Black Conservationist: Kappa Alpha Psi Hunter Opens Up About Climate Change In North Carolina

“Mother Nature tells you in a myriad of ways that something is a-kilter,” Kappa Alpha Psi brother Kelly Darden says in an interview produced by David Salvesen of the University of North Carolina Institute for the Environment on the daily lives of North Carolinians experiencing climate change.

Brother Darden is a writer/advocate, conservationist and public speaker who enjoys small-game hunting in the woods of eastern North Carolina.“It’s not about what you take, it’s about the experience, the thrill of the unknown and what you may possibly find,” he says about hunting which he explains is, “almost a kind of religious experience.”

Darden says that things are changing. As a native of North Carolina who grew up hunting, Darden says that he and other hunters are starting to notice the impact of climate change because as hunters, they are “more attuned to noticing things that change over the years.” He states that among the many negative changes he is “bombarded by mosquitoes, an infestation that was unheard of as a kid,” that are due to changing climate.

Darden worries that people are missing out on experiencing nature first-hand and stresses that change needs to be made. According to him, debate about climate change has gone on “long enough.”

“We cannot continue to do what we’ve been doing and expect results to be different.”

“We need to start yesterday.”

Watch the video below and share with your friends on Facebook.

Too often, we do not hear about how climate change is affecting the African-American community and we at Watch The Yard believe these stories and narratives are important.

Photo Credit:  Climate Stories NC