Social work and sustainability are not always thought of as a united front in the area of climate change, but a podcast collaboration at the University of Calgary is proving otherwise.
CA3: Climate Action and Advocacy on the Airwaves, a podcast and radio series, aims to bridge the connection between these two areas.
"There is a term in social work literature that we call green social work,'" says Dr. Mahed Choudhury, PhD, a social work postdoctoral research associate. "Social work has been more engaged on social issues, rather than environmental issues, but there is recognition that social and environmental issues are connected."
The reason for this connection is because "climate change and climate disasters will disproportionately affect marginalized communities," says CA3 host Rachel Pettigrew, a Master of Social Work student. Pettigrew says these communities often face higher rates of pollution, displacement and health issues due to greater instances of environmental damage and minimal environmental protections in the areas in which they live.
Creating a more sustainable world won't happen overnight; small actions can lead to substantial changes, Pettigrew says. "A lot of people sometimes feel just completely overwhelmed by the problem and become complicit because they don't know what to do, but every action, big or small, geared towards building a sustainable world really matters."
Making climate action accessible to everyone
The program, funded by the Mobilizing Alberta Climate Action Grant, is a two-year partnership between the Faculty of Social Work, CJSW 90.9 FM radio, Transforming the Field Education Landscape (TFEL) partnership, and the Social Work Field Education Program.
The podcast strives to eliminate jargon and be as accessible as possible to allow people outside academia, social work or sustainability to learn about climate advocacy, says CA3 executive producer Reyam Jamaleddine, a fifth-year political science undergraduate student.
"The greatest part about this whole project is that there is no singular targeted community. As someone who's not part of social work or didn't come in with a background in climate action or understanding environmental justice, I learned all these things while listening along the way," Jamaleddine says.
Event promotes social work education and climate awareness
You can learn more about how you can contribute to a more sustainable future, and how social work and sustainability intersect, by attending the TFEL Event Series: Making Change Together from March 17 to 21.
This free event series features workshops, an exhibition and networking opportunities about the field of social work education. Highlights include the Climate Action and Advocacy Exhibition in the Sustainability Hive. The series concludes with a celebration of social work field education and the launch of a factoid classroom booklet aimed at increasing climate awareness.
