Stepping Up: Recent Episodes
Claire Schoen
Stepping Up tells fun, funny, surprising stories of Americans who are taking action on the greatest crisis of our time: climate change. 12-year-olds tackle ocean acidification. Grannies risk arrest. Clowns take to the street. Evangelicals battle climate chaos for their Lord. These smart, articulate, passionate individuals spark our imagination and show us how we can step up our game as well. These audio documentaries are story-driven, scene-based and sound- rich. Each one takes several months to create and we will be rolling them out as we produce them. So, stick with us! We will be posting the next one soon.
Richmond California is a working class town that grew up in the shadow of a Chevron refinery. The company ran both the economy – and local government – for more than a century. What happens when climate champions start winning local elections? What happens when an oil company decides to fight back?
Richmond California is a working class town that grew up in the shadow of a Chevron refinery. The company ran both the economy – and the local government – for more than a century. But times are changing. Climate champions have flipped City Hall to their side. What happens when an oil company decides to fight back? Andres Soto has lived in and around Richmond all his life. And today he is standing up to big oil. With climate deniers holding the highest offices in the land, Andres’ work to put environmental leaders into city government may be the best path for climate activists. Cities across the country are joining Richmond as mayors design their cities for climate resilience and a green economy. “Think Globally, Vote Locally” is a good motto for our times.
Climate change is serious business. But some climate clowns are donning red noses to get your attention. One seasoned street performer has sung and danced his way from Los Angeles to London, bringing a climate message through imaginative skits and wacky antics which invariably draw a crowd. They stop, laugh and join the conversation.
Following in the footsteps of Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr, Millennials are turning to civil disobedience in response to the climate catastrophe. But what is the role for elder activists? This story’s producer hasn’t been arrested since the anti-nuclear protests of her youth. It might be time for her to join the next generation on the line.
Following in the footsteps of Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr, Millennials are turning to civil disobedience in response to the climate catastrophe. But what is the role for elder activists? This story’s producer hasn’t been arrested since the anti-nuclear protests of her youth. It might be time for her to join the next generation on the line.
A group of 12-year-olds, tired of the grownups messing up their planet, have decided to solve the problems of the oceans themselves. They are working on issues like coral bleaching, kelp forests and ocean acidification. These kids are stunningly smart. But they’re also… just kids. Silly, irreverent and playful as puppies.