02 Oct My Climate-Crisis Response Community

by Alyssa Formosa

I have a confession to make: I almost didn’t register for Dreaming Climate Consciousness. I thought it wasn’t for me. Sure, I recycle and compost, but I also fall into the consumer traps of online shopping and overconsumption. Furthermore, the climate crisis overwhelms me so deeply that in the past I’d hide my feelings of helplessness behind feigned disinterest. If I didn’t think about it then it couldn’t be happening, right? And who was I to think that I could change the world anyway? Yet, this niche climate writing workshop wouldn’t leave my mind. I toyed around with what my application might look like and, in a single brave decision, I clicked submit. And my goodness, am I ever glad that I did.

What Evan Medd has created with Dreaming Climate Consciousness is pure magic. Not just a writing workshop, but a safe space to dive into the ever-debilitating eco-anxiety. A community for folks with shared values to talk about their fears and dreams for our planet without judgment. It turns out there is no gatekeeping in environmentalism; we’re all in this together. Even overconsumption errors are met with love and support. In the span of a few short weeks, strangers in the cohort became brilliant collaborators and dear friends.

The unique challenge of balancing individual and collective creation felt seamless under Evan’s care. We started getting to know one another by sharing personal experiences and passions. New sources were collected as we geeked out over mutual interests in the environment and art. Everyone brought unique perspectives to the work: it was around the individual folks in the cohort that the Dreaming Climate Consciousness experience was shaped. I imagine you could do this workshop a hundred times over and create something new every single time.

I would have never considered myself a science fiction writer before, but together we crafted a future world to dive into potential effects of climate change and brainstorm solutions. For the first time, I felt hope as I tackled big issues. I left the workshop each week feeling energized and inspired. Between our six brains, anything was possible! My creativity was pushed beyond previous limits and manifested into work that I was proud of. What we created during this time was important. The future we imagined together mattered.

Our future explored a nearly inhabitable Earth post-climate-induced disaster. We dove into the value of life in the beyond-human world and the multi-layered dimensions of the human superiority complex. We considered what different communities might look like and their unique ways of living. A theme that arose in our work was balance: in particular, the balance between individuality and community. Who are we alone and who are we together? What do we owe to this world? To one another? And what does true balance and harmony look like?

For our final workshop, I created a journal for a character living in this world. Much like me and my relationship to the climate crisis, she felt like she was a fraud. Aurora (named for the stars) was a false prophet living in The Underground and unsure of her role in instigating change. She goes through a journey of self and societal discovery, finding urgency and humanity along the way. Her journal reflects her growing consciousness throughout her ventures and, almost as if by design, I learned about my feelings toward the climate crisis and the world too. Hmm… Coincidence? I think not.

In Dreaming Climate Consciousness, there is intentionality behind everything you do. The workshop builds upon itself and its members’ interests, imploring you to reflect alone and then create together. It’s a team activity where every player is important. It redefines what success is into something real and attainable. Within all of that, the whole process is supportive, consensual and self-aware. It’s a place to take leaps of faith because you know someone will be there to catch you if you should fall.

Now, I am not so afraid to confront climate change – both in my writing and within the greater world. I have a new community I can turn to and an outlet for overwhelming emotions when they arise. My voice is strong. My values are affirmed. My actions and my art can make a difference! I am forever grateful to Evan and my beautiful cohort for the empowerment and confidence gained from this experience. I cannot believe I almost didn’t apply.

So, to all the overthinkers out there who feel like imposters… to the science fiction wannabes and writers who “just do it as a hobby”… to anyone who isn’t sure this workshop is intended for them… Hit that button. Submit the application. Be the person who was scared and did it anyway, because that’s true bravery. Take that energy and become the climate champion you want to be, let it guide your work and lead you towards new mindfulness. It’s not too late until it’s too late. Your imaginative-future-climate-crisis-response community is waiting for you! Take the leap.

Alyssa Formosa (she/they) is a playwright, dramaturg, performer and pun enthusiast living on the stolen territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) nations. When not in the studio, you might find Alyssa up a mountain or at the beach. You can follow along with Alyssa’s work and adventures on Instagram @alyssa.4mosa!