Energizing the Climate Movement

Musicians, artists, writers, and data scientists, together, can catalyze climate action—both by inspiring others and by looking inward at their own craft and communities. This panel has created real, positive action in ways and among communities that haven't traditionally been involved in climate change. This panel discussion brings together artist Josh Kline, who is working on a project dealing with climate crisis; Cassie Lee, co-founder, and CEO of Sound Future, a nonprofit organization that exists to measure, discover, and deploy meaningful environmental solutions for the live event industry; Gail Whiteman, founder of Arctic Basecamp, a team of Arctic experts and scientists who, for the last five years, have brought the Arctic to the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting at Davos; and Rachel Kropa, founder and Managing Director of the FootPrint Coalition, a coalition of investors, donors, and storytellers committed to scaling technologies to restore our planet. Moderated by MOCA Environmental Council Adviser Dan Hammer, winner of the inaugural Pritzker Environmental Genius Award and a founder of Earthrise Media, a Digital Product Agency with a unique approach to addressing global environmental change.

Josh Kline (b. 1979, Philadelphia, USA) lives and works in New York, USA. In Spring 2023, the first U.S. museum survey of Kline’s work will take place at the Whitney Museum. Kline’s art has been widely exhibited in the United States and internationally, including at The Museum of Modern Art, The Whitney Museum, The New Museum, and MoMA PS1 in New York; The Hirschhorn Museum, Washington D.C.; The Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; LAXART, Los Angeles; ICA Boston; MOCA Cleveland; Moderna Museet, Stockholm; KW, Berlin; Kunsthalle Fridericianum, Kassel; Modern Art Oxford, UK; and Yuz Museum, Shanghai;, among many others.

Cassie Lee is the co-founder and CEO of Sound Future, a nonprofit that exists to measure, discover, and deploy environmental solutions for the live event industry. Lee has built a career at the intersection of technology and impact, serving as the head of Space Programs for Paul G. Allen, the COO of Earthrise Alliance, chair of the Board of Directors at PLACE, strategic advisor to Bye Aerospace, founding member of the United Nations Space4Women network, and co-founder of the Brooke Owens Fellowship. She brings over 20 years of engineering experience to Sound Future from roles with NASA, SpaceX, Sierra Nevada Corporation and Lockheed Martin.

Professor Gail Whiteman is the founder of Arctic Basecamp and Professor of Sustainability at the University of Exeter’s Business School (UK). She is an expert on global risk arising from the systemic changes occurring in the natural environment.  She is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Frontier Risk and was a scientific keynote speaker at WEF’s 2020 session at Davos “What’s at Stake: The Arctic” alongside panellists including Finland’s Prime Minister Sanna Marin and Former US Vice President, Al Gore. Since 2012, she is the Professor-in-Residence at the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and is actively involved in building science-based targets collective business action, including those for a future low-carbon economy.

Rachel Kropa has spent 19 years in the film studio and entertainment agency business, specializing in entertainment philanthropy and sustainability. Kropa is a Founder and Managing Director for Robert Downey Jr.’s environmental tech organization, FootPrint Coalition, and a Founder and Head of Impact at Range Media Partners. Prior to her current work, she was the Co-Director of the Foundation at Creative Artists Agency (a leading talent and sports agency) and handled environmental initiatives for the company. Kropa holds a BSc in Biochemistry from the University of Virginia and an Archaeology Certificate from UCLA. She was a founding member of Conservation International’s Generation Conservation, she is on the Arts & Entertainment Council of the Sierra Club, and she is on the of Board of Directors of Peer Health Exchange and the Environmental Media Association.

Dr. Dan Hammer is a founder of Earthrise Media. He is the winner of the inaugural Pritzker Environmental Genius Award and earned his PhD in environmental economics from U.C. Berkeley. He previously served as a Senior Policy Advisor in the Obama White House; a Presidential Innovation Fellow at NASA; a Climate Fellow and Senior Advisor at Google X; and the Chief Data Scientist at the World Resources Institute.

MOCA’s environmental programming series highlights the museum’s work around climate, conservation, and environmental justice. Guided by the work of the MOCA Environmental Council, the first sustainability council at a major arts museum in the United States, this series presents artists, activists, and scholars committed to critical ecological issues in Los Angeles and globally.

The 2022 series is made possible by Nora McNeely Hurley and Manitou Fund.