Seeds of Resistance, With Vivien Sansour
On A People’s Climate: “If you want to support Palestine, get free.”
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Seeds of Resistance with Vivien Sansour | A People’s Climate
In this episode of A People’s Climate, host Shilpi Chhotray sits down with Vivien Sansour, founder of the Palestine Heirloom Seed Library, for a powerful conversation about resistance in the face of Israeli militarism, occupation, and ecological devastation.
For two years, the world watched Israel’s genocide in Gaza and ethnic cleansing campaign across Palestine — including the annihilation of Palestinian land, contamination of water, and the carbon-intensive bombardment that has choked the air and scorched the soil. Entire food systems have been erased. And yet, so many environmentalists remain silent. Vivien makes it clear that climate conversations cannot be separated from Western imperialism and genocide.
From saving heirloom seeds to ancestral farming practices, Vivien shares how Palestinian farmers and land stewards are not only protecting the environment but also preserving culture, memory, and survival itself.
Key Themes & Topics:
- The intersection of conservation, human rights, and food sovereignty
- Why protecting heirloom seeds is essential for culture, memory, and survival
- Israeli militarism and settler expansion in Palestine
- Ancestral agricultural practices that date back tens of thousands of years
- The long-standing destructive impact of industrialized agriculture on land and food systems
- Global solidarity with Palestine
Resources
- Palestine Heirloom Seed Library
- Traveling Kitchen
- Subversive Rebels by Vivien Sansour
Palestinian Land, Heritage, and Identity – Shilpi Chhotray in conversation with Rania Batrice
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In this episode of A People’s Climate, host Shilpi Chhotray sits down with Vivien Sansour, founder of the Palestine Heirloom Seed Library, for a powerful conversation about resistance in the face of Israeli militarism, occupation, and ecological devastation.
For two years, the world watched Israel’s genocide in Gaza and ethnic cleansing campaign across Palestine—including the annihilation of Palestinian land, the contamination of Palestinian water, and the carbon-intensive bombardment that has choked the air and scorched the soil. Entire food systems have been erased. And yet, so many environmentalists remain silent. Vivien makes it clear that climate conversations cannot be separated from Western imperialism and genocide.
From saving heirloom seeds to ancestral farming practices, Vivien shares how Palestinian farmers and land stewards are not only protecting the environment but also preserving culture, memory, and survival itself.
Resources
- Palestine Heirloom Seed Library
- Traveling Kitchen
- Subversive Rebels by Vivien Sansour
Palestinian Land, Heritage, and Identity – Shilpi Chhotray in conversation with Rania Batrice
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The Nation Podcasts
Here's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.
Reframing Resistance (Live from NYC Climate Week) | A People’s Climate
For this special season finale, recorded live during NYC Climate Week, host Shilpi Chhotray convenes a powerful storytelling event with three frontline media makers: Chantel Comardelle, Alexandra Norris, and B. Preston Lyles.
This is more than a conversation about films or campaigns — it’s an intimate window into the lived realities of climate and environmental injustice. From Indigenous land loss in Louisiana, to the ongoing fight against the petrochemical buildout in Cancer Alley, to exposing the violence of toxic prisons, this discussion centers the human stories too often sidelined in mainstream climate narratives.
Our guests speak candidly about their experiences, what sustains them in the face of systemic harm, why frontline voices must lead solutions, and how storytelling itself becomes a vital tool of resistance, survival, and collective power.
This live storytelling event was made possible in partnership with Dr. Margot Brown, Senior Vice President of Justice and Equity at the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) and the Frontline Resource Institute. Special thanks to Chess Jakobs, Counterstream Media’s Impact Producer, who produced this event.
Key Topics
- Frontline climate and environmental justice: Stories from communities directly impacted by the climate crisis and extractive industries.
- Indigenous displacement: The Isle de Jean Charles Choctaw Nation and climate-driven migration.
- Sharon Lavigne’s fight against petrochemical expansion in Cancer Alley
- Toxic prisons: The intersection of mass incarceration, environmental harm, and systemic injustice.
- How spiritual grounding and faith sustains organizing. Using film and media to reclaim narratives and highlight underrepresented stories.
- Narrative power: How media shapes perception, policy, and the climate movement’s priorities.
Resources
Isle de Jean Charles Choctaw Nation
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