Written By: Martin Voelker

Want to host a presentation on climate change? – Request one from Climate Reality leaders near you!

As a 350 Colorado’s newsletter reader, you already know about the climate crisis but friends, family, or colleagues may still need convincing. There’s a local resource for doing just that. Since 2006 Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project has been training over 10.000 volunteers worldwide to give fact-checked, constantly updated, and superbly illustrated presentations everywhere. In 2017, Gore taught this 3-day workshop in Denver, and as you read this many newly trained Climate Reality leaders will return from the latest training in Minneapolis, eager to teach – there’s no shortage of presenters in Colorado.

So if your 350 group – or any group, co-workers for a lunch talk, at school, at a service club, or in social settings – wants to start a conversation on climate ask the Climate Reality Project to schedule a presentation. Your presenter can easily tailor it to your needs. A “Truth in Ten” version condenses the main message into just ten minutes, leaving more time for conversation, but an hour-long ‘deep dive’ is also an option.

As we face climate change the presentation basically answers three key questions:

1) Must we change? 2) Can we change? and: 3) Will we change?

It leads with some easy to understand science and observation, then points to the hopeful fact that low-carbon technologies replacing our harmful fossil fuel economy already exist, and then addresses how concerned citizens can create political will. Here is Al Gore making that case at TED:

Incidentally, I once organized an event around the above TED video and in that case the name “Al Gore” proved to draw a crowd. That said, having a live presenter with a personal connection to her audience may create more trust than featuring a polarizing political VIP.

To schedule a presentation please sign up with Climate Reality at climaterealityproject.org or start here: climaterealityproject.org/climatespeakers

Alternatively please contact Jan from the Denver/Boulder CRP chapter. The event can be presented as your own group’s effort but it’s best to find co-sponsors to reach more attendees and find a venue. The presenters donate their time.

And if you need a little more time to consider planning a presentation for Nov. 20 or 21 as the Project aims to have over 1000 presentations worldwide over that 24 hour period – I know I will. 

Martin Voelker (graduate of Al Gore’s 2015 and 2017 training, former 350 Colorado board member).