On August 8, native Islander and nature lover A.F. Cook presented “Prelude to Now: Overcoming Climate-Change Denial In the U.S.,” as part of the Chilmark library’s Lunch & Learn series. “I honor nature, as we all should, and as a landscape painter I have an interest in preserving what I see — color, light, and shapes of the landscape,” Cook says. “I have a particular interest in our species’ cohabiting responsibly with what we have been gifted.”
Cook’s talk was based on her final Harvard graduate research paper, which focused on how American society can overcome antiscience mindsets to mitigate the worst effects of global warming while there is still time.
“I have long felt that our species has a moral obligation, especially to the young, to pay attention to climate science and be responsible adults and do the right thing. It means a change of paradigm in certain industries,” she says.
In 2007, Cook published a book entitled “Democrats in the Red Zone: An Independent Voter’s Take on the Game of Political Perception.” “I was interviewed by a local CBS affiliate and was invited to discuss my perspective on several radio talk shows,” she says. In 2010, Cook produced a nonpartisan pilot radio and TV talk show, with guest panelists from across what she refers to as the “common-sense middle,” using her book as a platform.
Cook’s mission is to unify Americans around climate change issues. “I want to help rekindle the notion that we should act as role models, along with certain forward-thinking European countries, for the rest of the world, and set an example of ethical care for what we are leaving to young people.”
Cook points out that we are experiencing issues related to climate change in real time, the results of which impact not only nature and individuals, but businesses as well. “Even before the issue around homeowners insurance was in the news, I already said to people, ‘What’s going to convince more Americans about the issues with climate change is when Insurance companies will not be able to cover it.’ Businesses in Vineyard Haven are struggling with maintaining property insurance. The sports situation is also a case in point –– you can’t play golf when it’s too hot to be out there –– nor can real estate developers benefit from hotel businesses when extreme climate events are impacting their customer base. But we can do something about it. We can network with groups of people not like us who nonetheless suffer with this too.”
So where to start? Cook believes it’s a group effort, starting with our leaders. “Those of us who are leaders need to be responsible,” she continues. “On the right, we have a president who is not receiving quality information, but what I would like to hope is that he is willing to negotiate. He is capable of changing his mind when he is able to be persuaded of a legitimate course of action. I have seen that. He has signed an executive [order], titled “Make America Beautiful Again,” that was influenced by the organization Nature Is Nonpartisan.”
Nature Is Nonpartisan is a movement of Americans from conservatives to progressives, working together to deliver a healthier environment for the next generation.
“While political conservatives are seen as playing the greatest role in climate change denial, the left has its own dilemma of personal cultism undermining the urgency of climate action as a singular, nonpartisan priority,” Cook says. “Outdoorspeople, sportspeople — the fishing, hunting, and boating crowd — and more ‘granola’ environmentalists can and should be able to define a powerful lobby that transcends divisions of the kind that have been causing the Democratic Party to fragment into little, self-centered siloes. Nobody’s social justice needs will be met if they don’t put the earthly habitat’s survival first. And that is why I critique Jill Stein, who betrayed the Green Party’s own mission with her cult of one-sided social radicalism. We can’t just treat the GOP like the lone bad guy — it’s not politically tactical, for one thing — when there are people on the so-called left who have put their own selfish need for attention over strategic action to ensure climate-friendly policies.”
Cook suggests that although religion is great for supporting faith, it can also play a role in climate change denial. “When beliefs become destructive to our planet, I’d ask our leaders to not let that interfere with policy. The notion of encouraging people to have more children only makes sense if our political and business leaders are dedicated to preserving and protecting the earthly habitat those children would be born into,” Cook says. “Some earth-honoring evangelicals refer to climate and environmental protection as ‘creation care.’ This offers a path to American unity with their secular fellow citizens.”
According to Creation Care’s website, “Creation care means caring for all of God’s creation by stopping and preventing activities that are harmful (e.g., air and water pollution, species extinction), and participating in activities that further Christ’s reconciliation of all of creation to God.”
Despite the challenges, misinformation, and fractured political parties, Cook has hope: “There is a lot of climate reality unfolding in real time, so it’s important for me to highlight my pitch for hope, and to paint the picture of the necessary evolution in human conscience that, I believe, can even extend to the powers that be in Washington. I am choosing to have faith in our president that he can change his mind. If he wants to outshine Joe Biden, why doesn’t he support renewable energy? He would get so much support across the country and the world. He can’t be listening to people who feel there is no ethical responsibility to protect and care for our planetary environment, based on a religious belief that the Earth is not worth saving due to so-called ‘original sin.’ That is an irrational, dangerous mindset for any leader of civilization.”
The Chilmark library Lunch & Learn was Cook’s first public talk on this material: “I’m road-testing it in my own backyard. I want to see if people are open to hearing what I have to say. I was very lucky to take a course that allowed me to access research materials that I wouldn’t necessarily get anywhere else. I am an anti-elitist,” she asserts. “I don’t believe you should be denied from participating in the public square just because you don’t have political class credentials. Local efforts on the Island are great. But when we get new information, we need to share it. We need to overcome the antiscience mindset in this country. Our leaders must operate based on reality and facts.”