I don’t want you to be hopeful

Adults keep saying:
“We owe it to the young people to give them hope.”
But I don’t want your hope.
I don’t want you to be hopeful.
I want you to panic.
I want you to feel the fear I feel every day. And then I want you
to act.
I want you to act as you would in a crisis.
I want you to act as if our house is on fire.
Because it is.”
-Greta Thunberg, No One Is Too Small to Make a Difference

Greta’s words cut straight through me. Because the truth is: I wasn’t acting like the house was on fire. I felt the fear — for what we’re leaving behind for our children — but I didn’t act on it.

This project became my confrontation with that standstill. What’s holding me back from real action? What would it take for me to move?

I spoke with young people, ages 10 to 25, about the world they’re growing up in — climate, injustice, hope, and despair. From those conversations, portraits emerged. Created with old paper, collage, and gold leaf. Each model chose a charity; the proceeds from their portrait went there.

This work is not an answer.
It’s a question.
Or maybe a cry — to myself, to you, to all of us.