Climate Con 2025 took place on Feb. 7 featuring keynote talks, workshop and panel sessions, and a student showcase. Hosted and organized by the Waterloo Climate Institute and the Student Climate Council, this year’s theme for the annual conference was climate hope and tackling climate anxiety.
“The key thing we’re trying to do with the climate conference is to bring everyone together – students, staff, faculty – anyone who is engaging in the climate space. There’s a lot of news out there that can make people feel anxious and we really wanted to create a space for hope,” said Elanor Waslander, training program specialist and interim communications officer at the Waterloo Climate Institute.
The conference kicked off with a keynote talk focusing on the power of storytelling in inspiring climate action from climate misinformation scholar and author Grace Nosek.
“Grace Nosek’s speech on the power of storytelling and art was especially impactful to me as an artist, because it really highlighted how these forms of expression can serve as powerful tools to create change. At the same time, it also revealed the potential dangers of manipulation within storytelling, which is a topic that feels particularly relevant today,” Iman Yousefi, a third-year psychology student and conference participant, said.
The keynote was followed by a workshop session facilitated by climate activist Amy Castator. The session encouraged participants to uncover how they can contribute to climate action by asking themselves the following introspective questions: what am I good at, what brings me joy, and what needs doing?
The student showcase featured research and projects from students of various academic backgrounds addressing this year’s theme. Showcase displays included project entries for the Community Cooling Space Pitch Competition 2024, research on peatlands and oil projects, public policy proposals, and more.
“There was such diversity in all the posters being presented, with perspectives from so many different faculties. I think this is especially important because climate change is an issue that needs to be tackled from all directions, and with people from every background and every field coming together,” Yousefi said.
The conference included a moderated panel spotlighting the role partnerships can play in turning climate anxiety into climate hope. The panel featured UW assistant professor in knowledge integration Mathieu Feagan, Impact Network manager at Sustainable Waterloo Region Autumn Loosemore, UW grad and research and campus strategy co-lead at re•generation Michelle Angkasa, and UW grad and stage manager Eloise Fan. Fourth-year social development studies student Cindy Qiu moderated the panel.
An award ceremony for the student showcase and closing remarks noting the importance of continued collaboration in tackling the climate crisis closed out the conference.
“Whether you’re a researcher, activist, policy maker, entrepreneur or concerned citizen, your role in shaping the future of our planet is inevitable. The conversations we’ve had here today should not end today,” Manal Khan, a fourth-year chemical engineering student and moderator at the conference said.
Angkasa, a panelist at the conference, noted the importance of the annual climate conference as a space for gathering members of the UW community, sharing ideas and celebrating wins especially in uncertain times where leaning on community for support is key. For future conferences, Angkasa believes senior staff at UW should attend the conference and learn from students.
“Moving forward, I want more senior decision makers to attend and learn from the students working on the ground to advance climate action on campus. We can’t continue to preach to the choir — we need UW’s commitments backed by real resources and funding,” Angkasa said.
For more information on Climate Con 2025, please see https://uwaterloo.ca/student-climate-con/. Updates on next year’s conference will be shared on this page in fall 2025.
