GOPAL DAYANENI on the Exploitation of Soil and Story /232
Aerial view of vibrant green deciduous tree in stark contrast to the surrounding barren, over-tilled agricultural land imprinted with tractor tire tracks near Ile Des Chênes, MB, Canada; Photo by Brydon McCluskey.
Will we “undo” or “solve” climate change? Could we still create a livable world if the answer to the previous question is no? Could we create an even more just world than the one we’ve been living in so far? This week we step away from thinking about climate change at the planetary scale and reflect on how we can respond at the community level with guest Gopal Dayaneni. Gopal reminds us to think about the climate crisis as a message in which we are being asked to respond by tending to our all of relationships, not just reducing atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide.
In this exploration of crisis, solutions, distribution of suffering, and relations - we learn about the power of changing our relationship to a problem and how this act can breathe us into new possibilities and timelines where we choose to navigate a moment together as opposed to frantically looking for ways to save ourselves. In addition to fruitful ideas on community response, Gopal also shares the tremendous possibilities that await us when we reclaim our labor and organize around a solid understanding of our rights as human beings on Earth.
“Urgency can motivate us to action but urgency can also enable desperation, and desperation can enable false solutions.”
Photo of Gopal Dayaneni
Gopal Dayaneni has been involved in fighting for social, economic, environmental, and racial justice through organizing & campaigning, teaching, writing, speaking, and direct action since the late 1980s. Gopal is a co-founder of Movement Generation: Justice and Ecology Project. MG is rooted in vibrant social movements led by low-income communities and communities of color committed to a Just Transition away from profit and pollution and towards healthy, resilient, and life-affirming local economies.
Currently, Gopal supports movement building through his work with organizations including The Climate Justice Alliance, ETCgroup, and the Center for Story-based Strategy. He is also a Fellow with the Center for Economic Democracy. Gopal works at the intersection of ecology, economy, and empire. He lives in an intentional community of 9 adults and a squabble of kids.
♫ The music featured in this episode is “Saluto!“ by Skeppet, “War Drums” by Shingai, and “Bleed Slow” by Yesol.
Episode References
The Everything Seed by Carole Martignacco
Permanent Real Estate Cooperatives
Reading Recommendations
The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
A History of the World in Seven Cheap Things by Raj Patel and Jason Moore
Emergent Strategy by adrienne maree brown
The Half Has Never Been Told: The Origins of American Capitalism in Slavery by Edward E. Baptist
Traditional Ecological Knowledge edited by Melissa K. Nelson and Dan Schilling
Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
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For The Wild is a slow media organization dedicated to land-based protection, co-liberation, and intersectional storytelling. We are rooted in a paradigm shift away from human supremacy, endless growth, and consumerism. As we dream towards a world of grounded justice and reciprocity, our work highlights impactful stories and deeply-felt meaning making as balms for these times.