We Can Be Podcast - The Heinz Endowments

Colette Pichon Battle, Heinz Award for the Environment honoree and the vision and initiatives partner for the climate justice nonprofit Taproot Earth joins host Chris DeCardy. Colette  was inspired to shift her career from corporate law to environmental activism after her family’s experience in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina nearly two decades ago.   As the United States begins recovery from the historic devastation of Hurricanes Helene and Milton and faces increasingly serious effects of climate change, her leadership is helping address the urgent need for knowledgeable insight and direction.   “It is an emotional moment because you know that people are not going to pay attention to this issue in a deep and real way until you're hit by it,” Colette tells host and Endowments President Chris DeCardy. “But it is also a moment where I am reassured that the work that I've committed my life to is the right work.”   Born and raised in a close-knit family in the Bayou Liberty region of coastal Louisiana, Colette