The Climate Challenge | Utah State University Digital Collections

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This isn’t a climate issue; it is a cultural issue.

The Climate Challenge Digital Collection is a small but important oral history effort that presents 19 voices of Utah State University climate scientists (2018), northern Utah and northern Idaho climate activists (2021), and people engaged in land restoration efforts in the Intermountain West (2023). The goal of the effort is to document the experiences of these three groups to add to the growing scholarship about the human side of climate scholarship, climate awareness, and land restoration efforts.

Phase I was conducted the fall of 2018 as part of the USU HIST 6860-002 Ethnographic Methods in & Oral History: Climate Scientists course. Phase II was conducted in the spring of 2021 as part of the USU ENGL/HIST 6720-001 Oral History & Folklore Fieldwork: Climate Activism course. Phase III was conducted in the spring of 2023 as part of the USU ENGL/HIST 6720-001 Oral History & Folklore Fieldwork: Land Restoration course. All three courses were taught by Randy Williams, folklorist and ethnographer. Student ethnographers are USU folklore and American studies, public history, and technical communications students. All three efforts received USU Institutional Review Board Non-Human Subjects Research (NHSR) determinations: 2018 (IRB 9676); 2021 (IRB 11718); 2023 (IRB 13236).

Phase I: The Climate Challenge: USU Climate Scientists Oral Histories (2018)

Phase II: The Climate Challenge: Climate Activists Oral Histories (2021)

Phase III: The Climate Challenge: Land Restoration Oral Histories (2023)

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Phase I: The Climate Challenge: USU Climate Scientists Oral Histories (2018)

Climate science is a vital area of research today, especially as the severity of the climate disruptions playing out across the globe are predicted to have long-term, catastrophic consequences. Yet, in 2018, this area of research is still highly contested. We often hear the data behind climate change science, but we rarely hear the voices of those who study it. In an attempt to learn more, six students in the fall USU HIST 6860-002 Ethnographic Methods & Oral History: Climate Scientists course interviewed members of the Utah State University scientific community to hear their perspectives about climate science. During the interviews, the scientists shared information about the changing climate, including how it affects communities. They also talked about what it is like to study and teach climate science and how individuals can prioritize certain actions in order to mitigate the effects of climate change.

Click on an interviewee’s name below for access to an audio recording and transcript of their interview and to see photographs taken during the interview:

Phase I Interviewees:

Phase I Project Credits:

Jonah Bibo (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer, landing page text
Alyson Griggs (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer, landing page text
Haden Griggs (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer, landing page text
Shay Larsen (Graphic Designer, USU Library): Landing page graphic design, public presentation PR
Andrea Payant (Metadata Librarian, USU Library): Digital collection (CONTENTdm) management, landing page support and management
Darcy Pumphrey (Digital Project Coordinator, USU Library): Naming review and revisions, digital collection landing page
Sara Skindelien (Metadata Coordinator Special Collections, USU Library): Metadata management, EAD guide creation
Mason Stott (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer, landing page text
Frankie Urrutia-Smith (Undergraduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer, landing page text
Landon Wilkey (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer, landing page text
Randy Williams (Fife Folklore Archives Curator and Oral History Program Director, Special Collections & Archives, USU Library): Project director, course instructor, product review and revision, landing page text edits

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Phase II: Climate Activists (2021)

Climate Activists play a crucial role in educating the public on the climate challenge facing humans. From presentations to storytelling, from public demonstrations to the classroom, climate activists work to raise awareness about the global climate crisis. In an attempt to learn more, seven students in the Spring 2021 Utah State University ENGL/HIST 6720-001 Oral History and Folklore Fieldwork: Climate Activism course interviewed climate activists to learn their perspectives about the global climate crisis. During the interviews, the activists shared information about the changing climate, including how it affects local and global communities. They also talked about how they became engaged in climate activism, their specific work, and ways to mitigate the effects of climate change.

Click on an interviewee’s name below for access to an audio recording and transcript of their interview and to see photographs taken during the interview:

Phase II Interviewees:

Phase II Project Credits:

Vanessa Chambers (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer
Paul Daybell (Archival Cataloging Librarian, USU Library): EAD guide creation
Susan Gross (Susan Gross Transcription): Transcription and formatting completion for two transcripts
Terri Jordan (Fife Folklore Archives Curator): Project advisor, transcript reviewer, EAD guide creation
Edward (Tell) Joyner (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer
Shay Larsen (Graphic Designer, USU Library): Landing page graphic design revision
Andrea Payant (Metadata Librarian, USU Library): Digital collection (CONTENTdm) management, landing page support
John Priegnitz (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer
Branson Roskelley (Digital Project Coordinator, USU Library): Naming review and revisions, digital collection landing page management and updates
Zhenxia Meng (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer
Steven Merrell (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer
Carla Murillo (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer
Randy Williams (ENGL/HIST 6720-001 Professor): Project director, course instructor, product review and revision, transcription formatting and review, landing page text preparation
Alexandra Ziegler (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer

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Phase III: Land Restoration (2023)

In this third and final installment of The Climate Challenge Digital Collection, the focus is on land restoration efforts. In the spring of 2023, six Utah State University graduate students enrolled in the ENGL/HIST 6720-001 Oral History and Folklore Fieldwork: Land Restoration course interviewed people engaged in land conservation and restoration efforts to learn about their perspectives on this crucial work. During the interviews, the land restorers shared about their projects, the climate crisis, and the ways land restoration efforts impact local communities.

Click on an interviewee’s name below for access to an audio recording and transcript of their interview and to see photographs taken during the interview:

Phase III Interviewees:

Phase III Project Credits:

Brenna Jones (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer
Drew Holley (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer
Eric Montague (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer
Megan Miller (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer
Missy Petersen (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer
Sara Watkins (Graduate student): Interviewer, photographer, recordist, metadata preparer
Andrea Payant (Metadata Librarian, USU Library): Metadata management, digital collection (CONTENTdm) uploading and troubleshooting
Brittany Bertazon (Digital Project Manager, USU Library): Digital project planning, naming review and revisions, digital asset management, digital collection landing page management, troubleshooting, and maintenance
Darcy Pumphrey (Digital Assets Librarian, USU Library): Naming review and revisions, digital asset management
Josh Handschin (LIT Programmer/Analyst II, USU Library): IT support and troubleshooting
Kellianne Gammill (Marketing Coordinator, USU Library): Event marketing
Paul Daybell (Archival Cataloging Librarian, USU Library): EAD guide creation 
Preston Waddoups (Copy Editor, USU Library): Landing page support and copy editing
Randy Williams (ENGL/HIST 6720-001 Professor): Project director, course instructor, product review and revision, transcription formatting and review, landing page text preparation
Shay Larsen (Graphic Designer, USU Library): Landing page graphic, design revision, event poster design