We had a wonderful two-day session, “Storytelling with Saris: Climate Art & Poetry Workshop,” on October 18 & 19, 2024, as part of the Smithsonian Women’s Environmental Leadership Summit.  This annual conference is organized by the Smithsonian’s Center for Environmental Justice. This year it was fully virtual. My workshop was joined by women in diverse locations from Annapolis, to Houston, to Haiti to Washington DC.  It was a huge pleasure to spend time being creative together with everyone. 

We began by connecting with the Earth outdoors and stretched our toes and bodies to mimic plants. We spent time in community sharing climate stories. We saw a garden being planted in Haiti. We learned about the intensity of a recent storm in Houston. Each of us wrote down some climate pledges, to help cool down our planet. Writing down an intention can make it more concrete and real. 

We also composed quick six-word climate poems and recited them. Here is poem by Joelle:

Voices unheard, anxious, drowning, no end.

And a second one:

Drowned, manmade, desperate fights, still rising.

I shared videos and images from Storytelling with Saris, the global climate justice collaborative art project. On Day 2, we wrote longer earth poems and did a poetry slam. 

Then we used whatever art materials we had to turn them into concrete poems or visual poems. One participant took electrical cords, dipped them in paint, and used them to print on used cardboard and paper. Others used colored pencils or pens to add a visual element to the poem. It was super to have participation from Rah, a long-time collaborator.

I got some lovely feedback after the workshop. From Joelle: “I really, really enjoyed our workshop. Thank you for leading it! It’s rejuvenated the desire to write in my heart, and that’s priceless.”   From Deyadira: “Thank you for helping me rediscover my inner artist. Much love and appreciation.”