In this episode of 5Talks, Solitaire Townsend, co-founder of change agency Futerra, reveals why she is fighting climate doomism with everything she has.
Solitaire Townsend has worked in climate advocacy for three decades and isn’t afraid of slipping in a few swear words if she feels strongly about something. Like the effect of doom-and-gloom on progress.
“I’m more afraid of fatalism than I am of climate change,” she says, calling on the world at large to “reclaim agency, creativity and courage”. For her, it’s not about denying danger. “It’s about rejecting despair”.
Because when we give in to doom, we give up, and that’s when we stop taking action to make a difference. Instead “we need “more main character energy,” she says. That means using whatever you’ve got to keep going. “We need to not be extras in the apocalypse. I’ve spoken to scientists, I’ve spoken to experts. All of them say this isn’t over unless we let it be.”
Townsend is a leading voice in sustainability, co-founder of award-winning change agency Futerra and author of The Solutionists. Her first foray into climate fiction, The Godstorm, is out in January.
Wondering how to muster some main-character energy? Solitaire Townsend has plenty to spare. She shares her story here.
We spoke to Solitaire Townsend at Futerra’s Solutions House, a space for optimism and action, at Climate Week 2025.
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