Month: July 2024

creativity

I submitted my dissertation to the University of Cambridge

Christa Avampato

It is written. It is submitted. In the wee hours of Monday morning, I submitted my dissertation to the University of Cambridge. I’m proud of it. Every cell in my body is passionate about the topic and I think it can help to make this world a better place.

There are many people who helped make this dissertation what it is. The anonymous marking criteria precluded me from thanking them by name in the acknowledgements of the dissertation so I’ll thank them here.

My advisor Dr Candice Howarth provided support and encouragement from the start. 

Louise Drake was enthusiastic about my topic from the point I submitted my proposal and provided early materials that helped me on my journey. 

My first year tutor Angus Morrison-saunders sharpened my writing and research skills to make the writing of this research project possible. 

The staff at Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) always warmly welcomed us in Cambridge, answered our many questions with kindness and grace, and created the space to make this phenomenal experience possible. There is so much work that happens behind the scenes and the staff is to be commended for all they do. 

My friends and classmates Milly Moore, Alasdair Martin, Patricia Minogue, Aaron Hemsley, Mark Champkins, Barbora Kotoun, Laura Hillis, Mitch Reznick, CFA, Iuliia Takhtarova, and Aonghus Kelly read my work at various points (some more than once, you kind souls!) and provided feedback that made the work much better than it would have been otherwise. 

My close community of friends and relatives cheered me on throughout this two-year adventure and provided support for my studies in so many ways. 

Many people graciously and generously gave their time so I could interview them for this dissertation. Your insights and perspectives made this research possible. Thank you for your honesty, candor, and enthusiasm for the work. 

I love being a part of Cohort 13 and I’m inspired every day by all my wonderful classmates and friends. You taught me so much, not only about sustainability but also about life. I’m a better person for knowing you. Thank you for everything. 

While we all now wait for our grades and the confirmation of our graduation celebration in 2025, I’m filled with gratitude and love for two fantastic years. Onward now to save the planet.

creativity

Can ecofiction inspire climate action?

Christa Avampato
Created by Christa Avampato using AI.

While on vacation I wrote my first full piece of ecofiction for a climate fiction writing competition. It’s a short story (5,000 words) that provides a slice of life in New York City in the year 2200, and grew out of the research I did for my University of Cambridge dissertation.

It’s told through the eyes of a journalist walking his dog who by chance meets the 90-year-old former mayor who galvanized the rebuilding of NYC after it was destroyed by floods caused by climate change. Biomimicry figures prominently in it. I tried to incorporate humor, heart, and redemption alongside the heartbreak, loss, and destruction. Ultimately, it’s a story about leadership, community, and vision.

No matter the outcome of the competition, I enjoyed writing it and plan to do more with these characters and in this genre. The predominant channels and messages we’re using for climate storytelling now are not generating the scale and speed of the changes we need. Fiction can play a bigger role is painting the picture of what a world transformed can look like, what it will take to get there, and how we might work together to make it so. The fandoms around fiction can be a unifying force for good, which is exactly what we need, now more than ever.

(I created the images below with AI, inspired by the story I wrote.)