Livingston '84 Encourages Exonians to Address Climate Change

Pointing to a map of Botswana, Julie Livingston ’84 explains how the country’s international relationship between water, food and transportation rings a death-knell for the environment. At the conclusion of her talk, a hush falls over the Assembly Hall. Slowly, students crescendo into a standing ovation. A professor at New York University, Livington has expertise in a variety of professions— she holds a BA in Comparative Religion, an MA in African History, a Certificate of Public Health in Developing Countries, an MPH in Health Services and a PhD in African History. “I am mainly interested in how one can pick up an object anywhere, look at it and see the whole world which is attached to it,” she said. “It takes the ability to move in and out of different disciplines to achieve certain understandings.”For her work in anthropology and public health, Livingston has earned the MacArthur Fellowship, a $625,000 award for “exceptional creativity.” The MacArthur Fellowship’s website highlighted her exploration of “the care and treatment of individuals suffering from chronic illnesses and debilitating ailments in Botswana.”Though her expertise lies in other fields, Livingston used her time on the assembly stage to discuss the “7 million thousand pound gorilla in our world”— the environment.  “There is a dystopian future that I fear we may be headed to if we, collectively, don't do something about it,” Livingston said. In her talk, Livingston concentrated on a new form of “common sense.” “Economists will always pitch the notion of eternal growth,” Livingston said. “Success, through this lens, means if you have a company, it must eat up that little company and continue to grow bigger and bigger. Or if you have a little farm, then you must acquire a bigger farm, and then you must have an industrial farm.”What this perspective fails to take into account, Livingston asserted, is the limited amount of resources available—“It's a finite planet and you can only grow so much. There's only so much topsoil,” Livingston said. “It took millennia, geologic time to produce that topsoil. There's only so much water—yes, we renew it, but if you frack and salinate it, you take it out of commission.”English Instructor and Head of the Assembly Committee Alex Myers appreciated Livingston’s talk on a topic highly requested by students. Livingston brought “a junction of ideas: both the science and politics of [climate change] … something that students tell me repeatedly is really of interest.”Climate activists across campus, like senior and Environmental Proctor Erin Ahern, were inspired by her words. “The idea that everyone is constantly seeking this perfect economic society that is always growing and the reality that we all want that new and cool product from Europe and how both of those impact the environment was very powerful,” Ahern said. “I was struck by the notion that people don't actually desire what's local, although it is often better for the environment.”Physical Education Instructor Toyin Augustus, a member of the Assembly Committee, noted that Professor Livingston’s presentation was especially important for the Exeter community. “There are particular issues within our community, society and world that are of high importance, and regardless of what side you’re on or what stance you take on those topics, the topic itself needs to be in the forefront of our minds,” Augustus said. “Then we need to make some decisions and take some action.”For Augustus, the assembly speaker’s subject affected her personally. “Because of my direct connection to Africa as a continent … I think [Livingston’s speech] was powerful for me,” Augustus said. “As somebody from an African country and speaking about an African country, I liked that she validated the humanity of those in African countries in a way that this community may not hear very often,” Augustus said. Livingston’s discussion on Botswana’s export of high-quality beef and import of lower quality meat posed a question in Augustus’ mind. “Why is it that the African countries can produce something that’s superior and yet they should ingest something that is inferior?” Augustus contemplated. In similar lines, co-head of the Exeter Climate Lobby Group and upper Erin McCann felt Livingston’s message addressed important societal issues. “Oftentimes, sustainability is seen as the impacts of one individual, and either demonizing or idolizing them for having the economic freedom to buy products that are sustainable, but often more expensive,” McCann explained. “Individual choices are important and it is great to commit to a sustainable lifestyle, but it is more important to commit to changing the way we commodify water and food and perpetuate the cycle of global food inequality.”Although some, like senior Patricia Fitzgerald, do not “prioritize” climate change, Livingston left a lasting impact on them. “I was impressed by [Livingston’s] take on climate change since it was more effective for me than some of the other assembly speakers,” Fitzgerald said. Upper Anna Rose Marion hopes that the Academy will continue to discuss climate change. “There should be more education, or the school should find some way to explain more about how the systems all feed into each other,” she said.Upper Bea Burack, co-founder of Exeter Climate Lobby saw Julie Livingston’s assembly as a wake-up call. “We often think about environmental impacts being really far down the road, but this happened so suddenly, and this is like a tangible thing we can look at and say, we don't want this to happen, say in the United States,” Burack said.Livingston concluded that although current prospects for the climate are grim, youth from across the globe give her hope for a greener future. “Young global climate activists have created a political community that is not about the nation-state, it is a lot of grassroots organizations that are connected to one another and are having a conversation,” she said. “I think I see something happening among young climate activists—a reevaluation of what's most important.”