By M. Nakamura
The climate crisis has traditionally been conceived in terms of imminent disaster. In brief: We only have so long to change our ways before it鈥檚 simply too late. In 1947, the nonprofit publication Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists debuted its notorious Doomsday Clock, a metaphor visualizing the likelihood of an impending, human-caused global catastrophe. At its inception, the Doomsday Clock was set to seven minutes to midnight, with midnight indicating the point of demise. As of January 2025, the Bulletin has advanced the minute hand to 89 seconds to midnight, with climate change listed as the paramount factor.
Expressed through this visual, our future can feel hopeless. But for those who are actively combating climate change, putting the clock aside to take the crisis day by day is a practical choice.
The question young climate change researchers and advocates are looking to answer is what they can do today with the people they鈥檙e working alongside. A community-centered viewpoint is the approach taken by Stephanie Lim 鈥�18, a Stanford University PhD candidate in earth system science, to guide her research and stay motivated.
鈥淲e鈥檝e lost a lot and we鈥檒l lose more, but there are still things that are worth saving and worth working toward,鈥� says Lim, who is examining the effects of climate change on oceanic algae in Arctic Alaska. 鈥淲hat we do now has real impacts on people鈥檚 lives. In my work, I think of the vulnerable Alaskan coastal communities who depend upon shellfish, and whose livelihoods are being actively threatened by toxic algae blooms. Grounding yourself in these specific stories and places is helpful.鈥�
Lim references this framework as a tool suggested by leaders like Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, a marine biologist, policy expert, and conservation strategist. Lim says she often thinks of a quote by author Emily Johnston in All We Can Save, a climate crisis鈥揷entric anthology coedited by Johnson: 鈥淲e have to love not just this vanishing world . . . but the many worlds we can still prevent from vanishing.鈥�
Anchoring her research with this focus takes her work beyond academia to make strides toward adapting to rapidly changing climate conditions.
鈥淲e need to focus on working and connecting with frontline communities鈥攑eople who are disproportionately affected by the consequences of climate change, like Indigenous and coastal communities threatened by rising sea levels,鈥� Lim says.
Susceptible communities like these have become a point of increasing focus in climate research. The US Environmental Protection Agency cites socially vulnerable populations as most at risk of being negatively impacted by climate change, including communities of color, low-income groups, certain immigrant groups, people with limited English proficiency, Indigenous populations, older adults, people with chronic illness or disabilities, and pregnant, breastfeeding, or postpartum women.
Making connections between the effects of climate change and those negatively impacted is an important tool in educating the public and ensures that the most vulnerable are at the forefront of discussions about climate solutions.
鈥淭he role of community work has historically been a big gap in my field that needs to be addressed,鈥� says Lim. 鈥淚鈥檓 excited to see younger voices coming into the space and helping to bridge this gap in the conversation.鈥�
One of these emerging voices belongs to Lucia Marquez- Uppman 鈥�25, an environmental analysis major whose interest in climate change and the effectiveness of community-centered approaches took her abroad.
鈥淚t鈥檚 going to take a lot of work to reduce these discrepancies,鈥� says Marquez-Uppman, who is minoring in Chicanx-Latinx studies. During her internship with Kinray Hub鈥攁n Indigenous-led nonprofit organization based in Ecuador鈥攕he worked under the direction of Kichwa-speaking homesteaders and studied Indigenous farming techniques. 鈥淧eople鈥檚 livelihoods are under threat. They鈥檙e living with the consequences of climate change every day. We have to make sure that we leave as few people behind as possible,鈥� she adds.
Throughout her Kinray Hub internship, Marquez- Uppman鈥檚 agricultural work went hand in hand with her immersion in the local community in Cotacachi, a town with one of the highest concentrations of Indigenous peoples in Ecuador. She revealed that the joy she experienced while staying in her host town contributed as much to her positive experience as the work itself.
鈥淎side from research and farm labor, there were celebrations, too,鈥� says Marquez-Uppman. 鈥淲e were there for Inti Raymi during the summertime鈥攖he name loosely translates to 鈥楽un Festival.鈥� We did so much dancing!鈥�
Marquez-Uppman points out that the preservation and implementation of Indigenous environmental knowledge is a major way to bolster ecosystem health.
鈥淲e learned about sustainable agriculture techniques from community members in Cotacachi like crop rotation, which helps make sure the soil stays healthy. Indigenous understanding of soil health and erosion tends to be ignored, and that has had serious consequences,鈥� she says.
Similar consequences have made themselves known in California, too, close to Scripps鈥� campus. 鈥淚f the Indigenous method of using controlled burns for wildfire management hadn鈥檛 been prevented in California for so long, the January 2025 fires might not have been so devastating,鈥� she says. 鈥淗istorically, the practice by the Gabrielino-Tongva people in this area have been more effective than the United States鈥� fire suppression methods that disallowed them.鈥�
Owning the climate crisis: A call for current and future generations
While most Americans are more insulated from climate extremes than the victims of recent record heat waves in low-income areas of New Delhi, for example, no nation is exempt. Lim notes that the recent shifting patterns of fires and hurricanes in the US remind us that problems are touching home.
鈥淚 find my work in the polar oceans fascinating because you can see the effects of climate change in real time, but I know that it鈥檚 also affecting Californians,鈥� Lim says. 鈥淚 see it in my day-to-day life, not just in the Chukchi Sea of the Arctic Ocean. There鈥檚 no denying that we鈥檙e witnessing extreme weather events here, especially with the recent wildfires, and I鈥檇 push back on the idea that climate change hasn鈥檛 really reached us yet.鈥�
Young people are often among the most visible proponents of climate action, and as the global crisis further develops, it鈥檚 apparent that related disciplines must continue to evolve with it to affect change. Both Marquez-Uppman and Lim have seen positive shifts in their fields as fresh voices choose to enter the progressing conversation.
鈥淵ounger people are motivated by considering the welfare of future generations,鈥� Lim says. 鈥淲hen you work in climate research for a long time, you can become cynical and start to feel like nothing can be done. Upcoming generations are tempering that exhaustion by bringing an energized, clear-eyed perspective.鈥�
Insights from previous climate researchers and advocates remain valuable for emerging environmental leaders. By building on that foundation of knowledge, today鈥檚 climate action champions are able to keep the welfare of humanity and the planet at the heart of their efforts.
鈥淪omething we talk a lot about in my classes at 五月天视频is how much healthier it is to think of ourselves as part of a larger system,鈥� Marquez-Uppman says. 鈥淲e鈥檙e part of the natural world. We鈥檙e not a disease infecting the planet, which is how some people talk about it. This is our home, too.鈥�
Centering community also means solutions don鈥檛 fall on an individual鈥檚 shoulders alone.
鈥淣o one person is going to solve climate change,鈥� Lim says. 鈥淵ou have to find motivation and hope in the things that are within your grasp. There are many needs in climate activism spaces, so whatever calls to you, whether it鈥檚 research or communication, storytelling or art, you have something to contribute.鈥�
Whatever that looks like鈥攆rom larger research efforts like sailing the Chukchi Sea to homesteading in Cotacachi or partnering with others in the community for a local trash cleanup鈥攊t鈥檚 worth it. Meaningful community engagement can propel policy change and make a measurable difference in protecting vulnerable groups.
Lim emphasizes that the science is clear, and this is the time to act: 鈥淔ind the places where your interests and capabilities intersect with the world鈥檚 needs.鈥�