Climate action is a personal and powerful choice. Though the causes of the crisis are undeniably systemic in nature, individuals can exert positive pressure to change systems from energy and finance to food and fashion. 

Changing the world for the sake of the planet is a theme running through Aspen Ideas: Climate, the Miami-based and climate-focused iteration of our summer festival. Running from May 9-12, the event will include mainstage discussions, roundtables, tours, and a gathering of policymakers, scientific experts, corporate leaders, inventors, innovators, artists, influencers, and engaged members of the public. 

Register here to attend Aspen Ideas: Climate in person or sign up for the latest virtual options. And learn more from our speakers about becoming a climate advocate and finding solutions that work for your community.

The Climate Is Changing, Workplaces Must Too

Worsening storms and rising temperatures are just some of the ways climate change is poised to endanger the lives of workers. Coupled with the erosion of workplace protections, climate-fueled workplace fatalities are a worrying sign of what is to come. Rather than focus on short-term priorities, businesses, policymakers, and communities need to work toward a sustainable future, says Shelly Steward of the Future of Work Initiative.

We Can Beat Extreme Heat

Heat is an increasingly dangerous public health crisis—especially in urban areas with low-quality infrastructure and few trees. Glass, heat, cement, and asphalt absorb and store heat during the day, radiating it after dark to keep the city sweltering through the night. Eleni Myrivili, chief heat officer for the city of Athens, Greece, explains how we can create global heat resilience through awareness, preparedness, and redesign. She will take the stage at Aspen Ideas: Climate next week in a session called “It’s Getting Hot in Here.”

Global Food Security Requires Local Action

Already, one in three people around the world lacks access to adequate food. As the impacts of climate change intersect with an ever-growing global population, food security has become an issue of extreme importance. Members of the New Voices Fellowship and Healthy Communities Fellowship are working across sectors, all over the world, to provide nutrition access to those most in need.

More Americans Understand Climate Change

2021 saw an increase in public awareness of how climate change affects weather patterns and how it’s harming people in the United States. This may be because more Americans have direct experience with climate-fueled disasters; perhaps tornadoes are louder than the political noise surrounding the issue. Director of the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication Anthony Leiserowitz writes on the topic before speaking at Aspen Ideas: Climate in a session called ‘Climate Change in the American Mind.’

The Transition to Clean, Just Energy

The society we’ve constructed and the comfort we enjoy today are built on our use of the planet’s energy resources. But we’ve built this energy system in an unsustainable way. Creating an energy system that balances economic, national security, and environmental needs is an extraordinarily complex task, but it’s absolutely vital to get it right because our way of life depends on it, says Jason Bordoff, co-founding dean of the Columbia Climate School and a plenary speaker at Aspen Ideas: Climate.

Our Approach to the Climate Crisis

In Focus: Rising to the Climate Challenge spotlights the work of 15 programs and initiatives who are tackling climate change from their area of expertise. We look at four main facets of the issue, explaining how climate change affects labor and the economy; youth and education; public health and safety; and our communities. The Institute's programs reflect an astounding diversity of focus and purpose regarding the health of our planet and the welfare of the those who inhabit it.

Join us in Miami Beach for Aspen Ideas: Climate, an inaugural, in-person event from May 9-12. We will feature conversations, tours, and workshops on the most innovative climate solutions, policies, and technology today. More than 180 speakers from across policymaking, science, business, technology, art, education, food, journalism, and more will attend. Purchase your pass today.

Can’t make it to Miami? Select virtual sessions from the event will feature NBC’s weather icon Al Roker sharing his thoughts on this climate moment, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi laying out Congress’ climate priorities, and bipartisan youth leaders discussing how to come together to mobilize their generation. Register to watch.

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