How to Live in a Chaotic Climate

May 8, 2023
In this thoughtful debut, Schmidt, who, with Reau, cofounded the environmental nonprofit Good Grief Network, unpacks their organization’s core focus: a 10-step program aimed at tackling climate anxiety and promoting environmental activism. Outlining a program based in emotional health and community connection, Schmidt advises readers to fully experience their grief, rage, and fear, which are “totally normal responses to a hurting planet.” Processing these emotions, she explains, can “orient us to be a catalyst for profound change.” Once reconnected “with ourselves,” Schmidt continues, “we can... begin to reconnect with people, animals the larger world.” This can mean joining a climate change support group or activist organization, whose powerful problem-solving capabilities come from their ability to generate “creative pathways that simply cannot happen when we are alone.” Readers should also engage in “meaningful action” tailored to their individual passions and skills, whether that means planting an organic garden or participating in nonviolent civil disobedience. Schmidt offers a rousing counter to the notion of suffering in silence here, though her emphasis on emotional work sometimes comes at the cost of a more concrete vision of activism. This will serve as a balm for those who feel panicked about the planet’s future.

August 4, 2023

This book is based on a program established by authors Schmidt, Aimee Lewis Reau, and Chelsie Rivera, called 10 Steps to Resilience & Empowerment in a Chaotic Climate. The focus of this book is not on creating a community-level response to climate change. Instead, it tells readers how to respond as individuals and how to take this important cause to a personal level so that one can cultivate and develop personal resilience and empowerment. Each of the 10 steps is fully described in its own chapter, each of which includes personal anecdotes, an extended essay, and exercises for readers to follow, but there's a sprinkling of clich�s too. This mix of structures and styles results in a challenging read, with some sections reading like a college-level textbook and others flowing like a memoir. The book directs readers to the authors' webpage for additional resources and is obviously designed to accompany the authors' in-person seminars. VERDICT Only partially successful as a stand-alone read. An optional purchase for public and academic libraries.--Marjorie Mann

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