What’s Happening at the Atlanta Training?

You know the climate crisis hits low-income families and communities of color especially hard. And you know that fossil fuel pollution too often poisons the air these communities breathe and the water they drink.

Sound fair to you? Us, either.

That’s why we’ll be in Atlanta, Georgia from March 14–16 for the 40^th Climate Reality Leadership Corps training. We’re bringing together some of the inspiring men and women leading the fight for climate justice along with former Vice President Al Gore and forward-looking policymakers, communicators, technology thinkers and more.

We’ll explore how the climate crisis is hurting communities and fueling injustice throughout the Southeastern US and beyond. And we’ll learn how people like you can stand up and fight for climate solutions that not only help protect our planet and health for the long haul, but help make this a more equitable and fair world for us all.

You don’t have to be a lifelong activist to attend. All you have to be is ready to make a difference.

Want to know who will be there at the Atlanta training? What it will cover? What you’ll get out of it? Read on.

Who’s Speaking at the Atlanta Training?

• Bishop William J. Barber II: Bishop William Barber is the founder of the new Poor Peoples Movement, president and senior lecturer of Repairers of the Breach, and one of the leading figures in the fight for social and environmental justice in the US today. Bishop Barber is pastor at Greenleaf Christian Church in Greensboro, North Carolina, president of the North Carolina NAACP, and the architect of the Moral Mondays movement fighting discrimination and hate in state government in previous administrations. He is also the president and senior lecturer of the Repairers of the Breach, leading the organization’s fight to rebuild, raise up, and repair the moral infrastructure of the US.
• Dr. Robert Bullard: Dr. Robert Bullard is widely known as the “father of environmental justice.” Throughout an activist career stretching back to the 1970s, Dr. Bullard has highlighted and fought the systematic discrimination communities of color face in the environment everywhere from the location of garbage dumps in black neighborhoods to unequal recovery efforts after disasters. He is the author of 18 award-winning books and the distinguished professor of urban planning and environmental policy at Texas Southern University.
• Former Vice President Al Gore: Former Vice President Al Gore is the founder and chairman of The Climate Reality Project and a leading voice in the global climate movement. He is the subject of the Academy Award-winning documentary An Inconvenient Truth as well as An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power, and is the author of six New York Times bestselling books. In 2007, he received the Nobel Peace Prize along with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for, “informing the world of the dangers posed by climate change.”

What Are the Big Ideas in Atlanta?

• Dirty Energy Fuels Injustice: The fossil fuel economy is not only wreaking havoc on the climate. It’s also poisoning communities across the Southeastern US. At the training, we’ll look at how fossil fuel pollution hits low-income families and communities of color especially hard, thanks to a legacy of racial segregation and discrimination. We’ll explore how activists can tackle this challenge head on and together create a healthy environment and more just country for all.
• Stronger Storms and Rising Seas: With carbon pollution from fossil fuels changing our climate, seas are rising and storms are getting stronger up and down the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts. The result: more and more people see not only their homes, but their very livelihoods threatened. At the Atlanta Training, we’ll look at the science of what’s happening and how we can work for just recoveries after climate events so low-income families and communities of color have the support and resources to rebuild their lives.
• Climate and Health: It started as a climate crisis, driven by fossil fuels. Today, it’s slowly becoming one of the greatest health crises we’ve ever faced. In the Southeast, heatwaves are becoming stronger and lasting longer, with dangerous consequences for children, the elderly, and outdoor workers in particular. Meanwhile, rising temperatures deepen existing public health threats in low-income communities, like inadequate waste disposal, enabling infectious diseases to spread further and faster. In Atlanta, we’ll chart this growing health threat and see how embracing practical climate solutions can help protect our communities.
• Climate and Agriculture: Georgia peaches. Florida oranges. Virginia peanuts. You can’t talk about the Southeast without talking about these iconic crops. But today, these crops and more face growing threats from rising temperatures, stronger hurricanes, and other climate impacts, putting entire communities and economies at risk. We’ll explore how rural communities are already experiencing these threats and responding with a turn toward greater sustainability.
• Making the Just Transition: The Southeast is perfectly poised for a clean energy revolution. With abundant sunshine and miles of coastland, the region has all the resources it needs to transform its economy and leave coal and other fossil fuels behind. The challenge activists now face is ensuring the transition to a low-carbon economy is a just one that benefits all communities – especially those who have been excluded or marginalized in the past. In Atlanta, we’ll learn how together we can make the transition to clean energy an inclusive and positive one that creates jobs and opportunities for people everywhere.

What Will You Take Away?

• Understanding what the Climate Crisis Means for You: In Atlanta, you’ll spend time with former Vice President Al Gore seeing his legendary climate presentation live and learn how to give it yourself. You’ll learn what the crisis means for you personally and your community.
• Powerful Communications Skills: Work with field-leading communications professionals to learn how to tell stories and share a message that inspires audiences to act.
• A Roadmap for Climate Justice: Gain a deeper understanding of how fossil fuels drive injustice in almost every sector and how together we can fight back.
• A Network to Win: Join a global network of thousands of other forward-looking activists and learn how to build campaigns that get results and create a healthier and more equitable world.

How Do I Apply?

Easy. To apply to this free training, just visit our Climate Reality Leadership Corps training page. The training takes place from March 14-16 and there’s no application or registration fee to attend.

This is going to be special. We hope to see you there.