Join us for the opening reception for our crowd-sourced Climate Crisis Photo Exhibit on Friday, Nov. 10, 5–8 p.m. A selection of 12–15 photos, submitted by our neighbors in the Connecticut River Valley and the Hilltowns will be exhibited through the end of the year.
We tend to think of climate change that is happening elsewhere, along the coastline, or when hurricanes hit. But climate change is more mundane and it is also more local. This past summer was one of late frosts, excessive rains and flash floods. Our winters seem to be warmer than they used to be, and last summer saw us in an extensive drought.
This gallery exhibition will focus our attention on our immediate surroundings, as we see evidence of weird weather, attributable to climate change, in Western Massachusetts. And we will start to think about ways to confront and deal with these changes. Most climate modeling sees a gradual warming, year-round, for our region, which will bring us a longer growing season, certainly, but with that will come more (for our region) extreme heat, more crop disease and more insects. It will lead to invasive species and a fundamental shift in our flora and fauna. It is essential that we collectively and individually come up with ways to deal with these changes.
This reception will kick off two months of programming at The LAVA Center surrounding the climate crisis. Over the course of November and December, we will be screening a series of short films, Climate Emergency: Feedback Loops, as well as a Q&A with series producer and writer, Bonnie Waltch (Friday, November 17, 7 p.m.), as well as two nights of our popular Climate Change Action Theatre on Saturday, December 2, 7 p.m. and Saturday, December 9, 7 p.m. More details will be forthcoming for those events soon.
The LAVA Center would like to acknowledge that funding from Mass Humanities has been provided through the Massachusetts Cultural Council.
