The Imperative of Climate Action Now! Understanding Climate Impacts and Taking Personal Responsibility

The annual AIAO COTE Green Champion Summit brings to you sustainability leaders from around the region and country. This year we gather to discuss the imperative for action now because it is increasingly clear that we are all impacted by climate change, though the impacts vary across communities. We know that those who are most vulnerable are people of color and low income people. Our keynote speaker, Hop Hopkins, of the Sierra Club, will discuss the realities of disposable land within our culture and how this results in the idea of disposable people – a timely topic given we will gather on Indigenous Peoples Day. Vivek Shandas will share research on how Oregon’s recent heat wave disproportionately impacted BIPOC communities. We will then shift the conversation to consider our collective responsibility as professionals in the design and building community to take action. Naomi Cole will share her family’s journey in climate responsibility and decarbonization, and Karina Hershberg will explain how these actions have a cumulative and measurable impact. We will brainstorm additional opportunities to address climate change and commit to individual actions to minimize our personal impacts and help prevent undue burden on vulnerable communities.

2 HSWs available.

Register here: https://www.aiaoregon.org/events/2021/10/11/aia-cote-green-champion-summit