UPCOMING TOPICS:
March 23: On the Worldwide Teach-In on Climate and Justice with History Rebellion
April 6: Canada Needs Permafrost Climate Services with Stephan Gruber (Carleton U)
April 13: Greenwashing with Chris Russill (Carleton U)
April 20: Desert Humanities with Veronika Kratz (Carleton U)
April 27: Open Discussion
May 4: Social Media and Climate Movements with Merlyna Lim (Carleton U)
May 11: Research on the North with Danielle DiNovelli-Lang (Carleton U) and Karen Hebert (Carleton U)
The Carleton Climate Commons invites you to participate in a new initiative: Teach-In’s for climate action called “Noons for Now.” As the name suggests, we’re taking our lead from the model of the school strike introduced by Greta Thunberg. Starting in September 2018, Thunberg sat on the steps of Swedish parliament each Friday at noon to strike for climate action. Sometimes she was alone. Sometimes one or two classmates were with her. But slowly this small action created a movement. We take heart from this action and the possibility we all have to effect change in response to the climate crisis. The Teach-In action we’ve chosen speaks to our role as faculty and students at a university. Each week we will bring together one to three speakers, in addition to a moderator, to discuss some facet of the climate crisis. Sometimes it might be just this small group. Sometimes more people might attend. Whatever the case, we invite you to join us anytime, to participate in the conversation or only to listen, to come for part of the hour or the entire thing, to come with friends or on your own. At first this event will likely be somewhat improvisational but we always welcome suggestions, feedback, and participation. The goal is to hold space for climate conversation, ideas, and action on a weekly basis until our country—and, we hope, others too—meets the climate crisis with policy and action commensurate to its urgency.
“In order to set our institutions firmly on the path of future knowledges, we need to reinvent a classroom without walls in which we are all co-learners; a university that is capable of convening various publics in new forms of assemblies that becomes points of convergence of and platforms for the redistribution of different forms of knowledges.” – Achille Mbembe
Up Next: Open Discussion (March 30) CANCELLED!
In solidarity with the ongoing CUPE 4600 strike at Carleton University, we are cancelling this week’s Noons for Now discussion.
Climate Commons, like so much of Carleton University, works because of the time and labour of contract instructors, teaching assistants, service assistants, and research assistants. These workers deserve a fair collective agreement, which includes a reasonable living wage and good working conditions.
If you still wish to join us, Climate Commons will be at the CUPE Rally on March 30th at noon, at the Bronson Ave entrance to campus!
In solidarity,
Climate Commons
Past Events:
Click on each of our past event pages for resource lists, blogs, and more.

Noons for Now: Climate Policy, Urban Infrastructure and the Municipal Election, 13 Oct. 2022 (photo: Veronika Kratz)