| Description |
Central to the mission of the Rothko Chapel is the commitment to support those who are marginalized and to strengthen our collective efforts to address the world’s most divisive, urgent and difficult problems. In recent years, our programming has focused on critical issues with regional, national and international implications including income inequality, mass incarceration, immigration reform, and racial inequality. With our Spring 2019 Symposium, 'Toward a Better Future: Transforming the Climate Crisis,' the Chapel will focus on the human costs and responsibilities related to climate change, recently reported by the United Nations to be the most important and urgent issue we face as a global community. Drastic action is needed which includes limiting future human-caused warming to a stricter standard. As part of our multi-year initiative on climate change, the Chapel’s symposium will focus special attention on those who live on the social, political and economic margins. <br/><br/>Engaging this topic in Houston—the self-proclaimed “energy capital of the world”—while daunting, is particularly timely as there is an unprecedented interreligious, scientific, environmental, academic and philanthropic convergence and consensus that climate change is one of the most critical, moral and ethical issues facing us today. Although the early stage development of renewable energy businesses indicates potential for change even here, Houston and much of Texas have been slow to join in efforts to comprehensively address the causes and effects of climate change due in part to the importance of the domestic and international oil and gas industry to the regional economy. Hence, there is real urgency to engage a larger constituency and place our regional work within the context of broader national and international climate change efforts. <br/><br/>Held at the Chapel and the University of St. Thomas, the three-day event will feature leading scientists, community activists, artists, spiritual leaders and academics as they help participants more fully understand the current and future implications of climate change, while also advocating a more pronounced public voice and the building of a larger and more effective global climate change network. Additionally, the symposium will delve deeper into the spiritual aspects of climate change, as well as provide an opportunity to engage with leaders in the scientific, artistic, environmental, academic, economic, and political sectors who are furthering efforts to create a sustainable, equitable, and clean economy leading to a reduction in CO2 and reliance of fossil fuels.<br/><br/>On Thursday, February 28, the Symposium will open with a keynote address by Somini Sengupta, international climate reporter for The New York Times, who tells the stories of communities and landscapes most vulnerable to climate change. An award-winning foreign correspondent, she has reported on the effects of global warming from a Congo River ferry, a Himalayan glacier, the streets of Baghdad and Mumbai and many places in between. <br/><br/>The Symposium will then continue on Friday, March 1 and Saturday, March 2 inside the Rothko Chapel in the mornings and on the campus of the University of St. Thomas in the afternoons. Panel discussions, hands-on workshops and breakout sessions offered will work to educate, raise awareness and motivate both individual and collective action to reduce our carbon footprint. Topics included will be:<br/><br/>• Health and wellness<br/>• Community impact and environmental justice <br/>• Interfaith perspectives<br/>• Legislation and policy <br/>• Individual and company practices <br/>• Economic opportunities and implications <br/><br/>In addition to Somini Sengupta, the Chapel is excited to welcome the following national and regional leaders on the subject of climate change who will be participating in the symposium, several of whom helped in the symposium planning process and who are academics, energy business professionals and local environmental justice advocates:<br/><br/>• Dale Ross, Mayor of Georgetown, Texas<br/>• Amy Myers Jaffe, Director of Energy Security and Climate Change, Council on Foreign Relations<br/>• Nick Mullins, Coal Miner turned activist<br/>• Dr. Umair Shah, Executive Director, Harris County Public Health Department<br/>• Eve Mosher, artist and creator of the HighWaterLine Project<br/>• Lise Van Susteren, psychiatrist and mental health advocate focused on the psychological effects of climate change<br/>• Jim Blackburn, Co-Director, Severe Storm Prediction, Education, and Evacuation from Disaster (SPEED) Center<br/>• Mark Boling, Founder and CEO, 2C Energy, LLC<br/>• Elizabeth Love, Senior Program Officer, Health and Environmental Portfolios’ Houston Endowment Inc.<br/>• Juan Parras, Executive Director and Founder, Texas Environmental Justice Advocacy Services (t.e.j.a.s.) <br/><br/>With such a strong lineup of symposium participants confirmed and after the impact of our two previous symposia (on racial inequality and mass incarceration), the Rothko Chapel feels uniquely qualified and positioned to convene this important climate change initiative. The Program Committee, along with Chapel staff, will work diligently to ensure that the symposium and the programs surrounding it are actively promoted to our community of visitors and donors, academics, policy makers, and local, state and national media outlets, ensuring a successful kickoff to this urgent and critical call to action. Throughout the 2018-19 season several additional programs are being presented to complement the symposium and include:<br/>• '34th Annual Houston Interfaith Thanksgiving Service' focused on the environment with leaders and members of nine different faith communities across the city coming together to share prayers, readings, chants and reflections on the theme of “care for creation;”<br/>• 'Offsite “Toxic Tour” of Houston' presented in partnership with Texas Environmental Justice Advocacy Services (t.e.j.a.s.); <br/>• 'Dancing on Thin Ice' performed by The Seldoms, a new dance theater work embodying the fragmented global conversation on climate change, presented in partnership with DiverseWorks; and<br/>• 'World Environment Day Observance' presented offsite at the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center.<br/><br/>These programs and the Spring 2019 Symposium will usher in the 'Rothko Chapel 2019-20 Óscar Romero Award,' taking place in the newly renovated Chapel in late winter/early spring, when we will honor three individuals whose spiritual, artistic and social justice efforts are effectively addressing climate change. The award, given biannually since 1986, helps support the work of courageous activists and leaders who are working, often outside of the limelight, to further human rights. Leading up to the awards ceremony, additional programming will highlight and delve deeper into the work of the honorees. With this multi-year focus on climate change, the Chapel’s ultimate goal is to connect participants to organizations that present opportunities for direct individual, communal and organizational action as we all work toward a more sustainable, green economy. <br/><br/>The overall budget for the 2019 Spring Symposium is anticipated to be approximately $55,000. This amount includes expenses related to speaker fees (honoraria, travel, lodging and meals), facility rental, AV and related services, printing and mailing, and meals for symposium attendees. Our goal is to have a minimal cost registration fee to ensure diverse participation including students from area colleges and universities. Support from the Dudley T. Dougherty Foundation will assist us in meeting these goals and offering a quality symposium that will enhance our collective knowledge and action in support of transforming the climate crisis for a better tomorrow.<br/> |
