Book Review

All We Can Save

By: Ayana Elizabeth Johnson | Category: Unkown category | Year: 2020 ISBN: 9780593237076

Provocative and illuminating essays from women at the forefront of the climate movement who are harnessing truth, courage, and solutions to lead humanity forward. There is a renaissance blooming in the climate movement: leadership that is more characteristically feminine and more faithfully feminist, rooted in compassion, connection, creativity, and collaboration. While it’s clear that women and girls are vital voices and agents of change for this planet, they are too often missing from the proverbial table. More than a problem of bias, it’s a dynamic that sets us up for failure. To change everything, we need everyone. All We Can Save illuminates the expertise and insights of dozens of diverse women leading on climate in the United States—scientists, journalists, farmers, lawyers, teachers, activists, innovators, wonks, and designers, across generations, geographies, and race—and aims to advance a more representative, nuanced, and solution-oriented public conversation on the climate crisis. These women offer a spectrum of ideas and insights for how we can rapidly, radically reshape society. Intermixing essays with poetry and art, this book is both a balm and a guide for knowing and holding what has been done to the world, while bolstering our resolve never to give up on one another or our collective future. We must summon truth, courage, and solutions to turn away from the brink and toward life-giving possibility. Curated by two climate leaders, the book is a collection and celebration of visionaries who are leading us on a path toward all we can save. With essays and poems by: Emily Atkin • Xiye Bastida • Ellen Bass • Colette Pichon Battle • Jainey K. Bavishi • Janine Benyus • adrienne maree brown • Régine Clément • Abigail Dillen • Camille T. Dungy • Rhiana Gunn-Wright • Joy Harjo • Katharine Hayhoe • Mary Annaïse Heglar • Jane Hirshfield • Mary Anne Hitt • Ailish Hopper • Tara Houska, Zhaabowekwe • Emily N. Johnston • Joan Naviyuk Kane • Naomi Klein • Kate Knuth • Ada Limón • Louise Maher-Johnson • Kate Marvel • Gina McCarthy • Anne Haven McDonnell • Sarah Miller • Sherri Mitchell, Weh’na Ha’mu Kwasset • Susanne C. Moser • Lynna Odel • Sharon Olds • Mary Oliver • Kate Orff • Jacqui Patterson • Leah Penniman • Catherine Pierce • Marge Piercy • Kendra Pierre-Louis • Varshini • Prakash • Janisse Ray • Christine E. Nieves Rodriguez • Favianna Rodriguez • Cameron Russell • Ash Sanders • Judith D. Schwartz • Patricia Smith • Emily Stengel • Sarah Stillman • Leah Cardamore Stokes • Amanda Sturgeon • Maggie Thomas • Heather McTeer Toney • Alexandria Villaseñor • Alice Walker • Amy Westervelt • Jane Zelikova

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Review:
Sue C.
rated it
March 3, 2021 2:07 am
Zoom Meeting Discussion Questions: (Feel free to add to this list of questions for our Zoom meeting): 1. What is your overall assessment or impression of All We Can Save? 2. What was most salient for you-- a particular essay, a particular recurrent message, etc.? 3. Since the intention of the ed...
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itors of this anthology was to go beyond presenting information, and to get people to think subjectively (self-reflect), has this book led you to reflect UPON YOUR APPROACH TO our environmental crisis
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Gladwyn d'Souza
rated it
February 25, 2021 12:50 pm
Chapter 8 Rise 1- What was the point of this book? 2- Is saving the planet a multigenerational problem? 3- On whose side is science? 4- Are climate migrants, climate refugees, climate displaced, etc. victims of climate violence from how our economic system is structured? How should we live different...
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ly? 5. How do we modernize the legal construction of refugees? 6. Is a more equitable democracy necessary to overcoming political capture by the fossil fuels industry? 7. Is the model for increasing autocracy only within the US sphere of influence like Central America? 8. Is every dollar we spend political violence protected by the US military? Is it aspirational? 9. What does it mean to stop using fossil fuels? 10. Why do we persevere? 11. What lessons can we get from community providing the best response to disasters? 12. How can community overcome political intransigence on a global scale
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Sue C. March 1, 2021 1:17 am
This book is an ingenious anthology that attempts to cover the macro, the micro, the political-social-economic, the personal/interpersonal, the scientific, the indigenous, and more. The authors speak...
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with unique voices via poetry and prose, but there are definitely recurrent themes that thread through the entire book. The themes are the following: 1. We must change our mindsets, our paradigm: for us to survive the climate apocalypse, destructive capitalism must be replaced by inclusion, diversity, fairness, and decision-making through community involvement. 2. The movement for change must be a multigenerational and diverse, inclusionary participatory process that is egalitarian, one that benefits many. 3. Collective survival calls for seeing the interconnectedness of everything--of nature, of people, of society. Indigenous people have shown the way with their holistic views of nature and so have plants with their mutualism. All in all, this is one of the best anthologies for people who are beginning to learn about how climate change and climate action fit into a larger political, economic, and social context. Not only that, but All We Can Save strives to inspire through personal stories and poems evoking emotions that reinforce the messages presented.
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Susan Lessin
rated it
February 23, 2021 9:25 am
Questions for Chapter 7. NOURISH: 1. Have you ever worked on a farm? What about your parents or grandparents? 2. Is there any part of your cultural/religious/spiritual background that is "rooted" in working, protecting, preserving nature (soil, food, water, sky)? 3. Does your environmental activism ...
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"stem" from this cultural/religious/spiritual connection to nature? 4. In what ways do you collaborate with and support nature (especially since we live in an urban/suburban area)? 5. Do you have any thoughts on Notes from a Climate Victory Garden by Louise Maher-Johnson (Page 293)? 6. What is your opinion of regenerative ocean farming in creating a new blue-green economy
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Sue C. February 24, 2021 1:35 am
I've never worked on a farm, but I have visited rice farms in Asia. That was when I was around ten years old, and although I was very excited about visiting the farms, the people who actually ha...
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d to work there seemed beleaguered and eager to escape to the city, so I left with ambivalent feelings. I think my dad was at least somewhat familiar with farms when he was growing up, but he never talked about his early childhood with us, so I have no idea what his experience was like. The impetuses behind my environmental activism started in my teenage and college/grad school years when I was passionate about conservation/fighting animal cruelty. I worked in animal shelters as a teen, and when I was in my 20s, I helped publicize Greenpeace 's campaign against the commercial slaughter of pup seals. In the 80s and early 90s, I was quite involved in groups that protested the use of toxic chemicals/pesticides in public lands, so I suppose I played a role in preserving nature/ecosystems. I enjoyed reading the chapter on regenerative agriculture but I worry about the major barriers as I've spoken to people who've had some experience trying to implement regenerative agricultural practices, and they say that without boots on the ground in the form of technical assistance each step of the way, full adaptation is difficult. There are also cultural and ideological barriers, but the lack of technical assistance is a major one. Notes from a Climate Victory Garden: It sums up well the essential elements of a more sustainable and humane world. The vision is alluring, but the practice is difficult. Still, it's something to reach for.
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Mary Buxton February 24, 2021 11:26 am
1. My grandad grew up on a farm in Missouri. His knowledge of crops made him a good comodities broker. I grew up out in the country with livestock. 2. I am "rooted" in working and took care of animals...
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as a kid. I think my protecting of land water sky came from being outdoors and SC outings as a young adult. 3. My activism stems from these connections & from wanting to participate in our democracy.4. I collaborate with nature by personal lifestyle climate / environment friendly changes and activism. 5. Pass. 6. Regenertive ocean farming in creating in creating a new blue-green economy...need to reread to answer.
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Gladwyn d'Souza
rated it
February 19, 2021 10:23 am
Why is this section called Persist? Why does it follow Reshape and lead Feel? Varshini Prakash says we know the problem- one hundred fossil fuel producers source more than 70% of emissions since 1988. Why does she recommend contesting power through advocacy, voting, and alignment? Jacqui Patters...
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on, Alex Lieberman and Cameron Russell link manufacturing to human rights abuses hidden from consumption. Why don't they extend advocacy to reformed trade policies and instead focuses on jobs in the green economy? What is the problem we are trying to fix when Ailish Hopper decries faddism? Tara Houska calls for engaging the committed to become a thorn in the police state of the kleptocratic status quo. Why does she say we cannot vote our way out of this crisis without reframing our connection to the earth? Do degraded ecosystems have a voice as Hirshfield says? Do we only need to ask government to act as Gina McCarthy says?
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Sue C. February 20, 2021 12:55 pm
I think there is one main theme threading through the essays in this section--that is, the need for systemic change. For that to happen, a fundamental shift in our paradigms--the way we look at th...
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e world, our relationship to nature, the land, and to each other, how society should be organized, and what is just and unjust--has to take place. That's why Tara Houska says that we have to reframe our connection to the earth by realizing that the "sacred" is all around us and within us and not rely on voting our way out of this crisis. Finally, another major theme that is underscored by the essayists is the need for a broad-based movement that demands climate actions. Gina McCarthy, the veteran government official, was emphatic about this points when she said, "After decades of experience, I cannot envision our government finding a pathway to address climate change without a BROAD and DEMANDING push from the people."
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Sue C. February 24, 2021 3:44 am
Did It Ever Occur to You That Maybe You’re Falling in Love? Ailish Hopper's Poem is a warning, a caveat, about doing the trendy thing--including DENIAL--as we react to the "problem." Al...
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l the ways she listed, the characteristic reactions to "the problem," never get at the root of the problem. They are merely temporary band aids that make us feel better momentarily. The ending says it all--all of these ways of reacting to "the problem" prevent us from engaging in real thinking because they distract us from thinking and the danger is still very much alive
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Mary Buxton
rated it
February 19, 2021 8:22 am
Questions on BEGIN (the INTRO): a. Do you think of yourself as a climate feminist? No. If so, what does that identity mean to you? If not, how does i t feel to try it on? I prefer to consider myself an environmental/climate advocate who values and exercises the priveleges of living in a democrat...
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ic society. b. What are the qualities of feminine/feminist climate leadership, and where do you see it emerging? The protection of the future for our children and our "nature" children. c. If “what we pay attention to grows,” what do you want to pay attention to and grow together over the course of this book? This book group is growing my knowledge base. I am reading non fiction books on environmental and climate issues in and out of this group. d. Adrienne Rich opens the book with a poem on finding common cause with those who reconstitute the world. Who are they in the climate context? CA is a pace setter. The Fed government is now rejoining those efforts. Youth are active and inspiring. The Fossil Fuels Institute class I am taking is an international effort to educate climate advocates. 350 SV and the SCLP and SC CA are making changes..... e. The remainder of the book is framed in a poem that lays out the terrain but takes inspiration from Virginia Woolf that though the future is dark that's the best we can say about it. What are your thoughts on this? -----------"Though the future is dark"??????..I throw my lot in with the future being bright. I prefer hope & action.
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Mary Buxton
rated it
February 19, 2021 6:01 am
Chapter 6 Feel  by February 19, Friday  (Mary will lead?)       ---Mary's post of questions/thoughts for this chapter after Feb. 17 1. Thoughts on Under the Weather.   Many of us go through some dark tunnel as we define ourselves in young adulthood. Hav...
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ing no barrier between one's fledgling self and the path of cascading destruction of climate change can be really hard. The author and the young man were both "canaries" in a world that did not feel the threat as deeply and as imminently as they did.  Many people have a hard time connecting the talk of climate change with the consequences of climate change. However, that's changing now that we are having so many climate related disasters. Of the two young people, one went on to find balance in his life and the other continued to struggle on with acute climate change awareness and never seemed to find much peace.  My Stanford Continuing ED climate class professor, Dr.Marina Oster, told me 2 years ago that she mainly did climate angst counseling at her office in Marin. The clients she described were having the same struggles as many described in this essay. Her work was to help them manage and find positive ways to participate in the solution / channel their angst. How this applies to me:  I ward off ecological angst and work at balance by stopping. For example, I can only watch so much of David Attenborough's show on biodiversity. When I start getting uncomfortable, I stop. Maybe I watch a bit more at another time. I also back off on volunteering, hopefully, before I begin burn out.  I stay out of conversations about climate change and biodiversity as I find them draining. I would rather take action and let that speak for me.  It is nice to hear the occasional thanks.  However, I take meaning in my small part of this problem solving and that motivates me. I also find meaning and motivation by exercising the democratic rights that I am lucky to have. Finally, I work hard in many ways on climate change and balance that with lots of daily exercise, learning and creative pursuits. Question: Is this discussion of feelings and climate change relevant for you? P.S.   I may have more comments but am finding it hard to find time right now.�
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February 20, 2021 12:18 pm
Mary: Thanks for sharing your self-reflections on how you deal with the "ecological angst" associated with climate change, so that we can maintain our sanity. I do some of what you do--sometimes t...
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uning out the constant barrage of information about species extinction and ecosystem destruction, taking action instead of dwelling on the overwhelming hopelessness that often surrounds discussions of environmental degradation. I, too, try hard to take care of my physical and mental well-being, so that I can withstand the onslaughts that I know are coming. And, like you, I derive satisfaction from engaging in actions that contribute in small but meaningful ways--working to get out the vote, helping to organize our new Environmental Legislative Action committee, talking to the younger generation about climate change and conservation, etc. Sometimes, I envy Greta Thunberg, the young Swedish activist who states that the fact that she is on the autism spectrum helps her cut through the empty talk and rationalizations that many adults engage in when attempting to justify not doing anything about the destruction of our planet. She said that she is at the front lines of confronting people about taking action, because she cannot understand why going to school is important if she will not have much of a future on a planet hurtling towards destruction and species extinction.
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February 20, 2021 12:18 pm
Mary: Thanks for sharing your self-reflections on how you deal with the "ecological angst" associated with climate change, so that we can maintain our sanity. I do some of what you do--sometimes t...
Read more
uning out the constant barrage of information about species extinction and ecosystem destruction, taking action instead of dwelling on the overwhelming hopelessness that often surrounds discussions of environmental degradation. I, too, try hard to take care of my physical and mental well-being, so that I can withstand the onslaughts that I know are coming. And, like you, I derive satisfaction from engaging in actions that contribute in small but meaningful ways--working to get out the vote, helping to organize our new Environmental Legislative Action committee, talking to the younger generation about climate change and conservation, etc. Sometimes, I envy Greta Thunberg, the young Swedish activist who states that the fact that she is on the autism spectrum helps her cut through the empty talk and rationalizations that many adults engage in when attempting to justify not doing anything about the destruction of our planet. She said that she is at the front lines of confronting people about taking action, because she cannot understand why going to school is important if she will not have much of a future on a planet hurtling towards destruction and species extinction.
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February 20, 2021 12:18 pm
Mary: Thanks for sharing your self-reflections on how you deal with the "ecological angst" associated with climate change, so that we can maintain our sanity. I do some of what you do--sometimes t...
Read more
uning out the constant barrage of information about species extinction and ecosystem destruction, taking action instead of dwelling on the overwhelming hopelessness that often surrounds discussions of environmental degradation. I, too, try hard to take care of my physical and mental well-being, so that I can withstand the onslaughts that I know are coming. And, like you, I derive satisfaction from engaging in actions that contribute in small but meaningful ways--working to get out the vote, helping to organize our new Environmental Legislative Action committee, talking to the younger generation about climate change and conservation, etc. Sometimes, I envy Greta Thunberg, the young Swedish activist who states that the fact that she is on the autism spectrum helps her cut through the empty talk and rationalizations that many adults engage in when attempting to justify not doing anything about the destruction of our planet. She said that she is at the front lines of confronting people about taking action, because she cannot understand why going to school is important if she will not have much of a future on a planet hurtling towards destruction and species extinction.
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February 20, 2021 12:18 pm
Mary: Thanks for sharing your self-reflections on how you deal with the "ecological angst" associated with climate change, so that we can maintain our sanity. I do some of what you do--sometimes t...
Read more
uning out the constant barrage of information about species extinction and ecosystem destruction, taking action instead of dwelling on the overwhelming hopelessness that often surrounds discussions of environmental degradation. I, too, try hard to take care of my physical and mental well-being, so that I can withstand the onslaughts that I know are coming. And, like you, I derive satisfaction from engaging in actions that contribute in small but meaningful ways--working to get out the vote, helping to organize our new Environmental Legislative Action committee, talking to the younger generation about climate change and conservation, etc. Sometimes, I envy Greta Thunberg, the young Swedish activist who states that the fact that she is on the autism spectrum helps her cut through the empty talk and rationalizations that many adults engage in when attempting to justify not doing anything about the destruction of our planet. She said that she is at the front lines of confronting people about taking action, because she cannot understand why going to school is important if she will not have much of a future on a planet hurtling towards destruction and species extinction.
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Sue C.
rated it
February 17, 2021 3:08 am
Questions for Chapter 4; RESHAPE 1. What fact about the climate crisis do you find hard to face? What makes it so hard for you? 2. Where do you see the most effective reshaping taking place?
Mary Buxton February 19, 2021 8:04 am
1. I find the loss of biodiversity an open wound in my heart. I grieve for all of the lost species and fear for the ones on the brink. 2. The most effective reshaping that I see is with the Biden adm...
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inistration, with Governor Newsom's 30 x 30 and his EO for transportation, our work at SCLP and SC CA as well as 350 SV. I also take great heart in the youth and diversity/ EJ efforts.
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Sue C.
rated it
February 13, 2021 10:56 am
Questions for Chapter 3 REFRAME 1. Katharine Hayhoe emphasizes the importance of talking about climate change with URGENCY while Anne Haven McDonnel underscores the importance of honest journalism that CALLS OUT people. What is your style or approach--your language or your story-- when you talk a...
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bout climate change? 2. What do you consider "empowering conversations" about climate change? 3. Favianna Rodreguez talks about "harnessing cultural power." Can you think of cultural influencers that would enhance our climate action work
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Mary Buxton February 19, 2021 8:09 am
1. I mostly avoid talk about climate change. It seems unproductive and draining to me. I DO lots and let my actions speak. 2. I might have an educational sentence about climate change rather than em...
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powering conversations about climate change. I also find it useful to listen to people. 3. Cultural influencers are the youth climate activists with their digital comm unication methods that reach their age group. Cultural influencers are the climate related disaster events that deliver consenquences and awareness.
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Susan Lessin
rated it
February 12, 2021 8:58 am
I don't think geoengineering (which manipulates the atmosphere to make it rain and will most likely backfire) will solve the climate crisis. Its necessary to have multi-pronged nature based solutions for the climate crisis. I agree with Naomi Klein and others that improved social equity (espec...
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ially with regards to girls, women, the Third World) and improving the climate crisis go hand in hand for all of the earth's population to thrive
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Sue C. February 12, 2021 11:17 am
I can't agree more, but there will be a lot of geoengineering and financial engineering shenanigans,
Sue C.
rated it
February 10, 2021 12:10 pm
Questions for Chapter 2 ADVOCATE ADVOCATE: 1. What lessons can we learn from Mary Ann Hitt's description of how the Sierra Club and its allies were able to force the closure of many coal plants? 2. Given your skill sets and mindset, how do you think you can best contribute to climate acti...
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ons? 3. Did anything in this section give rise to insights on what we should or can do? 4. Do you have any thoughts on how the environmental and democracy movements can work together to achieve common goals?
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Mary Buxton February 19, 2021 8:11 am
1. No comment. 2. I am already contributing and signing up for more. I feel my skillset is in motion. 3. No comment. 4. For me, environmental/climate advocacy is exercising my democratic tools. Maybe...
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just pointing that out would be useful to some? It might be good to reach out to a reporter with a story idea on how the Trump Administration fueled greater democratic/environmental advocacy?
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