researchers and advocates (the two biggest constituents in the Lab community!) can help each other evaluate the effectiveness of their programs, test out new approaches to win campaigns, and generate more knowledge for the rest of the movement to learn from. Our panel included:

Kate Mannle (Rare) and Adam Seth Levine (Johns Hopkins University, research4impact) on the process of building mutual understanding and a healthy, equitable working relationship across sectors
Rodrick Leary (Audubon) and Heather O’Connor (Louisiana State University-Shreveport, Indiana University) on how to connect across sectors and share knowledge
Ernesto Cruz (Neighbor to Neighbor) and Justin Rolfe-Redding (Climate Advocacy Lab) on moving from shared interests to tangible questions and a functional research plan

Being in the climate movement comes with a certain orientation around crisis – disruption is something we are familiar with. From IPCC reports declaring dire and urgent responses to disruptive tactics of resistance being in our movement’s DNA – we may feel endless urgency to fulfill our tactics, strategies, and missions. The Ayni Institute speaks of this as the “endless summer” and points to the inevitable burnout of attempting to sustain this high energy non-stop.
Reflecting on the last 10 years, it’s clear the climate movement has built many of the critical capacities* needed to win. This week’s newsletter focuses on strategic capacity in particular and how understanding and embracing the seasons of leadership and cycles of movements can strengthen it.

As the seasons’ turn, new life and opportunities emerge. The Lab’s first Spring Community Call to re-ground in community, plant seeds of understanding on our movement’s key priorities and challenges, and nurture dialogue with other leaders about what it takes to build durable power and win equitable solutions.
Social science research affirms the need for “critical capacities” of effective social movements. The Lab has identified 5 critical capacities including strategic, organizing, narrative, disruptive, and electoral/institutional. During this Spring Community Call, we explore what these are and reflect on how these critical capacities are connected to building a powerful multi-racial, cross-class climate movement. In this community call, participants leave with:
• New and strengthened relationships with other leaders in the movement
• A snapshot of the climate movement’s current opportunities and gaps
• Concrete ways to apply the “5 critical capacities framework”
Together, we create a space of learning across the Lab community and inspire one another with our collectively held and distinct experiences.