Climate change remains one of the most pressing issues affecting the future and present of our community in the Marshall Islands. We have dealt with high tides flooding our homes, the worst drought we’d experienced in years, and the impending disappearance of our islands. With increased threats of a rising sea level that will eventually uproot our homes as soon as 2030, we recognize the need to create a space for our youth to process the complex emotions of climate impacts through art.
The Arts Camp is a program that was designed to raise awareness on the issue of climate change as well as inspire participants through artistic workshops to create new work that transforms them from passive victims to participants in a movement.
This is a passion project for our Director, Kathy Jetnil-Kijiner, who is a poet herself and has used her poetry and poem videos to advocate for climate justice, resulting in a standing ovation at the United Nations Climate Summit in 2014, after she performed a spoken word poem dedicated to her daughter. This camp was designed to recognize that a vibrant community of young artists live in Majuro, the capital city where this program takes place, who are only needing the proper guidance and support to create their own powerful works of art. Recently, the original arts camp has been reimagined into the Climate and Health Arts Seminar, thanks to a partnership with the Ministry of Health and Human Services, and with funding from WHO and Scaling Up Pacific Adaptation (SUPA) – GCCA+.
Climate and Health Arts Seminar 2021
This past summer was our most recent Arts Seminar. We focused this year’s seminar more so on mental health and covid, bringing in experts from the Ministry of Health like Dr. Underwood and Dr. Holden. We adjusted the design of the program to allow for collaborations between art disciplines, conducted a panel for art instructors to share with students about art as a career, and gave more time for students to focus on their pieces. This year’s seminar offered weaving, painting, and songwriting, and again culminated in another successful art showcase for the community and students’ families. Read more about the program from our Youth Coordinator Jobod who wrote the blog post here.
Climate and Health Arts Seminar 2020
This was our second Arts Camp, and the first time it became reimagined as the Climate and Health Arts Seminar. The camp hosted 39 students representing all high schools on Majuro and Kwajalein, and took place at the College of the Marshall Islands for 2 weeks. The Seminar helped students explore the connections between climate change and health, especially in light of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Students were allowed to choose a specific track to focus on for their art class – painting, poetry, weaving, and songwriting. It culminated in a showcase for the public at the end of the two weeks. Read more about that summer’s program at our blog post.
Watch: Highlights from Climate and Health Arts Seminar July 2020
Climate Arts Camp 2015
The first Camp we facilitated was in partnership with the College of the Marshall Islands and Youth Bureau of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The camp brought artists of Pacific Islands backgrounds to collaborate with Marshallese artists. It consisted of environmental workshops on coral bleaching, waste and climate change, and weaving workshops that discussed climate impacts on our traditional artforms. There were 30 high school student participants that came from every high school in the Marshall Islands. They were allowed to either focus their camp experience on poetry and spoken word, or mural painting.
The Camp ended with a community showcase in which students performed their spoken word pieces and unveiled their murals. The videos and images were shared online and also at national conferences at the International Convention Center for over a year.
Watch: Climate Change Arts Camp 2015 Video
