"Dealing with climate change and taking climate action takes everybody," said Cagle, an associate professor of writing, rhetoric, and digital studies at UK. "What we mean by that is not just every person, but also every field of expertise."
Cagle is also Director of the Kentucky Climate Consortium, a group she and other teachers and climate researchers created in 2018. The group facilitates monthly climate chats featuring experts from diverse fields. Their inaugural Symposium seeks to elevate those conversations to a wider community.
"While well over two-thirds of Americans are concerned about climate change, fewer than a third have had a conversation about it in the past two years," said Cagle, referencing 2023 findings from the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication.
"When we talk about climate change, we make sure that others don't feel alone. We help break through that perception that climate is a super polarized issue, because, frankly, it's not, and we have the data to demonstrate it."
Speaker topics range from agriculture and the bourbon industry to human rights, public health, and disaster preparedness. The six sessions will facilitate the sharing of both bold ideas and tried-and-true solutions.
For instance, Cagle said one climate impact Kentucky is feeling is the loss of soil and soil runoff due to increased rainfall frequency and intensity. There are established practices farms can implement to mitigate soil runoff, like planting cover crops and innovative edge-of-field practices; however, not all farmers know about these methods or find them financially accessible.
"If we can get the word out about these kinds of solutions, then we can start pressing for policy change and financial support at the government level," said Cagle. "We can also start building community among farmers who want to share what's worked for them with other farmers."
Cagle says the Symposium is intentionally designed to provide opportunities for people interested in climate science and climate justice to build connections.
"Every session is punctuated by structured networking opportunities, "said Cagle. "Opportunities for people to turn around to the person next to them, to go find a speaker that they really connected with in an earlier session, and have a structured conversation with them that will allow them to take the relationship out of the room once the symposium is done."
The Kentucky Climate Symposium will be held Thursday, September 26 in the Harris Ballroom of the Gatton Student Center. The event is open to the public, but registration is required and spots are limited.