In this episode of Brown Girl Green, we are joined with Brittney Enin, Founder and Executive Self-Care Consultant & Radiator of Black Sunshine as we talk about the importance of “self-care.”

It is expected that the climate crisis has and will continue to have a detrimental impact on public health, particularly on society’s mental health. As the news likes to convince us that the world is falling apart (and in some ways it is), how are we going to take care of ourselves and each other? Self-care is a form of deep activism, as we are radically defining what it means to adapt and care for ourselves and others in challenging environmental conditions.

We cover:

• Why self-care is a necessity, not just a luxury (and it doesn’t have to be expensive, i.e. setting boundaries is FREE!)

• Methods to embracing a self-care journey and to unlearn that your self-care doesn’t matter

• How to practice reciprocity: learning how to give and take when you are naming your needs

• Why people of color, in particular, should not feel guilty for reclaiming self-care as an act of survival

Highlights: “You need to start naming and legitimizing the forces that make you feel so tired”

“The world needs to see women of color in their full range of emotions”

“Depending on your place on society you internalize certain things as normal../ things that I used to think were ways of communicating [about these things] were actually really oppressive”

“We can hold our oppression and our privilege at the same time, it’s when people don’t do that, that we are in trouble”

You can connect with Brittney at selfcareconsult.com, @slfcareconsult

Or follow her as @nerdqween on Instagram

This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

In our current climate crisis, how can we reach the masses through storytelling, connection, and education? In this episode of Brown Girl Green, I meet with Environmental “Eco-Influencer” Go Green Save Green, Ariel Maldonado. Ariel uses Instagram to engage her audience about how to live sustainably and to save money along the way.

Ariel’s content break down that allows her to engage her audience about climate change and sustainably:

Current events/ News that provides summaries around what is being discussed about a wide range of environmental topics Memes that are easy to capture people’s attention in a culturally relevant, poignant way Sustainability tips and infographics

She posts both in-depth content and quicky, witty posts that keep people’s attention. Experimenting/ balancing types of content and figuring out how to find content that is accessible and tangible to the audience is key.

“As i’m learning, i’m sharing.”

It’s very important to share content that allows people to feel like they can make an impact. A core part of this is thinking about companies we invest our money into, and how education is distributed to people to plug in and to feel like they are not alone.

“An Individual is a spark”

Next steps:

• Use your voice to push forward regarding the climate crisis and sustainable living in your community and abroad (both in person and on the internet)

• Think critically about the accessibility/ gaps around environmental information, and how you can start conversations with your friends and family to start caring more deeply about the planet!

• Create your own content or repost from pages you love! We need to circulate information asap to grow our audiences and networks mobilized for climate action

• Individual sustainable “swaps” are conversation starters to bring other people into the conversation for broader systemic change

In the pilot episode of Brown Girl Green, Kristy, a Filipina American environmental activist discusses the origins of Brown Girl Green. From activist burnout to trying to find diplomacy (or love?) on tinder, this episode lays the groundwork of what you can expect to watch in Season 1.