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“I’ve been in this storm so long/ I’ve been in this here storm so long/ Crying Lord, give me more time to pray/ I’ve been in this here storm so long.”
Fordham College at Lincoln Center graduate Marquetta L. Goodwine, Queen Quet of the Gullah/Geechee Nation, sang those lines from the spiritual “I’ve Been in the Storm Too Long” at the beginning of her presentation during an April 25 panel on environmental and climate justice. The event, held online, was sponsored by Fordham’s MOSAICThe alumni affinity chapter and Office of Alumni Relations. It featured alumni, faculty, and other experts who discussed how environmental and climate issues disproportionately affect certain populations—and how we can, both globally and locally, work toward lessening those impacts.
The lyrics Queen Quet sang also speak to the work she has been doing for more than two decades as chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation, a sovereign people who live along the Atlantic coast from Pender County, North Carolina, to St. John’s County, Florida. Flooding has been a problem on the low-lying areas inhabited by the Gullah/Geechee for a long time, but it is now more severe due to climate change.
Queen Quet, one of two keynote speakers on the topic of climate change, stressed the importance communicating about it in a way that is understandable by every community.
“It cannot be spoken of in terms of carbon emissions and CO2 and these types of things, because that is not everyday common vernacular throughout America,” Queen Quet said.
Photo courtesy of Queen Quet
She also discussed the Gullah/Geechee Nation’s specific efforts to prepare for natural catastrophes caused by climate change. This includes building resiliency hubs that store supplies and solar power charging station, which could also be used as an airdrop point for food or other necessities. Queen Quet stated that her nation has suffered a lot from flooding and beach erosion. However, she was excited to be able to speak at the U.N. Climate Change Conference 2019, which will be held in 2019, was an opportunity for leaders from all over the world to share their optimistic ideas.
“We’re all trying to show each other living examples of what we’re doing where we are to make this world a better place, to try to heal it, try to reverse some of the impacts,” she said.
‘We Must Be Willing to Serve’
The second keynote speaker, Dr. Daniel Chidubem Gbujie, a climate activist, writer, and oral surgeon from Nigeria, seconded Queen Quet’s call for effectively communicating the risks of climate change to every community.
“Context matters,” he said. “The way you deliver your message is very important.”
Dr. Gbujie highlighted the many ways sub-Saharan Africa was already devastated by climate changes, including flooding in Nigeria, drought, and conflicts like the Sudanese Civil War. In 2017, the U.N. World Food Program. called “the first climate change conflict.”
As the founder of the Team 54 ProjectDr. Gbujie, a non-profit organization, stated that he was inspired by the mission of Jesuit education, and the idea of Cura personalis—care for the whole person—when thinking about how best to approach the climate crisis.
“For everything that we experience here,” he said, “there’s a level of empathy and sympathy we have to have. We must be ready to serve in order for the climate crisis we face right now to be resolved. …
We must be willing to look for new, innovative ideas, and we must be willing to ensure that we have a moral compass that guides us when we negotiate.”
Along with the keynote speakers, the panel—which was moderated by Marion Bell, FCLC ’92, one of MOSAIC’s co-founders, with support from fellow chapter co-founders Felicia Gomes-Gregory, FCLC ’88, GSAS ’98, and Marlene Taylor-Ponterotto, FCRH ’79—featured presentations from several speakers who discussed the infrastructural keys to adapting to and mitigating climate change, both at Fordham and beyond.
Preparing for the Future by Using Infrastructure and Policy
After opening the event with a prayer Bell, who is also chairperson for climate and environmental justice for the NAACP midManhattan branch, introduced Marco Valera as vice president for administration at Fordham. Valera, who took on his current role in 2019 after serving as vice president for facilities management, discussed the work that has been done and will be done infrastructurally to reduce the University’s carbon emissions,—continuing to improve building insulation, for example, moving the University’s vehicle fleet to electric, and using available surface space for green roofs and solar panels, like those atop the Rose Hill regional garage.
Aerial view of Rose Hill garage
Sameer Ranade was the second speaker. He is a climate justice consultant for the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), a public-benefit corporation whose mission is to “advance clean energy innovation and investments to combat climate change, improving the health, resiliency, and prosperity of New Yorkers and delivering benefits equitably to all.” Ranade’s position at the authority was created as part of the state’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act of 2019—This was signed into law by the Fordham School of Law—and he provides support for both New York’s Climate Action Council and the Climate Justice Working Group.
Ranade presented some of the state’s energy and climate justice goals, which include reducing statewide greenhouse gas emissions to 60% of 1990 levels by 2030 and to 15% of 1990 levels by 2050.
“Clean energy can actually lower emissions in all sectors, but especially so in buildings, transportation, and electric power generation,” Ranade said, noting that moving to clean energy would also add 10 jobs for every one job displaced, according to a study by the state’s Just Transition Working Group. He also encouraged the audience members to attend. one of the Climate Action Council’s remaining public hearings to share input on the scoping plan for New York’s climate goals.
Fordham professor John Davenport, Ph.D.He also discussed stormwater runoff management as a way to mitigate the effects of climate changes. This is an important element for New York City and other coastal communities. Davenport explained that the danger of flooding and strong storms will increase and it will be crucial to use infrastructure like street trees and green roofs to absorb water, limit runoff and provide tax incentives for land and building owners to implement runoff reduction measures.
“It’s going to be important to start using the language of savings,” Bell said in response to Davenport’s presentation, touching on the same need for good communication highlighted by the keynote speakers. “What it will save us rather than how much it will cost us.”
