*This article was originally published by SMEA Currents on October 18. 2021 Since you’re reading this article on a screen, chances are good that you have an account with at least one social media platform. Approximately 7 in 10 Americans use social media to share information, with 4.48 billion users worldwide. Between Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Discord, and the myriad other websites and apps that exist, there is no shortage of thoughts and information being shared online, every second of every day. But what are these accounts being used to say? Granted, some of them still contain too many photos of your cousin’s friend’s brunch. Even so, social media has become a space for much more than that. It is a hub for ideas, observations and community. Social media allows people to express themselves outside of a professional setting, sharing information quickly and widely with millions of people across the planet. While network news outlets can’t (or won’t) cover every environmental issue or event, social media can. When a particularly virulent red tide hit Florida’s coast earlier this summer, the event wasn’t being reported on by any news outlets. Yet over 5.8 million viewers watched a TikTok video made by Paul Cuffaro recording the devastating fish kill that resulted. Other social media users took to a variety of platforms to capture similar grim observations like the resulting death of manatees and goliath groupers, as well as skin rash from swimming in the water. This outpouring of photos and videos did more than go viral. It catalyzed public outrage, which led to action when the incident was linked to the breach of a phosphate pit in Manatee County that sent over 200 million gallons of polluted water into Tampa Bay. Locals in the area organized clean up groups to remove the carcasses from beaches. Many people worked to spread awareness that human pollution was to blame for the algal bloom and unhealthy water quality. One TikTok user and environmental advocate, TrashCaulin, was so struck by the severity of the problem that he made a series of videos educating followers about the red tide. In the series he explained how it occurred, the devastating effects on marine life in the area and why they should hold officials accountable for the Piney Point phosphate spill. When the volume of interest and discontent over the fish kills on social media eventually caught the attention of news outlets, the red tide was reported on extensively. This shift demonstrates how media consumers can hold power over news content by utilizing social platforms (a strength which may be particularly useful in the age of ‘fake news’ and mistrust of journalists, which will be addressed later in the article). Without the inundation of video content on social media, many people outside of the Florida coast would never have heard about the event at all. At present, the hashtag “Red Tide” has over 27.3 million views and more than 600 videos posted on TikTok alone.
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*This piece was originally published in Bucket Magazine, Issue 2. Full text available below.
There’s been a lot of talk in recent months about the link between racial and environmental injustice. But amidst efforts to address these issues, one crucial component often seems to get left by the wayside. What about gender justice? Women, particularly BIPOC women, are critical leaders at the forefront of environmental stewardship, but also one of the demographics most disproportionately impacted by the effects of climate change. So what is it about the global position of women that leads them to bear most of the responsibilities and costs associated with climate disasters, and what needs to change to provide them with justice?
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