Existing Within and Between (Scene Two)

In October, we posted the first excerpt from “Existing Within and Between: A Script on Climate Action & Intersectionality.” This script uses a play format to creatively explore the state of the intersectionality conversation in the climate justice community of practice. It was written with the support of CJRF, in collaboration with the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre (Climate Centre).

The script format was chosen to provide an engaging report that encourages further discussions rooted in candor, vulnerability, and honesty. While the characters presented below are real people, some fictional liberties were taken in the script.

Lastly, this script is not intended to be prescriptive in any way, but to rather offer thought provoking perspectives and serve as a platform for others to examine their own scripts around intersectionality.

You can find Scene One here.

 THE PLOT 

A diverse group of individuals has been assembled around a writing room table. Their task? Writing a play centered around the state of intersectional approaches within the broad climate justice space that offers a clear path forward. As the play-within-a-play advances, the cast tries to overcome obstacles that stand in their way of crafting a story that sparks empathy. Will they succeed in building power and opportunity with those at the frontlines of the climate crisis?

Tip: The cartoons at the start of each scene play the role of the chorus like that of the ancient Greek drama tradition, serving as commentary alongside the main action as the story advances.

CAST 

The cast represent individuals from funding, practitioner, activist, researcher, and other professional and/or personal communities:

 

Ana Gonzalez Guerrero – Co-Founder of the Youth Climate Lab.

Anna McCarthy - Junior Researcher at the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre.

Asfia Gulrukh - Assistant Professor, Aboriginal and Northern Studies, University College of the North.

Aminul Hoque - Working as the Director of Monitoring & Evaluation with COAST Trust, Bangladesh.

Carlos Martín - On a housing research journey with detours in disasters, climate, energy, and cities.

Catalina Jaime - Climate and Conflict Manager with the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre, PhD researcher University of Twente in Anticipatory Action in Armed Conflict.

Coast Trust - Coastal Association for Social Transformation Trust was founded in 1998. COAST has established herself as an independent organization working on human rights and advocacy for economic and climate justice for the climate vulnerable coastal population in Bangladesh.

Fernanda Diaz-Osorio - Research Assistant with a demonstrated history of working in higher education. I am a keen (un)learner interested in working towards more sustainable Food Systems. I dream of making education more accessible for Latin American children.

Georgina Cundill Kemp - Senior Program Specialist at International Development Research Centre (IDRC), working to put climate change adaptation research into policy and practice across Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Heather McGray - Director, Climate Justice Resilience Fund

Hilary Heath - Program Associate, Climate Justice Resilience Fund

Joshua Amponsem - An environmental and climate activist, the founder of Green Africa Youth Organization (GAYO), and a Youth Fellow at the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA).

Kenny Go - Currently working on a BSc in Global Resource Systems at the University of British Columbia, and interested in exploring new ways to improve food distribution systems.

Kisilu Musya - A farmer and the main character in the film documentary Thank you for the rain.  

Maya Winklestein - Chief Executive Officer of Open Road Alliance. A career professional in the impact sector, she is committed to achieving leveraged impact through an investment model of philanthropy.

Meghan Bailey - Senior Technical Advisor at the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre.

Tracy Kajumba - Principal Researcher, Climate Change Group - International Institute for Environment & Development (IIED), she is focused on strengthening partnerships under the climate change group.

Tracy Mann - Brazilianist, International Communications and Partnership Strategies. Co-Founder of MG Limited and serving as a pro bono director for Climate Wise Women, a global platform for women’s leadership on climate change.

Youth Climate Lab team - a diverse group of young, radical collaborators working together to ensure young folks around the globe are empowered to catalyze transformative climate action to achieve a more just, climate-resilient world.

SCENE TWO (OF FOUR): CROSSED

 SETTING

In this scene, the group starts to hone in further on the challenges of intersectionality and climate action, focusing specifically on how affected groups or individuals may not have access to the table where projects are created, financial decisions are made, and policies are crafted. They discuss the “Nothing About Us Without Us” principle, and start to explore whether they are abiding by it.

Projected Chorus:

When lights come up, actors have moved to different spots, they are energized, moving around the room, the energy feels positive. We can tell that the conversation has advanced, people are more comfortable. The room is more disheveled than scene 1, implying that the characters have been here for a while.

 

CATALINA

I wonder if simply just identifying vulnerabilities is potentially not helpful? I wonder if there is a way for us to also talk about what is the constructive thing that comes from identifying these.

ANA

[stands up, walk to white board]

We think that the first necessary step is to identify when we feel as though we are disadvantaged through the intersections of our identities, while also identifying when we are also taking space from other people. The latter is obviously more difficult because it is always easier to see what we don’t have rather than what we do have. Once we’ve done that, I think we can make more space for everyone by not occupying opportunities when we find that our identities are over-represented in a particular opportunity (for example, education, speaking engagements, etc.). But more than this, I think that equal opportunity is equal access. We can make more space for everyone by creating more ways for diverse groups of marginalized folks (BIPOC, low-income, rural, women, trans, non-binary, etc.) to access opportunities and asking, “are there financial constraints? is it a social barrier?”.

REBEKA

I like that a lot - how do we identify when we don’t have adequate representation in the room? Do we have it now?

KENNY

I don’t know, but to truly make space for everyone, knowledge needs to be deconstructed, and that can only happen with that representation. Kisulu, do you remember the story you were telling me?

KISILU

Yes! About ants. Despite the fact that they are very small, they have the power of knowing how to come together, to work together. They know when they have harvested enough for themselves. They make these choices collectively. I wonder why human beings are not doing that also. I grew up listening to stories about ants, so ideas of collective and selfless work are what I know. But that’s not the dominant culture, the deciding voice. I think the fact that the dominant stories don’t focus on collective work and collective benefit is an indication that surely globally we are not serious about our lives and future. Even though my people understand these teachings, and try to share them, we are not listened to.

PABLO

Thank you Kisilu, for that. Are you all familiar with the “nothing about us without us” principle?

HEATHER

It’s used to summarize the idea that decisions shouldn’t be made about some people without their involvement. People with a stake in a decision need to be at the table! I hear this a lot from feminist activists, but I understand it originated with the disability rights movement. 

JOSHUA

I think there is a two-way approach to making the "nothing about us without us" principle a reality: first of all, we need to build the capacity of minority groups and stakeholders who are working on issues that are not well represented in the climate debate. We have to have a better understanding of the role we play in such debates and why we have to be at the decision-making table. If not, then even when the opportunity is presented, minority groups will not be able to act efficiently, or could possibly act in fear. The second part will be to work with decision-making institutions to help them to see the larger picture of intersectionality.  This could help debunk the myth that intersectionality leads to complexity and results in chaos instead of concrete solutions.

CARLOS

Right? How can it be chaotic when it’s in fact just getting us to a more accurate understanding of the real world?

TRACY K.

Yes, and it gets complicated because sometimes we think we’ve reached that place of representation and focus on the marginalized and we end up making mistakes due to our persistent lack of true awareness. I worked on one project where we thought we were building capabilities of women affected by conflict, but there was no gender analysis to understand power dynamics on how productive resources were being managed. The women who were the impact group of the project were given agricultural equipment, this society’s male domain, for men to manage and hire out for cash. And you know what happened? Domestic violence increased because men felt sidelined. The women sounded an alarm, and we found out that they no longer wanted to engage for fear of violence! We found out that the men were abusive because they felt so powerless already as a result of the war. Giving the farm equipment to the women actually drove more conflict and strife. If we had taken time to understand the power dynamics in the community and the needs and priorities of women and men, the project would not have failed in this way.

REBEKA

Sometimes it can seem like someone is “with us” but they may not be. They may not be able to speak freely, for example, or may have incentive not to really share or participate fully and meaningfully. Maybe our main source of tension here is that we are trying to problem solve from our vantage point within the dominant systems that created these divisions, and therefore those disadvantaged cannot feel like equal partners.

HILARY

I’m worried about that …  How can we know if we are really facilitating the transfer of power? How do we even measure that?

MAYA

It has to be through less stringent funding requirements: disbursing money to those on frontlines without micromanaging how it's used, and being comfortable with whatever happens.

REBEKA

But if we are making the initial funding decision, isn’t it already a process guided by the ways of the dominant system?

HILARY

One challenge for funders is just that. There are systems in place that dictate what kind of entities can receive funding. They have to have a board, a formal structure, etc. If they don’t, most funding sources are completely inaccessible.

JOSHUA

And having a board, or aa structure considered “formal” is a tall order for many parts of the world, for many organizations and movements. Are these things really necessary? 

REBEKA

Maybe that’s our villain here. Our reliance on a system - a system that brought many of us to be here today - keeps us from committing to fully dismantling it, from fully committing to entrusting the building of an alternative system to others who have historically not been dominant globally.

 

[The characters pause, lights turn dramatic, lights out]