For October we caught up with Jordan Browning at Bowdoin College in Maine to talk about high school activism, rising sea levels and the business side of greenhouse gases.

“Perhaps the biggest reason behind my initial interest in environmental matters was my upbringing. I grew up in Los Angeles, a city that many recognize for its connection with Hollywood, as well as for its smog and urban sprawl. As I grew older and being fortunate enough to participate in outdoor activities like camping and canoeing, I began to explore the relationship between Los Angeles’ urban and natural environments. It seemed to me as if the city had fallen out of a delicate equilibrium; society was encroaching upon the natural world in its unmitigated development. So in response, my surfing friend and I created S.E.A. Club (Students for Environmental Action) on our high school campus. As I reflect now, the club was simple, though genuine, in its mission. We informed our fellow students about over-fishing and air pollution, organized beach clean ups, and participated in protests. As far as I am concerned, we were definitely the coolest club on campus.

When I got to college, I continued my studies about the environment, with an emphasis on the perspectives of sociology and political philosophy. By the time my freshman year had concluded, I had a much better idea of the scope of the problems that faced society—they are enormous. And embracing an emerging wanderlust and a percolating sense of social outrage, I embarked on an adventure across the Pacific. I spent my freshman summer of college living and working on the island of Kosrae in the Federated States of Micronesia. I worked at the only environmental NGO on the island, Kosrae Conservation Organization. What amazed me about my experience there was twofold: its pristine natural beauty and the reluctance of the local population to take the necessary steps to preserve it. At this present moment, the Federated States of Micronesia is actually one of the few countries in the world already experiencing the rising sea levels as a result of climate change, yet they are hardly responsible for our carbon saturated atmosphere. For me, the Federated States of Micronesia represents a microcosm of our environmental dilemma; that is, a fundamental lack of consciousness has caused us to overlook the intrinsic beauty and importance of our natural world.

This past summer I took a different approach to environmental activism, one that would seem to be on the other side of the spectrum from NGO work in Micronesia. I worked in Chicago at the Chicago Climate Exchange. They are one of the few companies in North America participating in the trading of greenhouse gases as derivatives. It is a very exciting industry with great potential to facilitate large-scale social change I encourage everyone to check out their website at http://www.theccx.com.

At the moment, I am back at college, completing my senior year. My big project for the year is a trip to a rural community in Puerto Rico. My friend and I are trying to organize it for a group of undergraduates in order to inform them about how organic agricultural can be more than just food production, and in this context how it can be a valuable tool for community cohesion. I am very excited.

We do not need to change our lifestyles radically to prevent the worst that climate change has to offer. But what we do need to do is reexamine how we live our lives and understand that in many ways we are excessive and careless. A great exercise to stimulate greater consciousness in this area is tracking your consumption for a 36 to 48 hour period.

Track everything: your energy use, your carbon footprint (how much you travel), and, in my opinion, the most important, your water use (you will be surprised!). We are consumers, and this postmodern, globalized world that we inhabit only encourages us to consume more and more. In many ways, we have very little control. But that is not to say, we are helpless cast out in a horizonless world. We are able to make choices and we must be aware of what we are consuming in order to minimize excessive consumption as well as to influence companies, which everyday are becoming greener.”