The effects of climate change are becoming clearer. 2023 is officially the hottest year on record. Additionally, extreme weather and natural disasters have increased over the past two decades. Environmental activists have rallied to push for climate research, legislation, and emergency response initiatives. But there’s one demographic that’s not included in key climate change discussions: people with disabilities. In honor of Earth Day, host Anita Rao meets three disability activists who are working to change this.
Anita speaks with Daphne Frias, a disability activist who looks at global warming and its impacts from a public health perspective. Daphne shares how environmental racism in her West Harlem neighborhood drove her to join the movement for change. Anita also speaks with activist Herman Parodi, co-executive director of the Inclusive Disaster Strategies Partnership, an organization that centers the needs of people with disabilities in the aftermath of disasters, who shares his experiences on the ground providing aid in the aftermath of hurricanes and other climate crises.
Anita concludes her conversation with activist and scholar Julia Watts Belser, who founded the Disability & Climate Change Public Archive, creating a space for people with disabilities to share their perspectives on climate change. Julia shares some of her favorite stories from the archive and elaborates on how she is integrating disability culture and environmental justice.
Special thanks to Naomi Ortiz, Áine Kelly Costello, Michael Stein, and Sébastien Jodoin for sharing their poems and reflections with us.
Read the transcript