Can climate scientists be sexy? Francesco Fiondella, Communications Officer at the International Research Institute for Climate and Society, and Rebecca Fowler, Science Writer at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, think so. Fiondella and Fowler are working on a 2014 wall calendar, affectionately called the Climate Models Calendar, that will feature 13 climate scientists–but here’s the kicker–dressed in high-fashion gear. Produced in collaboration with photographers Charlie Naebeck and Jordan Matter, creator of the New York Times bestseller Dancers Among Us, the calendar’s goal is to “humanize science and increase understanding of current climate research.” Says Fowler: “Photos in the calendar shatter stereotypes of scientists and show that they’re a diverse group of people doing important research to understand how our planet works. From studies of drought in the sub-Saharan Africa to reconstructions of Southeast Asia’s climate history using data obtained from tree rings, the information in the calendar covers a broad range of current climate science and describes what scientists are discovering about Earth’s past, present and future climate.”
Fiondella and Fowler just completed a successful crowd funding campaign to cover the calendar’s printing costs. Climate Models is also supported by the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation and Awesome NYC, and is available for purchase here.
Several articles have been written about the project. Check out EarthFix, the Smithsonian Magazine, and Climate Central.
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Chantal Bilodeau is a playwright and translator whose work focuses on the intersection of science, policy, art, and climate change. She is the Artistic Director of The Arctic Cycle – an organization created to support the writing, development and production of eight plays that look at the social and environmental changes taking place in the eight countries of the Arctic – and the founder of the blog and international network Artists & Climate Change. She is a co-organizer of Climate Change Theatre Action, a worldwide series of readings and performances of short climate change plays presented in support of the United Nations COP meetings.
Haha nice.