2024 was a year of everyday miracles. We continued our year-long campaign to raise visibility for Dear Human at the Edge of Time: Poems on Climate Change in the United States in conjunction with the rollout of the Fifth National Climate Assessment.
In January, we received a letter from President Biden commending us on the release of the anthology alongside the NCA5, and throughout the year, we worked with the following organizations to promote Dear Human: Elizabeth River Project and Ryan Resilience Lab which hosted our East Coast book launch and reception; the Elizabeth River Trail Foundation which organized a mindfulness walk and hung climate-inspired poetry on their Wishing Tree; UC Berkeley’s Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research, Environmental Arts and Humanities Initiative, Center for Interdisciplinary Critical Inquiry, and Berkeley Climate Change Network which hosted the “Dear Human at Future’s Edge: Science, Creativity and Climate Futures” conference to explore the intersection of climate science, art and ecopoetry; Skyline College which hosted a series of “Dear Human Earth Week” events culminating with a campus clean-up and crafting of the “Dear Human, Dear Earth” community poem; the American Geophysical Union (AGU) which released the “Dear Human” video on Earth Day in collaboration with Wick Poetry Center, Nurture Nature Center, WE ACT, and EarthDay.org to explore our “profound connection to the Earth and the responsibility we bear as stewards of its delicate ecosystems”; and San Francisco Public Library which hosted a Dear Human reading and book giveaway event as part of the “Everybody’s Climate” initiative. The anthology was also included in The Climate Museum’s 2024 reading list and South San Francisco Public Library’s National Poetry Month reading list, as well as ABS-CBN’s special feature on Filipino Americans and climate action. We are incredibly grateful for these partnerships as well as to Burlingame Public Library, Mechanics’ Institute, New England Poetry Club, The Nueva School, Philippine American Artists and Writers, and Soul Bone Literary Festival, for hosting events that brought the intention of the anthology to a wider audience.
In July, we announced a call for submissions for The Nature of Our Times: Poems on America’s Lands, Waters, Wildlife, and Other Natural Wonders, to be edited by Luisa A. Igloria, Aileen Cassinetto & David Hassler in partnership with Poets for Science/Wick Poetry Center as a companion anthology to our nation’s first ever National Nature Assessment. The online gallery currently features over 1,000 poems that speak to the immense value of nature in the United States and what it means to co-exist in it. The editors will begin selecting poems in February 2025 to include in a print anthology with target release in Fall 2025, when the First National Nature Assessment (NNA1) draft is also scheduled for release.
2024 was not an easy year, but it was grace-filled and fueled by many wonders. Every person we’ve ever worked with was an inspiration, and we thank them for expanding the narrative in our more-than-human world. As we prepare for the coming year, may we remember what sustains us and the courage that brought us this far. May 2025 find us hopeful, joyful, and forever grateful.
Not unto us, but to God always be the glory.
