In this episode of Quakers Today, co-hosts Peterson Toscano (he/him) and Miche McCall (they/them) explore how queer Quakers respond to climate change with joy, creativity, and radical inclusion. The episode features Damon Motz-Storey and Lina Blount, who delve into the intersection of queerness, spirituality, and climate activism. Miche and Peterson also review two books that provide fresh perspectives on environmentalism and queer ecology.

Featured Segments:

Queer Quaker Responses to Climate Change with Damon Motz-Storey and Lina Blount

Damon Motz-Storey (they/them), a genderqueer Quaker, discusses the importance of radical joy, play, and community in climate work: “We’re going to save the earth, and we’re going to do it in six-inch heels and full makeup.”

Damon Motz-Storey became the Chapter Director of the Oregon Chapter of the Sierra Club in 2023. They have a wealth of experience leading environmental and climate justice campaigns in the Pacific Northwest. Their achievements include blocking major new coal, oil, and gas expansions, pioneering the Portland Clean Energy Fund initiative, and contributing to Oregon’s 2021 state legislation for low-income utility bill discounts, home energy retrofits, and a commitment to 100% clean electricity by 2040. Damon also worked with the Coalition of Communities of Color, managing communications for Portland’s successful 2022 city government reform measure and organizing record-breaking fundraising events to support racial justice efforts. They live in East Portland near Powell Butte and enjoys hiking, cycling, weightlifting, cooking, and performing in drag.

Lina Blount highlights the role of interconnectedness and reciprocity in climate justice:
“Our liberation is bound up in each other’s, especially in climate work, because it’s how ecosystems work.”

Lina Blount is an organizer, trainer, and nonviolent action strategist who has been involved in environmental justice campaigns in the Philadelphia area for over fifteen years. She currently serves as the Director of Strategy and Partnerships with the Earth Quaker Action Team. Lina has previously worked with the Divestment Student Network and has extensive experience as a canvas director and anti-fracking organizer in Pennsylvania. She identifies as a Quaker and considers the Earth Quaker Action Team, her primary spiritual community.

Book Review: Queer Ecologies and Sustainable Futures
Books Reviewed:

• Deviant Hollers: Queering Appalachian Ecologies for a Sustainable Future
  Peterson and Miche review this collection of essays edited by Zane McNeil and Rebecca Scott, which critiques environmental exploitation and maps alternative futures through queer perspectives.
• Smarter Planet or Wiser Earth? by Gray Cox
  Miche introduces this book, published by the Quaker Institute for the Future, which examines the ethical implications of smart technology and its role in building a sustainable global community. Read Brad Gibson’s Friends Journal review.

Quotes:

• “It is our superpower to insist upon joy, even in a world insistent on pushing us back into the closet.” – Damon Motz-Storey
• “Chosen family and ecosystems both offer models of connection that are life-giving and generative.” – Lina Blount
• “We can laugh and dance through climate action because that’s how we’ll keep going.” – Damon Motz-Storey
• “Ecosystems don’t just work locally. There’s this incredible web of interconnection.” – Lina Blount

Announcing Season Four:

After a short break, Quakers Today will return to producing regular programs on November 12, 2024. Look out for extra features and announcements in October that will appear in your podcast feed. 

 

Question of the Month: We want to hear from you!

Here is a question for you: What novel, film, or television series changed your relationship with the world? The world of fiction can alter the way we see ourselves, each other, the natural world, the political order, history, and society. What work of fiction shifted your perspective or altered your worldview? 

Leave a voice memo or text with your name and the town where you live. The Quakers Today number is 317-QUAKERS. +1 if calling from outside the U.S. You can also answer on any of our social media pages: Instagram, X, or TikTok. 

 

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Transcript for Queer Quaker Responses to Climate Change:

Queer Quakers Concerned about Climate 

SPEAKERS

Peterson Toscano, Miche McCall, Damon Motz-Storey, Lina Blount

Miche McCall  00:00

In this episode of Quakers Today, we ask, “What are queer Quaker responses to climate change?” In a world that is dangerously changing, what do Quakers who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, gender, non-binary, and queer bring to the table? 

Peterson Toscano  00:18

What fresh approaches and perspectives do LGBTQ plus Quakers have to offer the climate movement?

Miche McCall  00:26

And what vital roles do drag performances and other art forms play as we communicate and build community? 

Peterson Toscano  00:33

We feature two queer Quakers concerned about climate change. That’s a mouthful. I am Peterson Toscano

Miche McCall  00:41

And I, Miche McCall. 

Peterson Toscano  00:43

This is season three, episode six of the Quakers Today podcast, a project of Friends Publishing Corporation. 

Miche McCall  00:50

This season of Quakers Today is sponsored by the American Friends Service Committee. 

Miche McCall  00:57

There are many ways to approach huge, multifaceted, and serious issues like climate change.

Peterson Toscano  01:04

When people show up with their whole selves, they bring diverse experiences, insights, and perspectives vital for holistic, practical, and just responses to a crisis.

Miche McCall  01:16

There’s value in looking through multiple lenses of race, class, ability, nationality, and more. Peterson and I come to climate change as queer Quakers.

Peterson Toscano  01:27

I am an older, cisgender, white gay man who volunteers with the Red Cross and Citizens Climate Lobby. Since 2014, I have spoken out about climate-related issues through podcasts, short films, workshops, and performances.

Miche McCall  01:46

And I’m a Gen Z, white, queer person who works at Quaker Earthcare Witness. I’ve spent the summer doing non-violent direct action outside of Citibank, sometimes dressed as an orca or Chappell Roan to demand that Wall Street stop financing fossil fuels.

Peterson Toscano  02:02

I think it’s fair to say, Miche, that we are both obsessed with and curious about climate change.

Miche McCall  02:06

Definitely! And Peterson, we are not the only ones. 

Damon Motz-Storey  02:13

There are a few different identities that matter a lot to me. One of them is being a queer human and a genderqueer, non-binary person. Gender, being, you know, a lot more complicated than just what was assigned to me at birth. Being born and raised  Quaker is a big part of my identity and comes up quite a lot in work and professional settings. There are a lot of times when that calm, steady listening presence that Quakerism really emphasizes helps a lot in the nonprofit world and helps me to be a good, active listener in reaching consensus with groups of people.

Peterson Toscano  02:45

That’s Damon Motz-Storey. Damon uses they/them pronouns, and their queer Quaker approaches to climate change are grounded in justice, love, and play.

Damon Motz-Storey  02:57

A queer Quaker response to climate change is a response that is realistic and grounded and knows that the world that we have been given is a deeply unfair one, and yet we can’t control that. We cannot control what has happened. I think there’s a sort of a radical acceptance over the fact that we are in this moment here together, and all we have are each other, and that’s our greatest gift, our greatest strength. To me, the Quaker part of that response honors and uplifts every single person who understands that every person has something valuable and beautiful to contribute, not just to the world and to, you know, just the way that we interact with each other, but also to the solution to climate change and the most terrifying parts of it, we each have one piece of the key, and together we can put that key together. And the queer part of it helps to ground myself in knowing that those solutions may come from unexpected places. Another huge part of it is just joy and exuberance, silliness, understanding that we can laugh in a very scary, harsh time, and that actually we should laugh because that is how we actually are going to keep going, that powers us, that fuels us. It is our superpower to be able to be joyful and to insist upon pleasure, even in a world that is so insistent upon pushing us back into the closet or out of sight. And we can instead stand up and say, No, we’re going to save the Earth, and we’re going to do it in six-inch heels and full makeup. It’s going to be fun, and we can do it.

Miche McCall  04:43

Lina Blount is the Director of Strategy and partnerships with the Earth Quaker Action Team, or EQAT.

Lina Blount  04:50

I am queer, polyamorous. I have dated people all along the gender spectrum. I myself am a cis woman. I use she/her pronouns. I have a rebellion against just some of the labels in general.

Lina Blount  05:05

What is a queer Quaker response to climate change? For me, it’s deeply about interconnectedness, listening deeply to that of God in ourselves, and being deeply curious about that of God in others, trusting others to be on their own path of discernment. I need everyone around me to be safe, to thrive and be myself, to create actions that transform these companies and these systems that are destroying the planet. It’s a loving life, giving creative process that fundamentally is about profound love, a sense of mutuality and reciprocity that is so beyond transaction. It just doesn’t resemble transactional relationships, extractive relationships, quote, unquote, like traditional relationships.

Peterson Toscano  06:16

Both Lina and Damon told us how their identities as queer Quakers shape their responses to climate change, let’s break down some of the themes that emerged from their answers.

Miche McCall  06:28

One of the most striking themes from both Lina and Damon is the emphasis on interconnectedness and the value of community. Lina talks about how climate justice work is deeply rooted in recognizing the interconnectedness of all beings and ecosystems.

Lina Blount  06:45

Queer folks have helped me think of interconnection and relationship in those ways, like both reciprocity and responsibility. Our, you know, liberation is bound up in each other’s, and I think that’s really powerful, especially in climate work, because it’s how ecosystems work. Ecosystems don’t work just locally. You know, there’s these incredible webs of interconnection. Ecosystems provide us so many models for like, the variety of connections that can be life-giving and generative. That metaphor feels really apt for like queer community and chosen family. For me, yeah, yeah, chosen family becomes this necessity when the family that you maybe were born into isn’t accepting, isn’t affirming, and so chosen family is about finding affirmation, finding folks who can see and love you for all that you are deeper and broader. Interconnection is definitely something I feel like I’ve learned through queer community, and feels really important in how I approach climate justice organizing, 

Peterson Toscano  08:03

Damon explains how being genderqueer and non-binary has shaped their understanding of complexity within the climate movement. 

Damon Motz-Storey  08:10

Being non-binary myself and understanding that gender is a lot more complicated than an either-or predisposes me to understand that there are all kinds of things in the climate world that are not just one thing. Let’s look at buses, public infrastructure, and public transit. We’ve had this around for so long. It doesn’t seem like it would be an incredible climate solution, but it absolutely is. We already have the technology to get people where they need to go to work and to school and the doctor’s appointments without contributing to the climate crisis, without polluting on a big, major scale. If the bus is running well and reliably, it does all kinds of other amazing things for society. It is one of the fastest routes out of poverty if you’re able to get to your job affordably and quickly.

Miche McCall  09:00

Lina and Damon emphasize the creativity and love central to their climate work. For Lena, it’s about a loving life-giving process that drives her to transform harmful systems into ones that nurture life.

Lina Blount  09:16

Trying to find solutions or alternatives to harmful systems is a deeply creative thing and requires trial and error and requires kind of sense of agency and co-responsibility for creation. So that’s a thing that feels really related to how queer community approaches relationships, how queer elders have taught me about how they’ve been accountable to each other, the types of structures they’ve created.

Peterson Toscano  09:49

Damon brings a sense of joy and playfulness into their response. They remind us that we can still find power joy, and exuberance in the face of terrifying realities.

Miche McCall  10:01

Damon uses drag performance as a way to process big feelings about climate change and connect with people on a whole different level.

Damon Motz-Storey  10:10

Desdemona Lisa, I like to say that she’s she’s a work of art and a piece of work. One of my first drag performances as Desdemona Lisa, I took a Ziploc gallon bag and filled it with ice. I balanced it just so in between the dress I was wearing and kind of on top of the back of my hips so that I could have a performance moment where the ice literally calved off of my ass in order to symbolize the melting of the glaciers and the calving of polar ice caps. It got some big laughs out of the audience. 

Damon Motz-Storey  10:45

It’s not me making fun of women, right? That’s what’s very important for me to clarify if folks are not familiar with drag. 

Damon Motz-Storey  10:52

I can’t stop thinking about some of this stuff sometimes. And so there’s ways in which making a drag performance out of some of my climate anxiety or big feelings about climate is a way to sort of like work through and process some of those emotions, and it’s a way to actually talk about those feelings in a way that is perhaps a little bit different and a little bit more of an entry point for some folks.

Peterson Toscano  11:19

Beyond joy and creativity, Lina and Damon recognize the importance of inclusivity and honoring diverse perspectives.

Damon Motz-Storey  11:29

Climate change becomes an existential threat to some and an inconvenience to others. In Oregon, roughly 40% of all homeless youth identify as LGBTQ; we should not be surprised as to the reasons why there you have a huge demographic of folks that have very few options to shelter when there’s extreme weather when there’s a heat wave when there’s an ice storm, these can be life or death moments for people living outside and on the streets.

Peterson Toscano  11:57

Lena trusts others to be on their own path of discernment, believing that everyone has a role in creating actions that transform the world.

Lina Blount  12:07

But yeah, I mean, my Quaker faith calls me to sit and grapple with what is mine to do. What does spirit call me to do? What of God in me needs to be of service in the world? I think it transforms how we act together.

Miche McCall  12:25

Together Lina and Damon paint a picture of a queer Quaker response to climate change that is grounded in love, creativity, community, and joy. It’s a response that challenges us to embrace interconnectedness, find strength in our relationships, and transform the world with our unique gifts that each person brings.

Peterson Toscano  12:48

And as we’ve heard, it’s a response that’s as much about committed action as it is about celebrating who we are, full makeup and all

Miche McCall  12:57

absolutely, Peterson, this blend of deep love, radical acceptance, and joyful defiance is what makes their queer Quaker responses to climate change so powerful and so necessary.

Peterson Toscano  13:11

This has been a very, very rich question for me to consider. It’s a query I’ve actually considered for the past 10 years, “What is a queer response to climate change?” Going into a crisis like climate change with a query can be really useful in getting deeper understanding and discernment. And for me, you know, being queer and being Quaker, these are two big parts of my identity, but I think it extends to all kinds of identities, if you’re Catholic, if you’re a person with a particular disability, if you have a child that’s on the spectrum, all of these different perspectives are essential to tease out and to explore and to investigate. How does climate change interact with those, and what do we bring that specific to help in pursuing solutions?

Miche McCall  14:02

That’s great. We must recognize, though, that this is the beginning of a much larger conversation with more diverse voices. Here are some resources for you. 

Peterson Toscano  14:13

Yeah, a few years back, I produced an episode for Citizens Climate radio. It’s called, What are LGBTQ plus responses to climate change? In it, I feature two Americans, the queer researcher Leo Goldsmith, along with Isaias Hernandez, who is better known as queer brown vegan. And I also spoke with the queer South African economist Nokanda Maseko. They discuss the unique challenges and contributions of LGBTQ-plus people in the face of climate change.

Miche McCall  14:48

The UCLA School of Law Williams Institute published the report Climate Change Risk for LGBT people in the United States. It offers a detailed analysis of how. While climate change disproportionately affects the LGBTQ-plus community. 

Peterson Toscano  15:05

And definitely check out, Can’t Stop Change: Queer Climate Stories from the Florida Front Lines. It’s a documentary by queers for climate justice. This film highlights the disparities faced by queer communities and the work being done to counteract them.

Miche McCall  15:21

Find links to these resources and more at quakerstoday.org 

Before we wrap up today’s episode, Peterson and I want to share a couple of books that tie into our discussion on queer Quaker responses to climate change.

Peterson Toscano  15:37

I’ve been reading a powerful new collection called Deviant Hollers, Queering Appalachian Ecologies for a Sustainable Future. Zane McNeill and Rebecca Scott edited it. This book brings together essays from queer thinkers and activists who are exploring the environmental destruction through the lens of queer ecologies. It’s not just about critiquing the exploitation of the land in the United States. It’s about mapping out alternative futures that embrace critical queer perspectives. 

Miche McCall  16:11

Deviant Hollers connects with what we’ve been discussing today, how marginalized voices, particularly queer voices, can offer new possibilities for a sustainable future. The book’s focus on queer critiques and the status of Appalachia as a settler colony provides a much needed perspective that is often overlooked in mainstream environmentalism. 

Peterson Toscano  16:33

Exactly Miche. It’s a collection that critiques and imagines new ways of living and interacting with the environment, which is absolutely vital as we think about sustainable futures.

Miche McCall  16:44

Yeah, I want to tell you about Smarter Planet, or Wiser Earth by Gray Cox. It is published by the Quaker Institute for the Future.

Peterson Toscano  16:53

Wait, there’s a Quaker Institute for the Future. Oh my gosh, that’s amazing.

Miche McCall  16:59

Yeah, they publish a lot of books, and it’s kind of part of our thinking about this podcast, of making sure that Quakers are thinking about and adapting to new technologies. It’s awesome. This book couldn’t be more relevant. Cox tackles the complex relationship between technology, particularly artificial intelligence, and the need for a more just and sustainable global community. He argues that while smart technology is often used to maximize profit and power, we should instead aim for a wiser approach, one that incorporates ethical considerations, collaborative dialog and diverse perspectives.

Peterson Toscano  17:39

Yeah, that definitely resonates with the Quaker testimonies of community and stewardship.

Miche McCall  17:44

Absolutely, and Cox makes a compelling case for moving away from monological reasoning. This is when one perspective dominates. Instead, Cox advocates for the Rainbow Rule, “Do unto others as they would have you do unto them.” It’s about understanding and incorporating the needs and perspectives of others. This ties back to what we’ve been thinking about in terms of inclusivity and interconnectedness in the queer Quaker response to climate change. We have links to these books and more in our show notes at quakerstoday.org 

Peterson Toscano  18:19

Thank you for joining us for this different episode of Quakers today. Quakers Today is written and produced by me, Peterson Toscano,

Miche McCall  18:32

and me, Miche McCall. Music On today’s show comes from Epidemic Sound. 

Lina Blount  18:38

We want to take this moment to give a big thank you to the American Friends Service Committee. They have been our sponsors for season three of Quakers Today oh and season two. Thank you so much!

Miche McCall  18:51

Do you want to challenge unjust systems and promote lasting peace? The American Friends Service Committee, or AFSC, works with communities worldwide to drive social change. Their website features meaningful steps you can take to make a difference. 

Lina Blount  19:13

Through their Friends Liaison Program, you can connect your meeting or church with AFSC and their justice campaigns. Find out how you can become part of the AFSC global community of change-makers. Visit afsc.org.

Miche McCall  19:35

Visit quakerstoday.org to see our show notes on a full transcript of this episode. And if you stick around after the closing, you’ll hear listeners responses to the questions, “What are Quaker and queer Quaker responses to climate change? Plus, we have an important update about season four. k

Lina Blount  19:53

Thank you, friend. We look forward to spending more time with you soon.