Published

2 years ago

January 4, 2024

Alice Rush

“The plain fact is that the planet does not need more “successful” people. But it does desperately need more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers, and lovers of every shape and form. It needs people who live well in their places. It needs people of moral courage willing to join the fight to make the world habitable and humane.” –David Orr, What is Education For? 1991

I first read this quote in a graduate course studying environmental education in 2013. While it struck me at the time, I didn’t quite realize that it would become my compass. The phrase “live well in their places” has rung through my head at important choice points over the last decade- in my education and professional practice, am I helping those around me live well in their places? As a consumer and planet dweller, am I living well in my place? As a community member to humans and nonhumans, am I contributing to others to be able to live well in their place?

Having a deep sense of place or home has always been a part of me. Growing up in South Minneapolis 8 blocks away from where my mother and her six siblings grew up meant I always heard generational stories about my neighborhood. Uncle Jimmy played hockey there, mom got into a fight on the steps of that school, and everyone biked to the Dokken’s for candy. I continued exploring the city with my friends throughout elementary, middle, and highschool, widening our radius of travel the older we got and further we could bike. The phrase “sense of place” didn’t mean anything to me then, but now I see how fortunate I was to develop a deep sense of place at a young age.

In Minneapolis, my sense of place was very much rooted in the spatial geography, physical landmarks, and relationships with kin. 10 years ago I moved to the North Woods of Minnesota, studying to become a Naturalist. During those studies, I expanded my understanding of a sense of place through an intentional practice encouraged by our mentors to slow down and pay attention.

While it sounds simple, it is one of the hardest practices to make a habit, but my world expanded. I learned to notice the differences between fir and spruce trees; I followed lynx tracks through the deep snow and saw the imprint where it had bedded down for a nap (just like my cats!); and I felt the awe of realizing it was the chickadee who greets me with that familiar call, “Heeeyy Sweeet-eee,” reminding us that spring is on its way. My year of intensive Naturalist studies ended in a revelation- my connection to place in Minneapolis isn’t so different from the North Woods. Both require the practice of noticing my surroundings, building relationships, and being present—all of which can be applied wherever I go.

I decided to stay in that forested town of 300 people in Northern Minnesota and have been here ever since. Through observation, I’ve experienced the natural cycles of plants, animals, and seasons. I’ve learned the history of this land- stories of sorrow, collaboration, and “sisu” (Finnish for determination). I’ve worked with folks who have a deep love of this place; they’ve shown me the power of showing up in community, especially when things are tough. I will never be “from here,” as that phrase is reserved for the families that have lived here for generations, but I can definitely call this place home.

What climate change threatens is the ability for all living beings to not only have a home but to feel that sense of place that allows for inner peace and connection to community. Climate change has made it harder to understand and predict the natural cycles around us. I feel uneasy when it is 45 degrees in December, not only because I love winter more than anything, but because my sense of place has thus far relied on being able to anticipate the seasons that govern my life. While this disturbs me on an emotional level, these seasonal unpredictabilities have physical and deadly effects on the nonhuman beings that use temperature cues to know how and when to live their lives.

The region I live in has been named a climate refuge, a place where those displaced by the impacts of climate change may move to. I’ve benefited from those before me welcoming me to this place, and I’m honored to be in a position to welcome others.

However, I’ve noticed a trend that so far, those moving here are not those in need of a new, healthy home. Rather, it is those who want a second home to use for vacation or to “escape to when things get really bad”- a quote I’ve heard from many. Migration has been and will always be part of human history. And, let me be clear, I am someone who has benefited from being able to relocate. What bothers me is this feeling that some folks who move here or other places like this in the world, consider it to be “empty” because there are fewer people and structures than they are used to. This makes it much easier to feel that actions in these rural areas have no impact. Practicing a sense of place can teach us otherwise and help us not only live well in our places but also move well to others.

While those with excess and wealth buy up the housing stock only to sit empty, families who live here are becoming a different type of displaced from rising property taxes and unaffordable homes. If this continues, there is no way this place will be a climate refuge for those truly impacted by the impacts of climate change. Climate change has and continues to be a product of rampant capitalism. Its impacts will allow those with the most to continue to benefit at the expense of those with the least.

Unless, of course, we do something about it.

I see solutions all around me from folks working to create regional food systems, to communities protecting and preserving their housing stock, to educators teaching their students how to live well in their places.

It is this moral courage that inspires me to continue to show up, even when things are hard, working together one project, class, or conversation at a time, to leave behind a habitable and humane world for future generations to one day call home.

Danielle strives to bring people together to co-create a thriving future. Growing up in South Minneapolis, a stone’s throw away from where her mother’s family was raised, Danielle was fortunate to develop a deep love for people and place throughout her childhood. Through being a naturalist and active community member she has learned the value of slowing down, paying attention, and participating in her surroundings. Having a Master’s in Teaching focused on community-centered climate solutions and formerly being a director of a graduate program in environmental education, Danielle has a passion for pedagogy and helping educators offer a promising future for their learners. Living in Finland, Minnesota surrounded by a robust community (human and natural) is inspiring. She loves spending time nesting in her home, cooking elaborate meals, connecting with fellow humans, and moving her body.

The post A reflection on living well in a place appeared first on Climate Generation.

A reflection on living well in a place

Climate Change

A Tiny Caribbean Island Sued the Netherlands Over Climate Change, and Won

Published

8 hours ago

February 28, 2026

Alice Rush

The case shows that climate change is a fundamental human rights violation—and the victory of Bonaire, a Dutch territory, could open the door for similar lawsuits globally.

Interview by Paloma Beltran, Living on Earth

From our collaborating partner Living on Earth, public radio’s environmental news magazine, an interview by Paloma Beltran with Greenpeace Netherlands campaigner Eefje de Kroon.

A Tiny Caribbean Island Sued the Netherlands Over Climate Change, and Won

Climate Change

Greenpeace organisations to appeal USD $345 million court judgment in Energy Transfer’s intimidation lawsuit

Published

13 hours ago

February 28, 2026

Alice Rush

SYDNEY, Saturday 28 February 2026 — Greenpeace International and Greenpeace organisations in the US announce they will seek a new trial and, if necessary, appeal the decision with the North Dakota Supreme Court following a North Dakota District Court judgment today awarding Energy Transfer (ET) USD $345 million.

ET’s SLAPP suit remains a blatant attempt to silence free speech, erase Indigenous leadership of the Standing Rock movement, and punish solidarity with peaceful resistance to the Dakota Access Pipeline. Greenpeace International will also continue to seek damages for ET’s bullying lawsuits under EU anti-SLAPP legislation in the Netherlands.

Mads Christensen, Greenpeace International Executive Director said: “Energy Transfer’s attempts to silence us are failing. Greenpeace International will continue to resist intimidation tactics. We will not be silenced. We will only get louder, joining our voices to those of our allies all around the world against the corporate polluters and billionaire oligarchs who prioritise profits over people and the planet.

“With hard-won freedoms under threat and the climate crisis accelerating, the stakes of this legal fight couldn’t be higher. Through appeals in the US and Greenpeace International’s groundbreaking anti-SLAPP case in the Netherlands, we are exploring every option to hold Energy Transfer accountable for multiple abusive lawsuits and show all power-hungry bullies that their attacks will only result in a stronger people-powered movement.”

The Court’s final judgment today rejects some of the jury verdict delivered in March 2025, but still awards hundreds of millions of dollars to ET without a sound basis in law. The Greenpeace defendants will continue to press their arguments that the US Constitution does not allow liability here, that ET did not present evidence to support its claims, that the Court admitted inflammatory and irrelevant evidence at trial and excluded other evidence supporting the defense, and that the jury pool in Mandan could not be impartial.[1][2]

ET’s back-to-back lawsuits against Greenpeace International and the US organisations Greenpeace USA (Greenpeace Inc.) and Greenpeace Fund are clear-cut examples of SLAPPs — lawsuits attempting to bury nonprofits and activists in legal fees, push them towards bankruptcy and ultimately silence dissent.[3] Greenpeace International, which is based in the Netherlands, is pursuing justice in Europe, with a suit against ET under Dutch law and the European Union’s new anti-SLAPP directive, a landmark test of the new legislation which could help set a powerful precedent against corporate bullying.[4]

Kate Smolski, Program Director at Greenpeace Australia Pacific, said: “This is part of a worrying trend globally: fossil fuel corporations are increasingly using litigation to attack and silence ordinary people and groups using the law to challenge their polluting operations — and we’re not immune to these tactics here in Australia.

“Rulings like this have a chilling effect on democracy and public interest litigation — we must unite against these silencing tactics as bad for Australians and bad for our democracy. Our movement is stronger than any corporate bully, and grows even stronger when under attack.”

Energy Transfer’s SLAPPs are part of a wave of abusive lawsuits filed by Big Oil companies like Shell, Total, and ENI against Greenpeace entities in recent years.[3] A couple of these cases have been successfully stopped in their tracks. This includes Greenpeace France successfully defeating TotalEnergies’ SLAPP on 28 March 2024, and Greenpeace UK and Greenpeace International forcing Shell to back down from its SLAPP on 10 December 2024.

-ENDS-

Images available in Greenpeace Media Library

Notes:

[1] The judgment entered by North Dakota District Court Judge Gion follows a jury verdict finding Greenpeace entities liable for more than US$660 million on March 19, 2025. Judge Gion subsequently threw out several items from the jury’s verdict, reducing the total damages to approximately US$345 million.

[2] Public statements from the independent Trial Monitoring Committee

[3] Energy Transfer’s first lawsuit was filed in federal court in 2017 under the RICO Act – the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, a US federal statute designed to prosecute mob activity. The case was dismissed in 2019, with the judge stating the evidence fell “far short” of what was needed to establish a RICO enterprise. The federal court did not decide on Energy Transfer’s claims based on state law, so Energy Transfer promptly filed a new case in a North Dakota state court with these and other state law claims.

[4] Greenpeace International sent a Notice of Liability to Energy Transfer on 23 July 2024, informing the pipeline giant of Greenpeace International’s intention to bring an anti-SLAPP lawsuit against the company in a Dutch Court. After Energy Transfer declined to accept liability on multiple occasions (September 2024, December 2024), Greenpeace International initiated the first test of the European Union’s anti-SLAPP Directive on 11 February 2025 by filing a lawsuit in Dutch court against Energy Transfer. The case was officially registered in the docket of the Court of Amsterdam on 2 July, 2025. Greenpeace International seeks to recover all damages and costs it has suffered as a result of Energy Transfers’s back-to-back, abusive lawsuits demanding hundreds of millions of dollars from Greenpeace International and the Greenpeace organisations in the US. The next hearing in the Court of Amsterdam is scheduled for 16 April, 2026.

Media contact:

Kate O’Callaghan on 0406 231 892 or kate.ocallaghan@greenpeace.org

Greenpeace organisations to appeal USD $345 million court judgment in Energy Transfer’s intimidation lawsuit

Climate Change

Former EPA Staff Detail Expanding Pollution Risks Under Trump

Published

14 hours ago

February 28, 2026

Alice Rush

The Trump administration’s relentless rollback of public health and environmental protections has allowed widespread toxic exposures to flourish, warn experts who helped implement safeguards now under assault.

By Liza Gross

In a new report that outlines a dozen high-risk pollutants given new life thanks to weakened, delayed or rescinded regulations, the Environmental Protection Network, a nonprofit, nonpartisan group of hundreds of former Environmental Protection Agency staff, warns that the EPA under President Donald Trump has abandoned the agency’s core mission of protecting people and the environment from preventable toxic exposures.