Fall 2024 13 PRESIDENT Q + A PERSPECTIVES BILL RIPPLE, PH.D. ’84 Distinguished professor, College of Forestry Hope with passive waiting is not enough. The antidote to despair is action. In my case, that includes conducting climaterelated research, engaging in local and global climate initiatives and working toward policy change. We made The Scientist’s Warning (bit. ly/scientistswarning) — produced by OSU — to advocate for turning scientific knowledge into action. Connecting with like minded individuals and participating in collective climate efforts can empower individuals to create a hopeful mindset for the future. JEREMY HOFFMAN, PH.D. ’16 Director of Climate Justice and Impact at Groundwork USA I ask myself: Where can I act on climate change in my own backyard, in my neighborhood and in my larger community? I can grow native plants on my balcony and reduce the amount that I drive. I can work with my neighbors to build pocket parks and advocate for better transportation options. And I can push for our city council to invest in climate solutions in frontline neighborhoods. HANNAH GOSNELL Professor, College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences What transforms my anxiety about the future into equanimity is the concept of Active Hope, which is something we do rather than have. It involves being clear about what we hope for and the role we can play in realizing it. As ecophilosopher Joanna Macy counsels, acting for the healing of the world makes the mess we’re in easier to face, and our lives become more meaningful and satisfying. FAISAL OSMAN, ’24 Recent graduate in public policy I stay hopeful about making a difference with climate change by taking meaningful action, no matter how small — such as carpooling with my friends or utilizing Corvallis’ free bus system. Everyone’s effort, combined with global movements and policy changes, contributes to a sustainable and just future. We have the opportunity to build a more equitable, resilient community. By working together, we can target inequities as part of ensuring a healthier planet for everyone in the future. OSMAN: TAYAA ETZELL/BEAVER’S DIGEST; GOSNELL: JONATHAN ROBINSON; RIPPLE: COURTESY OF WILLIAM RIPPLE; HOFFMAN: GROUNDWORK USA THE ANTIDOTE TO DESPAIR Q: HOW DO YOU — AND HOW CAN WE — STAY HOPEFUL ABOUT MAKING A DIFFERENCE WITH A SHIFTING CLIMATE? to do that, and for very good reasons. Universities have a very particular role that no other institution has in our society.We want the collision of ideas, we want uncomfortable conversations — and from these collisions, for new ideas and approaches to emerge. If you don’t allow that to happen, then I think the university isn’t fulfilling its mission. As a land-grant university, we are a big mixture of urban and rural, and that brings together very different political viewpoints, cultural values and histories — all valid because they come out of the lived experiences of human beings. It’s a particularly rich mixture of ideas, and it is ripe for productive collisions. If those can be managed carefully, if we allow ourselves to speak and to listen, then what can come out of it can be truly valuable. That’s the thing that we’re trying to preserve. I think what our alumni should know is that we enter into these debates, into this time of contention, with a framing that reaffirms our principles as a university. We’ve been thinking deeply in terms of how we should respond to huge world events, huge events happening in our own country. We must reaffirm our most fundamental principles, which are to be a beacon of free speech, academic freedom and free expression, and to leave the arena of debate open so that everyone can speak and be heard. What makes you hopeful? It’s commencement season now, and if there’s anything that makes me hopeful, it’s got to be commencement. I mean, just the idea that a young person comes into this institution at 18 years old and then leaves knowing things, having achieved adulthood, achieved competency, achieved maturity. They go out into the world and become creative builders of the future. If there’s no hope in that, then there’s no hope anywhere. THIS INTERVIEW HAS BEEN EDITED FOR CLARITY AND LENGTH.
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