Ideas worth spreading

Climate action needs new frontline leadership

1,801,813 views |

Ozawa Bineshi Albert |

TEDWomen 2021

• December 2021

We can't rely on those who created climate change to fix it, says climate justice organizer Ozawa Bineshi Albert. An Indigenous woman living in the heart of oil and gas country in the US, she's observed an alarming disconnect between empty promises made by corporations and the actual needs of communities on the ground. In this call for urgency and a shift in values, she advocates for climate policy to center frontline leaders and outlines some grassroots-led projects -- from water protection efforts in Minnesota to off-grid solar power in Arizona -- that have already sparked real change.

We can't rely on those who created climate change to fix it, says climate justice organizer Ozawa Bineshi Albert. An Indigenous woman living in the heart of oil and gas country in the US, she's observed an alarming disconnect between empty promises made by corporations and the actual needs of communities on the ground. In this call for urgency and a shift in values, she advocates for climate policy to center frontline leaders and outlines some grassroots-led projects -- from water protection efforts in Minnesota to off-grid solar power in Arizona -- that have already sparked real change.

This talk was presented at an official TED conference. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.

Donate to Climate Justice Alliance and their 70+ members who are making "Just Transition" real on the ground.

Learn more about why we must "Build Back Fossil Free" and make your voice heard.

Explore "A Peoples' Orientation to a Regenerative Economy", a tool for communities and policy makers to engage in transitioning away from dig, burn and dump economies.

About the speaker

Ozawa Bineshi Albert

Ozawa Bineshi Albert

Climate justice organizer

See speaker profile

For more than 30 years, Ozawa Bineshi Albert has worked on environmental justice and Indigenous rights.

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This talk was presented at an official TED conference. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.

Donate to Climate Justice Alliance and their 70+ members who are making "Just Transition" real on the ground.

Learn more about why we must "Build Back Fossil Free" and make your voice heard.

Explore "A Peoples' Orientation to a Regenerative Economy", a tool for communities and policy makers to engage in transitioning away from dig, burn and dump economies.