Empowering Communities, Fighting Climate Change

Too often, activists are featured in mainstream media during moments of extreme trauma and havoc. It’s a narrative that, for the most part, does not accurately reflect the full lived experience of the respective communities. 

TOKALA—a photographic series that takes its name from the historical Tokala (Kit Fox) Society of the Lakota Tribe and refers to a group of warriors who showed bravery and leadership from a young age—is a visual response to this misrepresentation. The intention is to not only humanize these individuals and communities, but to show them in their beauty, power, and strength. 

Featuring 12 activists from 10 locations across the United States, the series reflects the differences in climate and lifestyle in each region as well as the through line of injustice that connects them. Climate change is the product of a myriad of systemic social issues that can all be traced back to capitalism, imperialism, and racism. Though the causes have a long and nuanced history, the consistent and glaring reality is that QBIPOC communities have always been those most affected by climate change. It is also these communities that have consistently been at the forefront of the fight against it.

TOKALA was led by creative director and stylist Marcus Correa, along with photographer Carlos Jaramillo, filmmaker Jazmin Garcia, and Thomas Lopez, the manager of the nonprofit Future Coalition‘s Youth Direct Action Fund.