We All Need Food and Water logo with tagline community + solutions = joy

Future Unfolds Now, aka FUN Events

Family-friendly events

About our FUN Events

 

We remember what we have fun learning. That’s why we focus on the fun and mix a little learning in there. Our intergenerational, family-friendly FUN Events program offer just that. Besides the events actually being fun, FUN stands for “Future Unfolds Now.”

These events give special attention to serving underserved communities. They bring people safely together, start meaningful climate conversations, encourage critical thinking, and also promote action.

To increase community access, all events will be free of charge. However, we accept donations to support the programming if people choose—or are in a position—to help out. Furthermore, we will provide language interpreters, ride assistance, and public transit passes. We will also provide winter clothing, and equipment such as skates, skis, and sleds for those who need them.

We will hold the FUN Events at various locations around the greater Twin Cities Metro Area depending on the monthly activity, and the educational topics will tie in with the activity.

Also, we request that participants answer a few questions when registering online or in-person to gauge participants’ prior knowledge and experience and focus our educational efforts to meet the participants’ needs. This also helps us to measure our impact.

Why climate education?

Yale Climate Communications confirms that most (72%) Americans realize climate change is happening but relatively few people (39%) talk about it. Consequently, we want to change this unnerving situation by starting and normalizing climate conversations. After all, problems don’t get solved without conversations about the problems.

Each month we will host a family-friendly outing coupled with education. In January, we took a sleigh ride and had a conversation over cocoa about divesting from fossil fuels. In February, we went ice skating and discussed resources and clever ways to BE a “cheapskate” to reduce our use of plastic and lessen our impacts on the planet while also improving our health and saving money.

Certainly, a livable climate is the basis for human survival on the planet. Because without a livable climate, all other endeavors and dreams are impossible. Our planet is currently facing a 6.5 °F global average temperature increase by 2100 (MIT Management Sustainability Initiative/Climate Interactive). To put this number into perspective, the last time our climate experienced this large of a temperature swing was the Ice Age, when it was 5-9 °F colder. What will life be like for people in a much warmer world? Where will the food be grown in this hot of a world? What will the water levels be? Which coastal cities will be completely underwater due to the melted arctic? Will the middle latitudes be the only livable areas on Earth? Where is the justice with the world’s most vulnerable populations being the victims of climate change bearing little responsibility for causing the emissions?

Despite climate experts agreeing that climate change is real, caused by humans, and poses a threat to our children’s ability to live out their natural lives to old age, there is currently shockingly little action—or even conversation.

Our approach

Talking about climate change is hard and perhaps even scary. But no problem can be solved without people talking about it. Despite climate experts agreeing that climate change is real, caused by humans, and poses a threat to our children’s ability to live out their natural lives to old age, there is currently shockingly little action—or even conversation.

Meanwhile, the mission of We All Need Food and Water’s (WANFAW) is to empower individuals to take action through equity-based environmental education. We are focusing on climate education because it is the driver of all life on this planet. All other issues humans face on this planet rely on having a livable climate.

Discussing problems is essential to solving enormous problems, including the rising global temperature caused by greenhouse gas emissions which threatens human survival. However, most Americans are not talking about climate change. According to the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, only 39% of adults nationwide discuss climate change at least occasionally. It is even less in the Twin Cities (MN) Metro Area, with only 37% occasionally talking about climate change. WANFAW recognizes that we will not solve climate change problems without initiating conversations now.

WANFAW’s climate educational programming seeks to jumpstart problem-solving by engaging in conversations with hundreds of people in fun, guilt-free, and family-friendly ways.

Our approach is to gain momentum by creating an energizing, joyful, guilt-free movement that people want to be a part of by continually expanding our partnerships. There is concern about the climate already, and people are looking for ways to act, not feel overwhelmed, so we need to keep engaging those people—like you!