My Climate Job is our series about careers in fields that fight climate disruption or are impacted by the climate crisis.

“From a young age, I knew that I wanted to help people learn about Native American culture and history,” says Bazile Minogiizhigaabo Panek, an enrolled member of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Reservation, in northern Wisconsin. Three years ago, he made good on this lifelong goal when he witnessed a gaping hole in understanding that he, uniquely, could help with.

He had graduated from Northern Michigan University with a bachelor’s degree in Native American Studies in 2022 and was working for an intertribal organization doing climate change work in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. “That’s where I saw that climate and environmental organizations wanted to work with Tribes and understand Indigenous knowledge, but they simply didn’t know where to start or how to do so respectfully.”

He founded Good Sky Guidance, a consulting firm, to help organizations through that process. Clients range from environmental nonprofits, architecture and engineering firms, and colleges and universities to local, state, and federal governments—all interested in fostering meaningful relationships with Tribal communities and gaining deeper understanding of Indigenous knowledge. This work can take many different forms, from cultural awareness training programs, to collaboration on water quality testing, to ensuring scientific research on Tribal lands is mutually beneficial, to convening a transformative report on the Status of Tribes and Climate Change.

Tell Congress: The Climate Clock Is Ticking. Act Now for Our Kids’ Future.

Bazile admits the projects are not always easy but shares that the results are incredibly inspiring. He spoke with us about how his work is rooted in traditional ecological knowledge, what keeps him motivated when conflict arises, and what he has learned from realizing his childhood dream of bringing everyone to the table.

What is traditional ecological knowledge, and how do you use it in your work?

Traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) is a knowledge system about the environment that has been generated through thousands of years of experimentation and deep relationships with the land. Through centuries of observations, we as humans have learned to develop a reciprocal relationship with the land. We take care of the environment because it takes care of us. TEK could be as simple as elders sharing their memories of where blueberries used to grow or identifying a culturally significant site.

One of my best examples of the use of TEK is a meeting with some representatives from the U.S. Forest Service and Tribal members from a community in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. We had this large map of a national forest out on the table, and the Forest Service employees were pointing to different spots on the map, discussing a prescribed burn project. Like, “Oh, we could do it here, we need to do this forest study or this assessment first”—things that would take a bunch of time and money.

But a Tribal member spoke up and pointed to the map: “This is where my grandma used to do burning.” That’s TEK right there—this knowledge that he holds of the history of Indigenous people’s use of the land. OK, let’s start there then.

In your work fostering relationships between Tribes and institutions, what challenges do you encounter?

Tribal communities, rightfully so, have trust issues with outside institutions that want to engage with them. This is because of historically extractive relationships, maybe especially with researchers from academic institutions who have gone into Tribal communities, collected a bunch of data, and not shared it with the Tribes or even discussed how the data could benefit the Tribal community.

It can take a lot of time to build new relationships and identify shared values. Representatives of an institution need to show up, learn about, and participate in the community, have coffee with an elder, support the Tribe in some way. It can be as little as going to get groceries for the Tribe, or it can be something larger like an invasive species management project. Being honest about your intentions and helping the Tribal community at the start can help to rebuild that trust.

What keeps you motivated when challenges arise?

I recognize that these challenges aren’t new. They have been experienced many times before in the history of the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous folks. My ancestors have persevered through quite a bit and have done so in a way that allows me to exist as an Indigenous person in today’s world with a thriving Tribal culture. It’s my responsibility and duty to honor that and continue to work toward a better future.

How did you get involved in the Status of Tribes and Climate Change (STACC) report, and what was your role?

The Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP), which assembles the STACC report, was one of my first clients. The director of ITEP asked me to help facilitate the development of a second volume of the report from start to finish with an amazing team alongside me. We formed a steering committee, recruited authors from across the United States, convened chapters on various topics, including fire, water, and youth and climate action. I was a co-author on the youth and climate action chapter and a few more as well.

I was inspired by the number of people with incredible amounts of knowledge who worked on the STACC report. We wanted to have authors from all walks of life, whether they had an academic degree or were working in this space. We had young leaders and elders involved, and the majority of the chapters were led by women.

What did you learn from your work on the report?

People are not only actively talking about Indigenous knowledge and how it can inform climate work, but they’re putting it into practice. It has gone from conversation to action because of the power of Tribal communities themselves and of the collaborations Tribes have created with environmental orgs and state and federal agencies.

Tell Congress: The Climate Clock Is Ticking. Act Now for Our Kids’ Future.

If a new polluting facility is moving into your neighborhood, you’d want to know about it, right? Moms would. That’s why 13 of our staff and members gave testimony at a recent EPA hearing about a new rule that could allow polluters to get permits for new so-called “minor” pollution sources without even notifying local communities. This proposed rule would take away one of the only opportunities communities have to learn about new pollution sources before they are built and ask important questions about how those facilities will affect the air our families breathe.

What’s more, “minor” sources of pollution are not harmless. They can include AI data centers, chemical manufacturing facilities, and other industrial complexes—all of which can create significant emissions, especially when multiple projects are concentrated in the same neighborhood or facilities expand over time. They can do this through piecemeal permitting, where larger projects are broken into smaller units to avoid triggering major source status.

Tell EPA: No New Toxic Pollution Without Public Input

This is a nightmare for families who should never have to discover that a new polluting industrial facility is being built in their neighborhood after a permit has already been issued. We’re sounding the alarm. Here are some of our most compelling testimonies to EPA:

Cynthia Palmer, Virginia

“Virginia has already done what EPA now plans for the entire country. Has it worked? No. We get to live in heavily polluted Data Center Alley, with hundreds of data centers moving in and incrementally expanding behind our backs. Most are permitted as minor or synthetic minor sources. The lack of mandatory public hearings and comment periods has enabled these facilities to move in quickly and secretly, and to expand rapidly—now deploying more than 10,000 backup diesel generators in our state.

“Let’s look at an example, the minor-source-permitted Vantage data center in Northern Virginia. An independent study by a Harvard scientist looked at just one of the pollutants released, particulate matter 2.5, and found it could result in between $53 and $99 million per year in health-related damages, due to the increase in heart disease, stroke, respiratory illness, and premature death.”

Read Cynthia’s full testimony.

Lani Wean, West Virginia

“Right up the road from my house is the town of Institute, West Virginia, where you can find a massive chemical manufacturing campus, on which you will find Union Carbide’s ethylene-oxide facility. Here in the Chemical Valley, the total cancer risk has been estimated to be 366 in 1 million, or 10th highest in the country. Furthermore, based on EPA-approved air quality models, recent data showed that the cancer risk surrounding this Union Carbide ethylene oxide facility was 600-in-1 million, six times the 100-in-1 million risk level that EPA itself has used to determine regulatory limits for polluting facilities.

“Do you want to know what some of the facilities on this campus are now trying to do? You guessed it—they’re seeking to reclassify as minor area sources, disregarding cumulative emissions. Even after years of community outcry and opposition from local health and environmental groups, the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection continues to only consider emissions from each independent facility, leading to even greater air pollution in our communities.”

Read Lani’s full testimony.

Amanda Rowoldt, Ohio

“Public participation is essential in a free and democratic society. It is a crucial step that must remain in place in order for families to be informed about the air their children, their elders, and they are breathing. This proposal is wrong and a slap in the face of Ohioans. It would blindside Ohio families and likely expose them to harmful pollutants and dangerous petrochemical facilities, like chemical recycling facilities and AI data centers, before they have any time or opportunity to do anything about it.”

Read Amanda’s full testimony.

Shaina Oliver, Colorado

“I’m a mother of four children, and we are federally recognized Tribal members of the Navajo Nation, living, learning, and working in northeast Denver, Colorado. I’ve seen the environmental deterioration of my ancestral lands and its impacts on public health on and off the Navajo Reservation due to the environmental racism in U.S. laws, regulations, and policies. Our communities have been on a path of cleaning up toxic contaminants in our communities and addressing our ground-level ozone pollution, or smog, which is at a level that is unhealthy to breathe. At Moms, we know these toxic environments are detrimental to our children’s health, and transforming communities to be resilient includes considering community voices… Our voices are just as important as the voices of industry and must remain central to the New Source Review process.”

Read Shaina’s full testimony.

Tell EPA: No New Toxic Pollution Without Public Input

Experts agree that this year will likely break global temperature records thanks to El Niño weather patterns and human-caused climate change. Earlier this month, heat domes covered much of the West, Midwest, and Northeast, and Moms demanded that Congress step up and protect children.

Tell Congress: The Climate Clock Is Ticking. Act Now for Our Kids’ Future.

In an op-ed published in La Prensa and La Opinión, Senior Manager for Field Engagement and Partnerships Liz Hurtado writes that, for many families, fighting to protect kids against extreme heat has become “just another part of summer.”

She explains that not only is extreme heat dangerous on its own, but it can also worsen air pollution, which increases the threat of asthma attacks, lung irritation, and more. These risks are exacerbated for Latino families because they disproportionately work outside in dangerous heat or live in more polluted areas of the city.

Liz urges families to follow any guidance from healthcare providers surrounding extreme heat, check air quality before heading outdoors, and take adequate water, shade, and rest breaks when working or playing outside. But she also acknowledges that longer-term solutions require policy change.

“Clean air, reliable electricity, and safe neighborhoods shouldn’t depend on your zip code or how much you can afford to pay to stay cool. They should be a basic guarantee for every family, in every community,” Liz writes.

In the news

• In the Lansing State Journal, Michigan Field Organizer Elizabeth Hauptman (pictured) recalls the time that her son ended up in urgent care last year after a field day, struggling to breathe from an asthma attack despite using his inhaler and sheltering inside with air purifiers. Her son is one of more than 140,000 Michigan children living with asthma, and Elizabeth urges Michigan leaders to reject changes to Marathon Petroleum and MPLX permits that would increase pollution in already overburdened communities and further endanger hurting families.
• In the Austin-American Statesman, Senior Analyst for Petrochemicals Cynthia Palmer calls out EPA’s proposal to double the acceptable levels of formaldehyde exposure, arguing it would recklessly endanger children and families by going against science that shows formaldehyde causes more cancers than any other toxic air pollutant.
• Moms’ fact sheet about extreme heat and Black communities was featured in a Blavity article about why predominately Black neighborhoods face more extreme heat days than white neighborhoods.
• Moms’ Sam Schmitz explains to NBC Washington that she decided to leave Washington, DC, ahead of Trump’s plans to launch 850,000 smoky, sooty fireworks on the 4th of July to protect herself from the air pollution. Sam has asthma and spent last year struggling to breathe despite staying inside with an air purifier.

Tell Congress: The Climate Clock Is Ticking. Act Now for Our Kids’ Future.

This article is part of our series Life Under Threat, where we share the stories of families whose health has been put at risk by polluting industry, from chemical manufacturers to oil and gas operations to AI data centers.

The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the primary federal law meant to protect us from thousands of dangerous chemicals, is currently under attack in Congress. EPA administers TSCA, and some politicians, under the influence of chemical industry lobbyists, are trying to dismantle the agency’s responsibility to ensure chemicals are safe both before and after they enter the market, making it easier for things like PFAS, asbestos, and formaldehyde to get into our bodies, air, and water.

The cruelty of this effort is not lost on Emily Marpe, a self-described caregiver with three children and four grandchildren. Emily spent eight years of her life fighting tooth and nail to protect her family from forever chemicals emitted by a local plastics facility that contaminated town water and private wells across Petersburgh, New York. The story she shares with us below illustrates the absolute necessity of stronger protections from toxic chemicals.

Tell Congress: Protect Our Families From Harmful Toxic Chemicals

As told to Julie Kimmel by Emily Marpe:

In February 2016, I received a letter from Rensselaer County, where Petersburgh is, asking to test the well on my property for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), or “forever chemicals.” I was contacted because the local chemical company, Taconic Plastics, had actually reported themselves to the health department after seeing a Times Union article about PFAS contamination in Hoosick Falls, New York, about 12 miles away. [The Hoosick Falls disaster and its significant repercussions are the subject of Mariah Blake’s 2025 book They Poisoned the World.] Taconic had had PFAS emissions issues in the past.

I started Googling and learned that PFAS chemicals are concerning because they don’t break down in the environment. That’s why they’re called “forever” chemicals. They will be in our bodies for a very, very long time. PFAS exposure has been linked to thyroid problems, cancer, liver damage, immune effects, ulcerative colitis, high cholesterol, and more.

Shocking contamination levels

We got the results of our well test on a Saturday: 2,100 parts per trillion. To put that in perspective, the contaminated Hoosick Falls wells had tested around 400 or 500 parts per trillion. Our levels were four times that. I couldn’t believe it. County officials told us to stop drinking our water and brushing our teeth with it.

Of the 136 private wells that tested positive for PFAS in Petersburgh, only four tested above 2,000 parts per trillion, including mine. The four are basically in a line down the road heading away from the Taconic plant, so we assume it’s the way the aquifer underneath flows. As you get farther from the facility the contamination levels go down.

The PFAS chemicals were coming out of the smokestacks at Taconic. From there they fell into our water and soil and eventually contaminated the groundwater. It got into the environment in other ways too. They would clean the smokestack scrubbers right out in the parking lot, and the runoff flowed into the gutters. They would send leftover materials from the manufacturing processes to local farmers to spread on their fields as fertilizer. They would also bury their waste.

Next steps

The town of Petersburgh started offering bottled water for pickup weekly at Town Hall. We used this for drinking, cooking, brushing our teeth, bathing—everything.

I ran into the town supervisor at one of the Town Hall water pickups. I had just done an impromptu interview about the contamination with a news crew that happened to be there. The supervisor overheard and asked, “Do you want to cost 200 people their jobs?” And I said, “Do you want to kill my kids?” He lit a fire in me that I’ve never felt before in my life.

I fought for blood tests for my community and for water filtration for my children’s elementary school. Even though they had self-reported, Taconic didn’t want to pay for blood testing, soil sampling, or filtration systems. I brought a petition to the water distribution at Town Hall and got signatures; I went to countless community meetings, and I was on the news a lot. Eventually, Taconic agreed to all of it.

Health scares

When we finally got our blood tests, the results came in the mail. I opened my 13-year-old son’s first. He tested at 103 nanograms per liter. I knew that was high—very high. Anything over 2 ng/L could mean potential health issues related to contamination, and that risk increases at levels over 20 ng/L.

My 10-year-old daughter’s level was 207. Mine was 322. My boyfriend’s was 418—comparable with somebody who worked at a chemical plant. This was after four and a half years of exposure. I couldn’t believe these numbers.

Over the years we lived in Petersburgh, I had dry skin, severe fatigue, and headaches. I found out this was because my thyroid was out of whack. Thyroid problems run rampant in Petersburgh. My daughter has them too, and so do many of our old neighbors. Now we know that thyroid disease has been linked to PFAS exposure.

We’re also finding out about people getting cancer all the time now. Some of these cases I’ve heard about from Michael Hickey, who was instrumental in bringing to light the PFAS contamination in Hoosick Falls and who I ultimately credit with saving my family. My neighbor had colon cancer, Michael knew a teacher with cancer, our family doctor had a rare form of brain cancer, young friends of friends have testicular cancer.

Getting out of there

We moved from Petersburgh and to Hoosick Falls in 2017. People always ask why. I couldn’t stay in Petersburgh; I couldn’t be in that house under the smokestacks. The mental damage the whole situation did to me was profound. And not only that, but the water filtration system Taconic gave us had to be maintained and changed, so I would have been tied to the company for the rest of my life. I had to avoid that.

Surprisingly, the PFAS levels at my house in Petersburgh were substantially higher than those in the entire village of Hoosick Falls, which is home to two Saint-Gobain facilities with a history of polluting the local water supply. But thanks to the Times Union articles, Mariah Blake’s reporting, and advocacy efforts in Hoosick Falls, I knew the water there would be the safest possible. It would be tested and treated under watchful eyes for a long time. So that’s why we moved there.

The good news is we haven’t drunk PFAS in 10 years, and our blood levels have come down significantly. PFAS doesn’t break down, but our bodies can eliminate it eventually, over the course of years.

What we all really need

I wish we were protected from toxic chemicals like PFAS. We could save a lot of people just by proving chemicals are safe before they end up in our drinking water, air, food, clothing, hygiene products, cookware, toys, and building materials. If it builds up in bodies over time and is manufactured, it doesn’t belong in our environment.

For years, I fought for a stronger Toxic Substances Control Act, for better enforcement, for PFAS to be classified as a group of chemicals, not reviewed one type at a time. I went to Washington. I thought we were making progress, but now here we are going backward. It shouldn’t be that complicated. We should be making TSCA stronger, not weaker.

Tell Congress: Protect Our Families From Harmful Toxic Chemicals

This is part of our series Extreme Living: Climate Disruption Stories, where we share snapshots of family life in an age of extremes.

This morning when I woke up, a dark gray haze blanketed my neighborhood. It wasn’t unexpected. I live in Northern Virginia, and for two days, I had been listening to colleagues who live in New England, the Mid-Atlantic, and the Midwest tell how their families’ summer lives had been upended by dangerous air quality. Canadian wildfire smoke was back for the fourth year in a row, and it had finally arrived in the DC area.

The Air Quality Index where I live registered in the 300s, a.k.a. Code Maroon or hazardous for everyone. I’ve never seen pollution levels this high, and I’ve lived in this town my whole life. “This is an easy call to make,” read the email from my daughter’s swim league canceling practice this morning.

We considered going to (indoor) summer camp. We even drove all the way across town. But ultimately, we turned around and came home. Both my daughter and I had our doubts about the air filtration in the small single room above a pool office where this week’s camp is held. “It’s worse out here than I thought it would be,” she told me. “It’s like everyone is smoking this morning.” (What a quaint 1980s-era observation!)

Tell Congress: The Climate Clock Is Ticking. Act Now for Our Kids’ Future.

Read on for stories of how my Moms colleagues are also coping as this latest round of climate-supercharged wildfire smoke disrupts our lives and our health.

Maria Finnegan, New Hampshire

“This summer, between extreme heat and wildfire smoke drifting in from Canada, my five-year-old son has missed almost as many days of camp as he’s been able to attend. His camp wasn’t built for the climate we’re living in now. It doesn’t have air conditioning or enough indoor space to safely move children inside during dangerous heat or poor air quality events. My son is especially sensitive to heat and has already experienced heat illness. And when wildfire smoke suddenly blanketed our town, it wasn’t safe for him to be outdoors.

“The tiny particles in smoke can penetrate deep into children’s lungs, making it harder to breathe and increasing the risk of asthma attacks and other long-term health impacts. Staying home was our only safe option. My husband and I both work full-time, so every day that conditions become unsafe means scrambling to rearrange our jobs and care for our son. Parents shouldn’t have to choose between their paycheck and protecting their child’s health.”

Elizabeth Bechard, Vermont

“One of my twins lives with a complex neuroimmune illness that can cause inflammation in the brain and very difficult psychiatric symptoms. When there is wildfire smoke in the air, we are especially careful to limit their time outside—air pollution has been clearly linked to brain inflammation, and we don’t want to do anything that might make our child’s illness worse. Over the last few summers in Vermont, we’ve had to keep them home from camp for several days for this reason. It’s so painful to keep a child who desperately wants to run around and play indoors because it isn’t safe for them outside.”

Rachel Meyer, Pennsylvania

“Yesterday morning, I thought what a perfect clear day to hang out the laundry! Before I could get to the line, I noticed a wind blowing, and soon the air was hazy with smoke so thick I could not see the hills around us.

“By the time I picked up my daughter from camp, the air quality readings were already in the 400s. The air smelled like burnt wood mixed with chemicals. It made me cough. The camp director told me that the smoke was supposed to get worse and that camp was canceled for tomorrow. He fretted a bit about whether he made the right call. I assured him he did! This is too much for children’s little lungs and especially for those who already have asthma.”

Alexandra Zissu, New York

“I noticed the telltale eerie yet beautiful sunset Tuesday night and felt such dread. The summery fun vibe bubble was instantly popped. We shut all the open windows in preparation. One of my daughters, a pediatric cancer survivor, had lung radiation and is understandably terrified of wildfire smoke. By Wednesday morning it stank outside. A friend joked, Who put plastic cups on the campfire?

“Thursday at dinner my daughter asked if this is just how summers will be now—more and more days of orange haze per year? Will her future children never know the sun-filled clear days we all associate with the school-free season? I had just returned from New York City where I visited my aging father, safely indoors. The streets there were billowing with wildfire smoke, and we couldn’t even see the George Washington Bridge on the way home. It’s heartbreaking to know we could have stopped this if politicians had followed the science and not the oil and gas industry cash.”

Tell Congress: The Climate Clock Is Ticking. Act Now for Our Kids’ Future.