Climate Change Coaching (w/ Charly Cox)
Explicit content warning
04/09/24 • 42 min
“My starting point is less about agitating for change and more about empowering people to believe that they can be actors in their own lives. We fundamentally believe that everyone has a stake in climate change, that everyone can make, can affect change around it.”
Check out the episode page for the transcript and a full list of the resources mentioned in this episode: https://widerroots.com/6
Today's episode features Charly Cox, author of the book "Climate Change Coaching."
In this conversation, Charly's approach to holding a systemic view stands out. She not only believes in our client's ability to change but also in the system's ability to change. Her coaching helps clients see their situation from this broader perspective. Charly shares her story about realizing that coaches don't have to be "neutral" and can bring their own values forward in their work.
Some background on Charly Cox and her work: She founded an organization called The Climate Change Coaches, which focuses on empowering climate leaders with coaching skills. Their climate coaching approach helps leaders and individuals find their unique role in addressing the climate crisis. It motivates them to take action and enact behavior change at the personal, organizational, and systemic levels.
Key moments
- 01:39 - Charly Cox's Journey to Climate Change Coaching
- 06:20 - Bridging Climate and Coaching
- 13:48 - The Unique Approach of Climate Change Coaching
- 20:26 - "Having an agenda" vs living your values as a coach
- 32:39 - Charly’s sources of nourishment
- 34:42 - Closing
Resources & Links
- The Climate Change Coaches (the organization Charly founded)
- Climate Change Coaching by Charly Cox (book)
- Terra.Do
- The Uninhabitable Earth by David Wallace-Wells (book)
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
- Joanna Macy
- Margaret Wheatley
- Eco-Dharma by David Loy (book)
- We Are The Great Turning (podcast with Jess Serrante)
- Climate Change Coaching Mastery course
- Green Transition Coach Course
Connect with Charly Cox
Follow the podcast
- WiderRoots.com - Join the newsletter for more resources on personal + systemic transformation
- @WiderRootsPod - Follow the podcast on Instagram to get a peek behind the scenes
- Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts to help others find this show
- Connect with Jeremy on his coaching website
I’d love to hear how this episode resonated with you or any suggestions for future topics/guests. You can email me at [email protected].
“My starting point is less about agitating for change and more about empowering people to believe that they can be actors in their own lives. We fundamentally believe that everyone has a stake in climate change, that everyone can make, can affect change around it.”
Check out the episode page for the transcript and a full list of the resources mentioned in this episode: https://widerroots.com/6
Today's episode features Charly Cox, author of the book "Climate Change Coaching."
In this conversation, Charly's approach to holding a systemic view stands out. She not only believes in our client's ability to change but also in the system's ability to change. Her coaching helps clients see their situation from this broader perspective. Charly shares her story about realizing that coaches don't have to be "neutral" and can bring their own values forward in their work.
Some background on Charly Cox and her work: She founded an organization called The Climate Change Coaches, which focuses on empowering climate leaders with coaching skills. Their climate coaching approach helps leaders and individuals find their unique role in addressing the climate crisis. It motivates them to take action and enact behavior change at the personal, organizational, and systemic levels.
Key moments
- 01:39 - Charly Cox's Journey to Climate Change Coaching
- 06:20 - Bridging Climate and Coaching
- 13:48 - The Unique Approach of Climate Change Coaching
- 20:26 - "Having an agenda" vs living your values as a coach
- 32:39 - Charly’s sources of nourishment
- 34:42 - Closing
Resources & Links
- The Climate Change Coaches (the organization Charly founded)
- Climate Change Coaching by Charly Cox (book)
- Terra.Do
- The Uninhabitable Earth by David Wallace-Wells (book)
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
- Joanna Macy
- Margaret Wheatley
- Eco-Dharma by David Loy (book)
- We Are The Great Turning (podcast with Jess Serrante)
- Climate Change Coaching Mastery course
- Green Transition Coach Course
Connect with Charly Cox
Follow the podcast
- WiderRoots.com - Join the newsletter for more resources on personal + systemic transformation
- @WiderRootsPod - Follow the podcast on Instagram to get a peek behind the scenes
- Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts to help others find this show
- Connect with Jeremy on his coaching website
I’d love to hear how this episode resonated with you or any suggestions for future topics/guests. You can email me at [email protected].
Previous Episode
Spiritually Grounded Activism (w/ Kazu Haga)
“Can we actually lead with fierceness and the vulnerability of saying, I'm not here because I hate you. I'm actually here because I love you. I'm here because I love the sanctity of life and beauty, and those things are being destroyed all over our ecosystem.”
Check out the episode page for the transcript and a full list of the resources mentioned in this episode: https://widerroots.com/5
Today’s episode is with Kazu Haga, a nonviolence trainer in the lineage of Dr. King, based in Oakland who's been involved in social change movements since he was 17. He leads trainings for youth, incarcerated populations, and activists. He's the author of Healing Resistance: A Radically Different Response to Harm.
In this conversation, Kazu and I explore how to bring more spiritually grounded practice into our social change movements. I appreciated his invitation for us to think about how we can bring an energy of opening things up, even if outwardly we're doing direct actions that are shutting things down. He also shares his perspective that much of the injustice we witness is actually a manifestation of unhealed wounds, both at the individual level and the societal level. And I particularly loved the part of this conversation where we talked about leading from heartbreak and vulnerability as a way to create connection, especially during conflict.
Key moments
- 03:24 - Kazu's spiritual lineage and politicization through nonviolence
- 07:51 - Opening things up spiritually while shutting them down tactically
- 14:38 - Exploring trauma healing as a modality for social change
- 22:43 - The necessity of deep practice in movements
- 26:07 - Allowing messiness as we learn to hold conflict
- 33:56 - Breaking up with "cancel culture" and creating deep belonging
- 37:51 - We need skills to not only name harm, but repair it
- 46:45 - Embracing complexity over black-and-white thinking
- 50:08 - Anekāntavāda: Holding multiple truths
- 53:06 - Finding beauty in challenging times
- 54:55 - Nourishment: Hospicing Modernity & unplugged time
Resources & Links
- Healing Resistance (book by Kazu Haga)
- Fierce Vulnerability (upcoming book by Kazu Haga, scheduled for early 2025)
- A Force More Powerful (documentary about nonviolent movements)
- Ayni Institute
- Building Belonging (organization)
- Prentice Hemphill
- Hospicing Modernity (book)
- Movement Generation
- Thich Nhat Hanh
- Anekāntavāda: Holding multiple truths (principle form Jainism)
- Canticle Farm (community in Oakland)
Connect with Kazu
- KazuHaga.com (join his email list)
Other episodes you might like
Follow the podcast
- WiderRoots.com - Join the newsletter for more resources on personal + systemic transformation
- @WiderRootsPod - Follow the podcast on Instagram to get a peek behind the scenes
- Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts to help others find this show.
- Connect with Jeremy on
Next Episode
Heartbreak, Hope, & The Wisdom of Joanna Macy (w/ Jess Serrante)
“Uncertainty inherently means that possibility exists. Possibility for all sorts of things. For the darkest fantasies and fears that I have and for the most beautiful. And my life is a vote in the direction of a possibility, and I'm going to give myself to the one I want.”
Check out the episode page for the transcript and the full list of the resources mentioned in this episode: https://widerroots.com/7
In this conversation with Jess Serrante, we dive into the teachings of Joanna Macy and explore how they can support us in our work for social change. I was particularly moved by our discussion on the role of heartbreak in activism and coaching. We asked, what if more healing modalities and spiritual paths helped us get in touch with our pain for the world as a catalyst for discovering our unique contribution? Jess shares powerful insights from her new podcast, "We Are The Great Turning," (including previews of unreleased episodes!)
We also grapple with the question of hope in the face of overwhelming challenges like climate change. When despair creeps in, what can we draw upon that's more stable than the fluctuations of hope? Throughout our conversation, we touch on the importance of grounding our activism in our love for the world, and how Joanna's teachings can help us do that.
Jess Serrante is a dear friend of mine and a longtime climate activist who has worked with groups like Greenpeace, Rainforest Action Network, and Sunrise Movement. She’s a coach, facilitator, and now a podcaster!
Subscribe to We Are The Great Turning on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Key moments
- 03:02 - The dream Joanna & Jess had for this project
- 15:39 - Heartbreak and honoring our pain for the world
- 23:59 - Clip from Joanna Macy: What if my pain for the world overwhelms me?
- 28:58 - Clip from Joanna Macy: Our pain is sacred
- 35:34 - Heartbreak guiding us to our calling
- 44:25 - Examining Hope (and other places to find our motivation)
- 53:36 - Clip from Joanna Macy: Whistling in the dark to cheer ourselves up
- 1:02:51 - Jess' sources of nourishment
- 1:04:46 - Closing
Resources & Links
- We Are The Great Turning Podcast website
- Active Hope by Joanna Macy (book)
- The Work That Reconnects
- Video of Joanna Macy: “The knife edge of uncertainty”
- Parable of The Sower by Octavia Butler (book)
- Rebecca Solnit quote: “Hope is not a lottery ticket you can sit on the sofa and clutch, feeling lucky. It is an axe you break down doors with in an emergency"
Connect with Jess
- Coaching website: JessSerrante.com
- Instagram: @jess_serrante
Follow Wider Roots
- WiderRoots.com - Join the newsletter for more resources on personal + systemic transformation
Wider Roots - Climate Change Coaching (w/ Charly Cox)
Transcript
My start point is less agitating for change and more empowering people to believe that they can be actors in their own lives. And I think that's probably why The Climate Change Coaches is the way it is. We fundamentally believe that everyone has a stake in climate change, that everyone can make, can affect change around it.
Jeremy BlanchardWelcome to the Wider Roots podcast, a show about how we can us
If you like this episode you’ll love
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