Karenna Gore and Roberto Borrero on the Rights of Nature

As the hard effects of climate change are upon us, felt overwhelmingly by the poor and marginalized in places like Puerto Rico, it’s time to rethink the rules of the game. Two environmental thinkers, Karenna Gore and Roberto Borrero, discuss earth ethics, the rights of nature, how to mitigate damages and find ways forward for environmental protections during an era of deregulation. This conversation will focus on indigenous knowledge on climate and science and will explore both speakers’ current strategies. The talk will be followed by a Q&A with the audience.

A co-convener of the Indigenous Peoples Major Group on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals programs on behalf of the International Indian Treaty Council, Roberto Múkaro Borrero offers particular expertise in Caribbean and other Indigenous Peoples’ issues. His unique perspective draws from multiple sources including his indigenous Taíno heritage, ongoing mentorship from indigenous leaders and elders from around the world, and real-time experience in the arts, as well as a long and distinguished history of human rights and environmental advocacy. With over twenty years’ experience in the non-profit/non-governmental sector, over a decade of experience as Senior Programs Coordinator for Public Programs in the Education Department of the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and as a former radio host and producer for WBAI Pacifica Radio’s “Circle of Red Nations,” Roberto maintains a diverse resource network locally, nationally, and internationally in the civil, business, and governmental sectors.

Karenna Gore is the director of the Center for Earth Ethics at Union Theological Seminary. Her past experience includes work in the legal center of Sanctuary for Families, which serves victims of domestic violence and trafficking and as Director of Community Affairs for the Association to Benefit Children (ABC), which provides early childhood education and other services for families living in poverty in New York City. She worked on the editorial staff of Slate magazine and is the author of Lighting the Way: Nine Women Who Changed Modern America (2006). Karenna is a graduate of Harvard College, Columbia Law School and Union Theological Seminary. She is the eldest child of Al and Tipper Gore and lives in New York City with her three children.

This event will be held after regular business hours at Leonard Library. Only those attending the event will be allowed inside the branch. All other regular functions of the library will be unavailable.

Brooklyn Public Library’s Green Series is made possible through the generous support of Whole Foods Market.