Climate Action and WUICAN

From the Living Through Upheaval initiative and its focus on Elemental Matter to Holding Sway, Melody Jue’s guest Foundry series on seaweeds and the politics of form, UCHRI has been committed to supporting the work of colleagues across the University of California engaged in tracking and addressing the social, cultural, and historical entanglements of the climate crisis.

Continuing this vital work, UCHRI is now a core partner in the Wildland-Urban Interface Climate Action Network (WUICAN). Pronounced “we can,” the Network is a consortium of community-based organizations, California Native American Tribes, land managers, and universities in Southern California working together to address the climate crisis. In concert with several units at UC Irvine, including the Research Justice Shop, the School of Humanities, and the Environmental Humanities Research Center, UCHRI is providing communications support for the Network and its partners. In addition, UCHRI is directing several special programs that develop climate action capacity for humanities undergraduates, graduate students, and researchers.

Climate Action Summer Institute
In the summer of 2024, eight graduate students from seven UC campuses received summer dissertation fellowships to participate in an eight-day residential institute at UCHRI on the UC Irvine campus. WUICAN post-docs, graduate students, and research staff also participated in the program. Skillshares by each graduate student promoted creative knowledge exchange and revealed the entangled threads linking their work. Workshops on feminist research methods, public writing, and speculative fiction by visiting scholars introduced tools of public inquiry beyond the dissertation. During the summer, participants were paired with WUICAN community partners to work on communications projects, such as compiling materials on the history of the San Joaquin Marsh to integrate Indigenous perspectives; a zine/ workbook that encourages the planting of native species in Irvine; and a “Toxic Tour” story map of Santa Ana, California. 

Climate Communications Internship Program
UCHRI’s internship program places 10-12 undergraduates with UC Irvine and community partners to work on communications related to climate change and environmental justice. Working closely with post-doctoral supervisors and community leaders and conservationists, students create social media posts, write news items, and support meetings and events that tell the story of how communities are responding to climate change. The program is designed to broaden the skills and employment horizons of humanities students while engaging them in meaningful climate action work.

Interfaith Climate Action Working Group
The Interfaith Climate Action Working Group is a consortium of leaders from different faith traditions in Orange County. Our group fosters knowledge sharing about climate action resources and opportunities in local worship communities and across faith traditions. Our goal is to enrich and support the network of scientists, nature conservancies, and community partners involved in WUICAN by exploring, documenting, and sharing faith-based tools and frameworks that confront the climate crisis. The Working Group is running a four-part series called Elemental Conversations; weaving experiential learning with presentations on climate justice, participants experience the power of the four elements in global wisdom traditions. Read about WUICAN’s Interfaith Water Communion, which brought together over seventy people representing faith communities, environmental justice organizations, area universities, and local government for an evening of knowledge exchange.