Bernadette Giacomazzo
Global warming is a real problem — not just in the United States, but in the entire world.
Former Vice President Al Gore first sounded the alarm about the reality of climate change all the way back in 2006, with his documentary An Inconvenient Truth.
At that time, he was deemed too “left of center.” Many politicians deemed him reactionary, and turned the issue of climate change from an environmental one into a political one.
But as we learned during this latest edition of the Climate Reality Training Corps, he was not only right, he was prepared to change the future to prove it.
Thus was the tempo set for our three-day training at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, Georgia. In between various “breakaway” sessions that taught us things about using our voice and speaking truth to power, Vice President Gore invited some of his activist and celebrity friends to speak to the diverse crowd.
You think you’ve seen it all, and then Pete Davidson of Saturday Night Live comes and pays you a visit while you’re learning about how to be an activist.
For me, however, the Climate Reality Training Corps was made complete by the talks given by Rolling Stone journalist Jamil Smith, longtime preacher Rev. William J. Barber II, and social justice activist Dr. Mustafa Santiago Ali, who used “real talk” to speak to almost 2,000 of us.
Overall, I learned a lot about global warming, climate change, and how to become an activist in my community and beyond. I strongly recommend those who are interested to sign up for the next Climate Reality Training Corps, which will take place in Australia. Visit climatereality.org to find out more details.
