Saio is a school administrator in Port Loko City, Sierra Leone and founded the School Initiative to Combat Climate Change to teach children about the dangers of climate change and encourage them to plant trees. He recalls that when he first came to Port Loko in 2006 the environment was rich in green vegetation. The forest was cool, fresh, and beautiful and served multiple purposes from providing shelter from sun and heat to acting as windbreakers to protect lives and property.
Recently, timber logging, mining, and wildfires have led to hectares of land becoming deforested. The environment is dangerously exposed to erosion and degredation. Without the protection of the forest, extreme heatwaves and sun intensity make life unbearable during the dry season. Sleepless nights and heat rash adversely affect people and low vegetable yields and livestock deaths have been caused by water shortages.

Saio Sesay, Port Loko City, Sierra Leone

Doug Parsons, the host of the America Adapts Podcast  talks to us about what he has learned from nearly 100 episodes interviewing adaptation experts. He will discuss the difference between adaptation and resiliency. He highlights efforts to adapt to sea level rise, wildfires, and flooding, and points out an impact of climate change that will affect almost everyone at some point in their lives—extreme heat. 
     You will also hear an excerpt from a conversation Doug Parsons has with s Dr. Carolyn Kousky, the Executive Director at the Wharton Risk Management and Decision Processes Center at the University of Pennsylvania. They discuss how wildfires in California drove their utility into bankruptcy and what policy reforms are needed to prevent this from happening again.
     Doug also reflects climate adaptation in light of the Coronavirus Global Pandemic. What lessons are climate adaptation experts learning? What challenges do they face? https://www.americaadapts.org

The Art House
Joining us in the Art House is Musician and composer Jason Davis. Jason curates ClimateStoriesProject.org. The site hosts videos from people all over the world. They reveal the impacts of climate change in their lives, and how they are responding. Jason takes some of these stories and composes music to accompany them. 

     You will hear a moving and powerful testimony from John Sinnok, Inuit elder in Alaska. Woven around the story is Jason’s haunting and beautiful composition for the double bass. He calls the piece Footsteps in Snow. You will also learn how you can share your own story on the website.  
     Jason wants to hear your climate story. He invites you to explore his site to read other climate stories then consider contributing your own. That website is climatestoriesproject.org

Citizens Climate Radio

Ep 52 Doug Parsons on Adaptation, Resilience, and Bouncing Forward

Climate Stories Project (CSP) is an educational and artistic forum for sharing personal stories about the effects of climate change on our lives and communities. CSP focuses on personal oral histories, which bring an immediacy to the sometimes abstract nature of climate change communication. Some of us may recount dramatic events such as floods and wildfires, or we may address our observations of changes in seasonal patterns and our fears for the future of our families and communities. We may discuss how climate change is forcing our communities to adapt to extreme weather and sea level rise. Or we may speak about how we are getting involved in the movement to fight the fossil fuel industry through community organizing or nonviolent protest.There is no "right" way to talk about climate change, as it is a vast topic that is increasingly touching every corner of our lives. CSP also facilitates educational workshops where students learn to speak about their own responses to climate change and interview guest speakers about theirs. In addition, some climate stories are featured in music and soundscape projects that allow audiences to witness the effects of climate change in a novel way.

Saio Sesay, Port Loko City, Sierra Leone

Climate Stories Project

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