Naeomi Chin

Caring about the environment can feel like an uphill battle, where our individual efforts can seem small against the colossal issue of climate change. But working together–being just a little less of an individual in this battle–can feel uplifting and make a more significant difference. Environmental activist and author, Bill McKibben, joined Cal State LA’s Department of Public Health for the final installment in our semester-long book read project.

“Love your community” was the overriding message from East Side Los Angeles-based community environmental activist . mark! [spelled as written] was the third guest of the Cal State LA Public Health Department’s annual Book Read project. Love, he said, is the first concrete step that anybody can take to help protect and support their community. But it is also the hardest step because communities are often filled with a lot of pain. This message resonated with our audience.

Every little bit helps. That is one of the key messages from our conversations on public health, climate change and hope with climate journalists Sammy Roth and Caleigh Wells. Each visited California State University Los Angeles as part of our Department of Public Health’s annual book read. All faculty and students in the department received a copy of The Climate Book by Greta Thunberg. Then we hosted a series of discussions with prominent environmental experts.