[Event Recap] Finding Our Way Through Climate Uncertainty with Katharine K. Wilkinson
On April 14th, the School of International Service hosted a thoughtful conversation with Dr. Katharine K. Wilkinson regarding her forthcoming book, Climate Wayfinding. Dr. Wilkinson shared a compassionate approach to navigating the “climate ache” of an uncertain future, suggesting that we find our way by shifting our orientation from a desire to “fix” the world toward a commitment to love it. This process of wayfinding involves a balance of looking inward with care and outward with curiosity, treating each person as a “node of possibility” within their metaphorical ecosystem. By grounding our actions in this synthesis of personal reflection and community connection, we can begin to chart a course from doubt toward collective healing.
During the panel discussion, several interesting questions were raised, particularly concerning how to support students entering climate fields while carrying the weight of firsthand disaster trauma or persistent climate anxiety. Moderated by Dr. Lauren Carruth, this portion of the session explored Dr. Wilkinson’s emphasis on “retrofitting” our movements with an infrastructure of emotional support and creating small, peer-led spaces for processing these experiences. Rather than allowing the challenges of the world to feel unbearable, she encouraged acknowledging the difficulty honestly before building inclusive environments that invite everyone—including those who have previously felt excluded—into a shared journey of courage and action.
