Curiosity Café (Revisited)- Hope, Despair, and Climate Action

*See below for event description. Every four(ish) weeks, we revisit a previous Curiosity Café. In this series, we will be repeating topics, sometimes with a slight twist, sometimes with the same questions (but rest assured, even if you went to the first iteration and the questions were exactly the same, the discussion will change based on who is in attendance. Maybe you’ve even changed too…).

We will be hosting our next Revisited Curiosity Café on Sunday, March 29th from 2:00-4:30pm at the Madison Avenue Pub (14 Madison Ave, Toronto, ON M5R 2S1). Come and hang out with us, grab food, and read through our handout from 2-2:30. Our structured discussion will run from 2:30-4:30pm with a 10 minute break in the middle.

For several decades, scientists worldwide have described the impending future (and now, the present circumstance) as a “climate crisis” or a “climate emergency”. People now know that there is very little time to implement strategies to mitigate climate change before irreversible climate danger occurs. Given this, fear and despair seem like natural responses and motivators for action; we want to avoid, or at least mitigate, a future more apocalyptic than our present already is. However, hope might, alternatively, seem like a necessary tool for envisioning a safe and sustainable future as well, where climate justice is achieved.

When it comes to the climate crisis, do you find yourself responding primarily with a sense of hope, or a sense of despair? Which of these responses do you see as being the more effective guiding sentiment when it comes to climate action?

Join returning moderator Jasmine Tremblay D’Ettorre and Sophia Whicher at our next Revisited Curiosity Café, where we will explore the intricate relationship between these concepts in a discussion that is both thought-provoking and intriguing. We will explore the ethical – and emotional – dimensions of our responses to the climate crisis, so be ready to reflect, question, challenge, and expand your thinking!

*hey community! Sophia here, Director of Community Programming. We ask that you consider that our ideal recommended amount for a ticket is now $15, and as you choose what to donate within the bounds of your own financial means, we ask that you keep in mind that your donation will go directly towards compensating those involved in making Curiosity Cafés happen so that we can keep doing this for you.

Please note that we also still have 5 free tickets available for our attendees. If paying anything at all is not financially feasible for you, or our ticketing system presents some other barrier for you, please contact our Director of Community Programming at [email protected]. These tickets will be first come, first served, no questions asked! You can expect to hear back from her within 72 hours.

For those of you who haven’t had the opportunity to join us at our Curiosity Cafés and are wondering what they’re all about: every two weeks, we invite members of our community to come out to the Madison Avenue Pub to engage in a collaborative exploration of our chosen topic. Through these events, we aim to build our community of people who like to think deeply about life’s big questions, and provide each other with some philosophical tools to dig deeper into whatever it is we are most curious about.

Some accessibility-related information* about our event and the venue:

• This event involves a verbal discussion, with a handout to guide the discussion
• There will be a large-print version of the handout available
• We ask the staff at the Maddy to turn off the speakers playing music in the room we are in. Unless we end up in their “VIP” room upstairs (very unlikely!), this keeps background noise to a minimum.
• There will be earplugs available to tamper background noise
• There are about five steps up to the entrance of the Madison, and another to get in the door. In order to get upstairs, where we sometimes hold our events, there is another set of stairs that are quite steep. While we hope to be in the downstairs room, we cannot guarantee this until closer to the event date.
• There are two single stall bathrooms located downstairs that we will have access to. The other bathrooms, located on the main and upper floor, are gendered.
• Should you be accompanied by a support person, please contact us in advance so that we can add them to our guest list. Their ticket will be included, for free, as part of your pay-what-you-can ticket.

*We recognize that this list provides a far-from comprehensive picture of accessibility-related concerns you might have. Please feel free to contact our team at [email protected], or the Madison Avenue Pub (416-927-1722) with any other questions or concerns you might have.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Madison Avenue Pub, 14 Madison Avenue, Toronto, Canada

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