In October 2019, The Guardian published an environmental pledge listing a series of commitments that reflect their desire to play a leading role in reporting on the environmental catastrophe. Among these commitments is a dedication to using language that recognizes the severity of our situation, such as “climate emergency, crisis or breakdown” and “global heating” instead of “climate change” and “global warming.”
Earlier that same year, author Dahr Jamail published the book The End of Ice: Bearing Witness and Finding Meaning in the Path of Climate Disruption, choosing the term “climate disruption” instead of “climate change” because, as he explains, “it is the most scientifically precise description.”
The Artists & Climate Change Core Team is dedicated to following in these footsteps. From now on, we will use these terms as well as “planetary emergency” in order to clearly communicate the urgency of our situation.
The Artists & Climate Change Core Team
January 2020