Inspired by the All We Can Save Project, founded by Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Dr. Katharine Wilkinson, Elevating Climate Conversations (ECS) is an invitation to communities in our region. The stories and resources we share here are intended to embody and amplify the climate conversation and climate movement locally. Read below about the land, the place, the project and the team behind ECS

About

The Land

Indigenous Land Acknowledgement

This region we now call western North Carolina has long been home to native people, including the ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯ (Cherokee)2 and the yeh is-WAH h’reh (Catawba). We acknowledge that we live on stolen land, and we recognize the thriving of indigenous people in the region and the continuing legacies of colonialism they resist. This statement serves as a call to move forward with gratitude and respect for those whose land we occupy and to reflect on what our interwtined histories in this place mean.

Language inspired by the ASU English Department

Learn more about Indigenous land acknowledgements

Whose land am I on?

The Place

"There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature—the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter.” – Rachel Carson

The Appalachian mountains are among the oldest on earth, and the southern region one of the most biodiverse in the temperate world. Home to hundreds of endemic and endangered species, from salamanders to ferns, and to some of the last old growth forests in the nation, Southern Appalachia is an ecological gem.

Much is at stake as climate change threatens to disrupt regional ecology as well as agriculture, livelihoods, and cultural traditions. But Southern Appalachian communities are also springing to action, growing resistance and resilience.

The Project

ECS is created by students and faculty in the Department of Sustainable Development at Appalachian State University. This project was inspired and catalyzed by the All We Can Save Project, though is not officially affiliated with it.

The All We Can Save Project and associated book, an anthology of writings by 60 women at the forefront of the climate movement, make the case that the climate movement should actively cultivate leadership that centers justice and is rooted in compassion, connection, creativity, and collaboration--leadership that is “more

characteristically feminine and more faithfully feminist.” All We Can Save amplifies a mosaic of voices, and our project is intended to do the same. We began this work in early 2021 with an enlightening and encouraging conversation with AWCS co-editor Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson.

We’ve created this space to share students’ original climate stories, in essay and audio form, as well as a student-curated “Elevating Climate Syllabus” with resources for anyone wanting to further explore the themes of All We Can Save. We encourage you to get a copy of the book and read it!

Our website is still under construction, please feel free to get in contact with us with any questions or comments you may have. We would love to hear from you!