We Can Choose Our Stories Well
“If we think we can’t, or if we think we can, we are right!”
The January 22, 2024 issue of TIME features people with ideas. The quotation above was cited by two of these people with ideas. Tom Rivett-Carnac, an environmental strategist and podcaster, and Oliver Jeffers, an artist and writer, both firmly believe that our mindset will determine our future.
If we believe that our climate problems are insurmountable, then we will be paralyzed with the belief that staving off catastrophe is futile. Rivett-Carnac and Jeffers note that “there are hundreds, thousands, millions of brave individuals, communities, companies, and activities already shaping a regenerative future.” They are already taking action!
“If we root our despair in climate change, then we must root our hopes in its solutions. It’s time to intentionally put our efforts into creating and sharing stories of what is possible. Stories that bring out the most extraordinary aspects of humanity: compassion, kindness, ingenuity, and creativity are the stories we can choose to tell. And we must choose to tell them together.”
Idris Elba and his wife Sabrina are examples of the stories we need to tell. They are Goodwill Ambassadors for the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). This organization focuses its efforts on fighting poverty among small rural farmers, especially in Africa. Elba and his wife created Project TRUST, “an Elba Hope Foundation program working to improve rural livelihoods and the income that workers make, while also working to ensure the protection and regeneration of forests and cocoa farmlands.”
Elba’s answer to the question of what makes a climate activist is the story I want tell and invite you to remember. “What makes a climate activist? To me, activism means showing up for the causes you believe in and working to effect positive change. That could be by signing a petition, making a donation, or joining a protest. It could also be picking up litter to improve your environment or planting seeds in neglected public spaces. In my view, anyone who cares about the planet and the people on it is a climate activist. Whatever you care about, activism in the simple act of showing up and letting your voice be heard.”
Where will you show up this week, this month, this year? What petition will you sign? What donation will you make? What story will you choose to tell well? What is your mindset?
To refresh your memory about the ability to develop a growth mindset, I share the link to my October 20, 2023 post Time for Success Blog – Growth Mindset.
Who We Can Be – We can be people with a growth mindset! Imagine what is possible! That is the story we want and need to tell!
