Iris Fen Gilligham '22 with former mayor of New York City Michael Bloomberg at the premiere of "Paris to Pittsburgh."
Iris Fen Gillingham has felt the effects of climate change in her own life. When she was six years old, her family’s farm in Youngsville experienced severe flooding that wiped out top soil and left the land ravaged. Now as an 18-year-old in college, Iris hopes to make the world a better place for generations to come.
“I know what it’s like to feel the effects of what Mother Nature can do,” Iris said. “And now we are seeing these issues all over the world.”
You can watch Iris speak about climate change in the new documentary “Paris to Pittsburgh” presented by National Geographic and produced by Radical Media in partnership with Bloomberg Philanthropies. It’s airing globally in 172 countries and 43 languages and you can watch it on the National Geographic website.
The film highlights the Paris Climate Agreement and the remark that U.S. President Donald Trump made about pulling out of it, saying “I was elected to represent the people of Pittsburgh, not Paris.” Featuring politicians, climate experts and activists, “Paris to Pittsburgh” celebrates how Americans are demanding and developing real solutions in the face of climate change.
In the film, Iris speaks at a rally in Washington D.C. as part of Zero Hour, a movement to center the voices of diverse youth in the conversation around climate and environmental justice.
