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Heroes

Meet the man trying to use conservative values to fight climate change.

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Starbucks Upstanders Season 2

The sixth time he ran for Congress, Rep. Bob Inglis (R-South Carolina) made two big mistakes.

The second mistake, according to Inglis, was when he refused to confirm at a town hall event that President Barack Obama was indeed an evil secret non-American Muslim socialist.

But the truly shameful blunder that would cost him the election was when he spoke the words: "Climate change is real. Let’s do something about it."


"I got 29% of the vote after 12 years in Congress," he says today with a self-effacing chuckle. "A rather spectacular face-plant, really."

[rebelmouse-image 19529601 dam="1" original_size="1260x900" caption="Inglis, left, meets with troops in Ghana in 2010. Photo via U.S. Army Africa/Flickr." expand=1]Inglis, left, meets with troops in Ghana in 2010. Photo via U.S. Army Africa/Flickr.

With his Congress career officially over, Inglis decided to dedicate himself to finding conservative solutions to climate change.

Two years after his failed re-election campaign, he launched an advocacy group called RepublicEn through the Energy and Enterprise Initiative at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia.

Inglis hoped to use traditional Republican values such as free enterprise, limited government, accountability, and reasonable risk avoidance to shape the climate conversation in a way that would appeal to people in the reddest of the red communities.

His mission took him all the way from Antarctica to Tangier Island, Virginia, a small crabbing community in the Chesapeake Bay.

Tangier Island is perhaps best known as the setting for the battle that inspired "The Star-Spangled Banner," but today, Tangier Island is losing about 15 feet of land every year from rising sea levels — and many of its 700 residents still don't believe in the threat of climate change.

Inglis thought that if they heard about climate change from a person who holds many of their ideologies and is just more like them, the residents there might say, "Yeah, we're for that."

[rebelmouse-image 19529602 dam="1" original_size="1280x853" caption="Tangier Island. Photo by Eli Christman/Wikimedia Commons." expand=1]Tangier Island. Photo by Eli Christman/Wikimedia Commons.

But it turned out that was easier said than done:

Upstanders: Disappearing Island

After a conversation with his son, this conservative congressman decided to tackle climate change, head-on.

Posted by Upworthy on Tuesday, November 7, 2017

With help from Tangier Mayor James Eskridge, Inglis arranged a conversation with locals over a crab salad dinner.

He tried to appeal to them as a fellow Christian with an impressive resume of endorsements from conservative groups such as the NRA and the National Right to Life Committee.

The people of Tangier listened and responded to what he had to say, but they still insisted that the island wasn't suffering from climate change. It was just natural erosion or settling soil — nothing that needed a long-term solution except perhaps a seawall.

"When I see the sea level rising, I’ll shout it from the rooftops. But I’m just not seeing it," said Eskridge. "I’m not lying about it or denying it, I’m just telling you what I see."

[rebelmouse-image 19529603 dam="1" original_size="1280x827" caption="Soft shell crab houses on Tangier Island. Photo by David Broad/Wikimedia Commons." expand=1]Soft shell crab houses on Tangier Island. Photo by David Broad/Wikimedia Commons.

When Inglis asked why, as conservatives, they didn't want to listen to scientists, the answer was simple: resentment.

"We’re nothing," one resident said. "They’ve made fun, ridiculed. But you let a scientist talk, and everybody listens. Scientist is fine, but we’re forgetting the experience that people have."

"With some of 'em you get a smart mouth, and we’re not into that. We don’t need a smart mouth," another added.

"We’re all about protecting the Chesapeake Bay. It’s more important to us than it is to any scientist or regulator," the mayor said. "But when they talk about fixing the environment, they go to extremes, and they leave the common guy out."

[rebelmouse-image 19529604 dam="1" original_size="1280x960" caption="County Dock, Tangier Island. Photo by Seriousresearcher13/Wikimedia Commons." expand=1]County Dock, Tangier Island. Photo by Seriousresearcher13/Wikimedia Commons.

Inglis understood this attitude. It was one he had himself back when he was still a party-line Republican in Congress.

"If you represented the reddest district in the reddest state in the nation like I did, you just knew that Al Gore was for it, and so therefore, you should be against it," he says.

But now he knows: That hyper-partisan, us-or-them divide doesn't solve the real problems we're facing. It only helps to make the divide — and the resentment — dig in even deeper.

Inglis tried to explain to residents how conservatives could incentivize the right behavior and steer the environmental conversation without the federal government getting in the way. He appealed to their logic by pointing out that even if they don't believe in rising sea levels, higher tides still mean more erosion, so maybe there is something that could be done about it.

[rebelmouse-image 19529605 dam="1" original_size="1280x833" caption="Wallace Road Bridge, Tangier Island. Photo by David Broad/Wikimedia Commons." expand=1]Wallace Road Bridge, Tangier Island. Photo by David Broad/Wikimedia Commons.

In the end, not many were convinced, and only one Tangier resident expressed that day that maybe mankind had something to do with climate change.

But that doesn't mean that Inglis's mission was a failure.

Eskridge remained skeptical about the climate issue, for example. But he was still moved by the conversation. "[Inglis was] very polite about it," he said. "We’ve had other folks come in, and because we had different opinions on the climate change and sea-level-rise issue, they really got nasty about it. ... Bob’s approach was the way you should approach these things."

[rebelmouse-image 19529606 dam="1" original_size="1280x853" caption="Photo by Eli Christman/Wikimedia Commons." expand=1]Photo by Eli Christman/Wikimedia Commons.

Inglis didn't change as many minds that day as he had hoped.

But he certainly opened some minds and tempered some of that resentment by connecting with people and treating them dignity and respect.

The fight to save our planet might still have a long way to go, but as Inglis's journey shows, it has to start with human beings.

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Three women, three MS journeys: How multiple sclerosis looks different for everyone

Gina, Nathalie and Helga share their reactions to being diagnosed with MS and how they stay informed and positive in the face of ever-changing symptoms.

Courtesy of Sanofi

Helga, Nathalie and Gina all have MS, and their experiences show how differently the disease can manifest.

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It’s been 155 years since neurologist Jean-Martin Charcot gave the first lecture on a mysterious progressive illness he called “multiple sclerosis.” Since then, we’ve learned a lot. We know MS causes the immune system to attack healthy tissue, including damaging the brain and spinal cord. Resulting symptoms can be debilitating and include fatigue, blurred vision, memory problems and weakness. Huge advancements in our understanding of MS and its underlying causes, as well as treatment advances, have been made in the past few decades, but MS remains a complex and unpredictable reality for the 2.8 million+ people diagnosed around the world.

Ironically, the only real constant for people living with MS is change. There’s no set pattern or standard progression of the disease, so each person’s experience is unique. Some people with MS have mild symptoms that worsen slowly but sometimes improve, while others can have severe symptoms that drastically alter their daily lives.

All people with MS share some things in common, however, such as the need to stay informed on the ever-evolving research, find various lines of support and try to remain hopeful as they continue living with the disease.

To better understand what navigating life with MS really looks like, three women shared their MS stories with us. Their journeys demonstrate how MS can look different for different people and interestingly, how the language used to talk about the disease can greatly impact how people understand their realities.

woman with horse, woman riding horseGina loves riding her horse, Benita.Courtesy of Sanofi

Gina—Hamburg, Germany (diagnosed with relapsing multiple sclerosis in 2017)

When her youngest son was 4 months old, Gina started having problems with her eye. She’d soon learn she was experiencing optic neuritis—her first symptom of MS.

“Immediately after the diagnosis, I looked up facts on MS because I didn’t know anything about it,” Gina says. “And as soon as I knew what could really happen with this disease, I actually got scared.”

As her family’s primary income provider, she worried about how MS would impact her ability to work as a writer and editor. Her family was afraid she was going to end up in a wheelchair. However, for now, Gina’s MS is managed well enough that she still works full-time and is able to be active.

“When I tell somebody that I have MS, they often don't believe me the first time because I don't fulfill any stereotypes,” she says.

Overwhelmed by negative perspectives on living with MS, Gina sought support in the online MS community, which she found to be much more positive.

“I think it’s important to use as many positive words as you can when talking about MS.” It’s important to be realistic while also conveying hope, she says. “MS is an insidious disease that can cause many bad symptoms…that can be frightening, and you can't gloss over it, either.”

To give back to the online community that helped her so much, Gina started a blog to share her story and help others trying to learn about their diagnosis.

Though she deals with fatigue and cognitive dysfunction sometimes, Gina stays active swimming, biking, riding horses and playing with her sons, who are now 11 and 6.

Cognitive dysfunction is common in MS, with over half of people affected. It can impact memory, attention, planning, and word-finding. As with many aspects of MS, some people experience mild changes, while others face more challenges.

Gina says that while there’s still a lot of education about MS needed, she feels positive about the future of MS because there’s so much research being done.

woman in wheelchair holding medal, woman rowingNathalie is an award-winning rower with multiple international titles.Courtesy of Sanofi

Nathalie — Pennes Mirabeau, France (diagnosed with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis in 2002)

Nathalie was a teenager and a competitive athlete when she noticed her first symptoms of MS, but it would take four years of “limbo” before she was diagnosed.

“Ultimately, the diagnosis was more of a relief, than a shock,” she says. “Because when you have signs and you don’t know why, it’s worse than knowing, in the end, what you have.”

However, learning more about the disease—and the realities of disease progression—scared her.

“That glimpse of the future was direct and traumatic,” she says. Her neurologist explained that the disease evolves differently for everyone, and her situation might end up being serious or very mild. So, she decided to stop comparing herself to others with MS.

She said to herself, “We’ll see what happens, and you’ll manage it bit by bit.”

By 2005, Nathalie’s MS had progressed to the point of needing a wheelchair. However, that has not dampened her competitive spirit.

Nathalie began her international rowing career in 2009 and has won multiple world titles, including two Paralympic medals—silver in London and bronze in Tokyo. Now, at 42, she still trains 11 times a week. Fatigue can be a problem, and sometimes hard workouts leave her with muscle stiffness and shaking, but she credits her ongoing sports career for helping her feel in tune with her body’s signals.

“Over the years, I’ve learned to listen to my body, letting my body guide when I need to stop and take breaks,” she says.

Nathalie explains that she used to only look backwards because of the initial shock of her diagnosis. In time, she stopped thinking about what she couldn’t do anymore and focused on her future. She now lives in the following mindset: “Even when doors close, don’t miss out on those that open.” Instead of focusing on what she can’t do, she focuses on the opportunities she still has. Right now, this includes her training for the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris, where she will compete for another rowing medal.

“I only go forward,” she says. “Well, I try, anyway…It’s easy to say, it’s not always easy to do. But that’s what I try to do.”

woman exiting water after swimming, woman with great daneHelga's Great Dane has become a helpful and beloved companion.Courtesy of Sanofi

Helga—Johannesburg, South Africa (diagnosed with relapsing multiple sclerosis in 2010)

When Helga first started having balance issues and numbness in her feet, she chalked it up to her training as a runner. But when the numbness moved to her face, she knew something was wrong. She never guessed it was MS.

“When I was diagnosed, I felt completely overwhelmed and clueless,” Helga says. “I felt that I had nowhere near enough information. I did not know anything about the disease…I had no idea that it was going to be a process of continually monitoring and adjusting your lifestyle.”

In the beginning, Helga’s symptoms developed slowly, and she didn’t appear ill to others. She was even able to run for a few years after her diagnosis, but she couldn’t do marathons anymore, and she began to fall frequently due to balance issues and right-foot dragging. Then her cognition issues became more problematic, especially in her job as a trainer in a printing company.

“My executive function, decision-making and short-term memory were affected to the point that I was eventually medically unfit for work,” she says. She stopped working in 2017.

However, she didn’t stop living life. Even though she could no longer run, she continued to swim competitively. She got a Great Dane puppy and trained him as a service dog to help her walk. She also serves as vice chair of the patient support organization Multiple Sclerosis South Africa, and she advises others who have been diagnosed to join a patient advocacy group as soon as possible to get reliable information and meet others with MS.

Helga says she is “hopeful” about the future of MS. “I must say that I am so grateful that we have all the new medications available, because my life would not be the same if it wasn't for that,” she adds.

Part of how she manages her MS is by looking at the positives.

“If I could tell the world one thing about MS, it would be that MS is an incurable disease of the nervous system, but it's also the greatest teacher of valuing your health, family, friends, and managing change in your life,” she says. “My life is diversified in a way that I never, ever thought it would, and MS has been honestly the greatest teacher.”

Each MS journey is unique – with each person impacted experiencing different struggles, successes, and feelings as they manage this unpredictable disease. But the common thread is clear – there is a critical need for information, support, and hope. We are proud to participate in World MS Day and share these incredible stories of living life while living with MS. To learn more about MS, go to https://www.sanofi.com/why-words-really-matter-when-it-comes-to-multiple-sclerosis.

MAT-GLB-2301642-v1.0-05/2023

This article was sponsored by Sanofi. Participants were compensated when applicable.

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The American Kennel Club has crowned a new favorite.

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