Climate Consciousness and the Self-Immolation of David Buckel

Fossil fuel development on American public lands like these near Sigurd, Utah contributes greatly to climate change (Credit: Ryan Beam)

On a nondescript patch of grass in New York, on the morning of April 14, 2018, an accomplished civil rights lawyer and beloved father, husband and community member sat down and calmly lit himself on fire. The note he left to the world named fossil fuels and climate change as the reason.

Maybe you have heard David Buckel’s story, but more likely you haven’t.

That morning, the headline stopped me in my tracks.