NATHAN SCOLARO: So this issue, about courage, evolved out
of a conversation you and I had last year. And I remember you
saying that courage, more than anything, is what we need in the
climate change movement. I thought we could start there, with
why you see courage as so important in bringing about action?ANNA ROSE: Oh man where to start?
For me having been involved in the climate
movement for over two decades and seeing
a lot of the public discussion being around
technical solutions like renewable energy
or changing urban design or transport—all
that stuff ’s really important and absolutely what we need to be doing, but it already exists.
The ideas and plans are out there. We already have all the technical solutions to stop
damaging our climate. So why haven’t we solved this crisis? And it comes down to the fact
that we haven’t had political leaders and business leaders with the courage to stand up to
the vested interests making money out of fossil fuels, and enough ordinary people to take
risks and challenge the status quo. So yeah, I have been thinking about courage a lot because
people ask me all the time when I do speeches or workshops or sometimes people email me
after they’ve read my book and say, “What can I do?” And they’re often looking for the five
dot points. I used to give them that stuff. Now I say, “You have to step out of your comfort
zone and think about the networks and the influence and the platform or voice that you
have and be brave enough to really push yourself to use it.”Yeah. I think part of it is inner work. I hesitate a
bit because it can’t be all retreating. We need to be
self-aware and be more in touch with our values.
But it has to be about you in the world. Engaging with the world and trying to change the
world. It’s not enough to just leave your values in your private sphere. If we’re going to deal
with this challenge we need people brave enough to enter the public sphere. Because that’s
where the decisions are being made about new coal and gas mines, how we design our cities,
what agricultural policies we have, what energy policies we have.I was really lucky as a kid. My mum’s
side are farmers and so even though
I grew up in Newcastle near the
ocean, and had the most amazing
experiences like surfing before school,
I also got to spend lots of time on my
grandparents’ farm near Gunnedah
and my uncle’s farm near Moree. So I really learned from spending a lot of time in the bush
that we’re part of nature. I remember learning from my family that to be a good farmer you
needed good soil, enough water and a stable climate. So I think I was involved pretty early on
in environmental issues because of spending so much time in nature and on farms.Yeah, high school actually. I remember a science class in the start of
year eight. The millennium drought was really devastating most of
New South Wales. And I was very aware of the impact it was having
on these rural communities which I felt very close to. I remember
my science teacher explaining the effect that climate change was having on the water
cycle—making droughts longer and hotter—and then thinking, Well why isn’t everyone doing
something about climate change? And I felt really powerless for almost a year, didn’t know
where to start. Because it was so big. Then someone came to my school from the Wilderness
Society and gave a speech about environmental activism and the work they were doing. And I
went up afterwards and said, “Where should I start?” And he said, “Just start where you are.”So it’s about doing the inner work? To be able to act on
what needs to be done when we feel it in the moment?So I want to get more of an insight into your story. I was thinking when
I was preparing, “Wow, I don’t even know about how you’ve come
to be.” So I mean I’m happy to stay in this ideas space as well but I
want to move between the two, between your personal journey and
then the work that needs to be done. So let’s explore a bit of your
background, where you grew up and what your childhood looked like.And the activist in you starts to grow
when? In high school, or university?
How does that start to emerge?26
ANNA ROSE
DUMBO FEATHER