Episode #51- Molly Kawahata

The Climbing Advocate

Our guest for April’s episode is alpinist and climate activist Molly Kawahata. You may recognize her name from The Scale of Hope, a Patagonia-sponsored film that came out last November. Leading up to the release of that film, Molly was becoming a household name in the climate movement. Pulling on human psychology and neuroscience, her approach to communicating climate action is arguably unprecedented, as she moves to make it more relatable to the everyday person. Molly’s experience as a climate advisor at the White House during the Obama administration spring boarded her into the path that she is currently on, and she hasn’t slowed down. A combination of working tirelessly as a climate advocate, Alaskan alpine climbing, and a long bout with a mental health disorder has brought her to where she is now. Tune in to hear more from Molly about how these experiences made her a fixture in the climate movement. 12:05- Patagonia's Film, The Scale of Hope 24:29- Molly's openness about her Bipolar 2 Disorder 37:50- Working at the White House 47:09- Reframing climate change communication 51:53- The science of hope 55:24- Changing the narrative towards public health 1:03:16- The Inflation Reduction Act & systemic change 1:07:02- Climate mitigation vs. adaptation 1:16:10- Molly's career & closing remarks Molly’s Instagram: @mollykawahata Scale of Hope film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrmKoU2Oe5I Environmental Voter Project: https://www.environmentalvoter.org/