Act: Resources

Being the Change Teleseminar

January 29, 2018

Recording and/or Handouts:

Concerned about global warming, Dr. Peter Kalmus cut his emissions to below a tenth of the US average, and found that this made his life more interesting, satisfying, and joyful — not less. He started riding a bike, driving on vegetable oil, and engaging in “slow travel” without airplanes. He switched to “freegan vegetarianism” and grows much of his own food. He has simplified and decarbonized his life, and he has never looked back.

He now does everything he can to spread this message and to help humanity transition away from fossil fuels. He believes that the problem is not only technological or scientific, but also spiritual: it calls humans to set aside the notion that we are exceptional within the web of life, and instead to live, gratefully, in alignment with the biosphere.
Dr. Peter Kalmus is a scientist studying clouds and climate change at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (speaking on his own behalf). He holds a PhD in physics from Columbia University. Peter is a contributing editor and columnist at YES! Magazine.
Peter has been active in Transition Pasadena for several years, and his book was developed through discussions, community actions, and presentations with them. Peter is now interested in exploring fossil fuel reduction in community settings, such as local church and neighborhood groups. In this TeleSeminar, in addition to introducing his book, Peter will explore how his work could complement Transition Streets. Please join us!
Consider picking up a copy of Peter’s book. Peter is donating all profits to groups connecting individual agency to collective climate action.
Two testimonials that will get you exctied to listen:

“A low-carbon world will not look like Star Trek, it will look mostly like it looks today, it’s just that we will inhabit it differently. Peter Kalmus’s brilliant book is about his deciding to start living that way today. He finds that (a) it’s not that hard, and that (b) life improves. He becomes more skilled, connected, fulfilled, nourished. As we all will. Allow him to ease you over the threshold. –Rob Hopkins

Being the Change is a book I desperately needed to read. The tone of authenticity kept me reading eagerly till the end. It is refreshing and empowering to read about real-life solutions, rather than the guilt-ridden, doom-and-gloom tales that dominate much of the environmental movement. Kalmus is positive, by contrast, bursting with practical strategies. He writes with joy, infectious curiosity, and a hopeful enthusiasm that’s hard to resist. —Treehugger, Katherine Martinko

Peter Kalmus

Peter Kalmus is a climate scientist working at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (he speaks here on his own behalf, not on behalf of NASA, JPL, or Caltech). At work, Peter uses satellite data, in situ data, and models to study the rapidly changing Earth with a focus on boundary layer clouds. At home, he explores how dramatically reducing carbon emissions can lead to a happier, more connected life. His new book, “Being the Change: Live Well and Spark a Climate Revolution” is now available (New Society Publishers, 2017). Peter volunteers with Citizens’ Climate Lobby, a group focused on implementing carbon fee and dividend.

Tags: simple living

Leave a Comment