Interview with Leeannah McNew, Social Media & Communications Coordinator
- Where are you from and what’s your background?
I grew up in Bozeman, Montana and Baltimore, Maryland, so I got the best of both worlds in a sense. I went to Temple University for my Bachelors in Advertising with an Art Direction concentration. After I graduated, I interned for Global Philadelphia Association and worked on their Sustainable Development Goals Public Art Project, that brings the 17 SDGs to life through murals around Philadelphia, as the designer, and then, worked for the World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia as their Digital and Design Coordinator.
- How long have you been with the Council?
I have been at the Council for a little over 5 months now.
- Why did you choose to come work for the Council?
I’ve always been passionate about making a difference and working with people/communities, so coming to work for the Council seemed like the perfect place where I could expand and use my skills while fighting the good fight and helping communities.
- What’s your expertise you bring to the Council? How do you use it to fight for a cleaner environment?
I am a graphic designer, communicator, storyteller, and videographer. I use my skills to help amplify the voices of community members, provide information in a creative way, and reshape the climate crisis in a way that is understandable for everyone.
- How can others use their social media to promote climate action?
The best thing that you can do through social media is to promote climate action by talking about it. Share actions, information, resources, quotes, etc., but include it in your discourse on social media. If we don’t talk about the climate crisis and how it is affecting us, it’ll continue to go under the radar and not be seen as an emergency. This could look like sharing how nature has changed around you over the years, if you’re experiencing climate anxiety and what that feels/looks like, what your hopes for the situation/our society are, how you take action, how it will affect you, etc. This is a heavy, existential topic, but it is so important we begin to bring it into casual and online discourse on social media.
6. What’s the biggest challenge to getting people offline and taking action in the real world?
People seem to think posting an infographic, resource, or quote is enough when it’s just one part of what you can do to fight the climate crisis. The biggest thing one can do is taking the energy you’re putting online offline and bring it into your life. One way I do this is setting a goal each week of something I want to do to take action. It could be anything from not eating meat, walking and biking more to get around, buying produce/groceries locally, not ordering takeout, reading/learning something new about the climate crisis, etc. Start with something small and attainable then work up to a bigger challenge. Remember, the fossil fuel industry wants you to believe that this is your responsibility and it’s too big to solve. It is not your sole responsibility; however, there are things we can all do to alleviate the situation. Earth Hero, an app to fight climate change, is a great tool for different action items and a way to track and cut your emissions.
7. Besides following the @CleanAirCouncil social accounts, who are some other groups or environmental activists you like and follow?
PennFuture (@pennfuture), Climate Action PA (@climateactionpa), GASP (@gasppgh), PennEnvironment (@pennenvironment), FracTracker (@fractracker), Sunrise Movement PA (@sunrisemovementpa), and the Green Party of Pennsylvania (@pagreenparty) are all great accounts to follow for local and state wide climate initiatives, activism, stories, and actions.
EarthJustice (@earthjustice), Sierra Club (@sierraclub), Future Earth (@futureearth), Fridays For Future (@fridaysforfutureusa), Sunrise Movement (@sunrisemovement), and Extinction Rebellion (@extinctionrebellion) are all good accounts to follow for national climate updates.
Kendra Pierre-Louis, Peter Kalmus, Vic Barrett, Xiye Bastida, Dr. Jonathan Foley, Alaina Wood, Dr, Katherine Hayhoe, Dr. Genevieve Guenther, and Dr. Katherine Wilkinson are all activists and climate scientists that are doing great work and sounding the alarm.
