Billie Eilish to host climate panel event in central London

As if she wasn’t cool enough already, vegan pop star, Billie Eilish, will be in London this June to raise awareness for climate change with an event called “Overheated”. The event will be running from the 10^th June and proceeds will go to Support + Feed and REVERB. Support + Feed are an action group trying to promote an equitable plant-based food system for all, whilst REVERB is a non-profit working to make concerts, festivals and venues sustainable, as well as asking musicians to speak out about the climate crisis.

Billie Eilish is affiliated with Music Declares Emergency, a group of artists looking to use their talents and following to do their part in combatting the climate crisis. Beautifully written on their website is their ethos, which states “We believe in the power of music to promote the necessary cultural changes to create a greener, fairer, better future”. Not to mention, Billie Eilish has been vegan since the age of 12!

We may be seeing a rising trend of artists using their platforms to demand change, with recent movie “Don’t Look Up”utilising the metaphor of a comet headed to destroy earth to portray the  insanity of the US government, corporations and media in their ignorance and apathy over the greatest threat to humanity.

The event will take place across 6 days at the London O2 centre, featuring panel discussions, performances, advice on taking climate action, as well as daily documentary viewings. Topics that will be discussed include the transition to plant-based diets, as well as how the fashion and music industries can be made sustainable, alongside other areas of pollutive consumption that need to be re-evaluated.

In addition, the event hopes to address the weight that eco-activism bares on an individual, and to discuss the pressure of making changes, reminding us that it is hard to be perfect and that we should treat each other with love and kindness as we attempt to create a sustainable utopia.

If you can’t come along, a documentary that will be playing over the course of the event will be available online at WePresent.

If we are going to defeat toxic global systems that allow a few of us to live in luxury, depleting natural resources and destabilising the climate, whilst millions starve and are displaced from their homes… we need people from all walks of life to do their part. Whether you are an artist with a following, a scientist working to change the system, a political activist challenging the government, a teacher educating children, a health worker amidst the pandemic of eco-anxiety, a waitress who demands their workplace to recycle, or literally anyone! There is a role for you in this movement. And if you want to be on the right side of history, you will rise up and take it.

Our governments are failing us and have been for decades, it’s up to the people to show them that we want change and we want it now. So show your support, discuss environmental issues with people in a loving and understanding way and tune in for Overheated with your favourite plant-based snack.

Article written by Aisling Geraghty- United Kingdom