Together We Can: Climate Action with Claire O’Rourke

Australia is enduring an unprecedented climate crisis, with the extreme conditions of climate change generating a drastic escalation in bushfire severity. In recent years, the rising effects of climate change has created a burgeoning concern in the vast majority of Australians today. Thus, the detrimental nature of this climate phenomenon adamantly implores Australian’s to take action. 

Author of Together We Can, Claire O’Rourke knows as well as any Australian the damaging and stressful effects climate change can have. Claire sets the scene for the 2020 bushfires, recalling her experience at the time, she depicts a daunting apocalyptic setting created by the fires as she describes the ‘orange, smoke-filled skies’ surrounded by ‘thousands of bats swirling around’ during sunset. A rather traumatic time for Claire and her family, the recent author reflects on a pivotal moment in her life:

“We had to pack up our trailer, one of my daughters was in tears” and “[I] Had this massive moment of cognitive dissonance. Because I live in the suburbs, there’s lots of trees around, but I always thought ‘I’m relatively safe for the next however many decades’, but that was kind of pulled apart”

The unnerving experience would be enough to have a negative influence  on any Australian. But Claire found comfort in the overwhelming need to act. Diving into research on Australian attitudes towards climate change, O’Rourke refers to a project she led known as Climate Compass:

“It was a massive market research project that looked at Australian attitudes to climate change, it was a segmentation analysis and we looked at behaviours and barriers to action. The survey had about two and a half thousand people, it was run in July 2020, right in the height of the pandemic. The survey revealed around five million Australians aged between 16 and 75 were in an alarmed category… people who are really worried about climate change.”

An epiphany moment for Claire as she came to understand ‘there are millions of people who feel the same way’ about climate change. And so began the formation of Together We Can.Displaying the greatest admiration for individuals participating in climate action, Claire compiled stories from Hobart, Kangaroo Island, Perth, Brisbane, the Northern Territory, and regional New South Wales. 

“It was so easy to find stories, it was actually hard to pick which ones to leave out. There was just so much going on, it was a nourishing experience to talk to people who are still getting a lot done”. Touching on the inspiration for the book, Claire expresses “Too often we feel as though we’re overwhelmed because we don’t know where to start when it comes to climate change. People are often asking me ‘what can I do?’ There are so many options, coming out the other end of writing the book, it’s more about what I can do, and what I can do next.”

 

Claire emphasises the book’s uniqueness as a source of climate change noting, “most of our communications – for good reason – have been dominated by the science of climate change. But what I think is most needed, and what I’ve included in the book are live examples of people who are taking action. It’s relatable, people can connect with the stories.

Drawing on climate distress from a 2021 study, Claire portrays 59 per cent of people aged between 16 to 25 self-reported being very or extremely worried overall about climate change. Illustrating the importance of younger generations and their concern for this pressing issue, O’Rourke explains the relevance of Together We Can and how it can assist individuals passionate about climate action:

“I think people need to come up with a plan where they’re leveraging their networks, because that’s where your influence and power come from. If people are struggling, they can always make their own plan and at the end of the book we have a massive list, including a whole lot of groups you could consider connecting with, and everything you need to get moving on climate change if you’re wondering where you might start.”

 

The practicality of the book provides a fundamental basis for considering one’s influential power, claiming individual agency and the ability to sustain endurance when taking climate action. Claire’s authenticity and eagerness to overcome the obstacles of climate action with the addition of her recent book, is enough to inspire any Australian to help make a change, big or small, because ‘Together We Can’.

“”There’s no point trying to save the world, if you’re not enjoying the world you’re trying to save.””

Half of the royalties from Together We Can will go to Groundswell Giving.

WORDS: LUCA CARBONE, SARAH RAMANTANIS
PHOTOGRAPHY: CLAIRE O'ROURKE