Rainn Wilson, known to fans of the television show “The Office” as “Dwight Schrute”, has changed his name to hype climate and weather awareness as part of Arctic Basecamp, a group of scientists and fans of the Arctic to bring awareness of climate and weather beyond the Arctic circle. Wilson serves as a Board Member for Arctic Basecamp.
“With the help of my scientist friends at Arctic Basecamp, I’ve changed my name to Rainnfall Heat Wave Extreme Winter Wilson. This is not a joke, I’m as serious as the melting Arctic, which amplifies global risks including extreme weather events around the globe,” said Wilson.
The Arctic Basecamp at Davos concept was created by Executive Director Gail Whiteman as a vehicle to bring this message to global leaders. She , along with a small team, has brought the event to the World Economic Forum each year from 2017 to 2020, calling for action from global leaders to apply responsive and responsible leadership to address global risks from Arctic change. In 2021, Arctic Basecamp participated in the online Davos Agenda with a high level panel. The group also attended COP26 in Glasgow in November 2021 and Davos in May 2022.
Wilson changed his name to help drive awareness during COP27, underway now at Sharem El-Sheikh Egypt. More than 30,000 people from around the world flew into Egypt this week to hold their climate summit. Different workshops, meetings, and activities will occur at the luxury seaside resort over a period of weeks.
Wilson describes his name change as a “cheap little stunt to help save planet Earth.” Wilson is encouraging other celebrities to change their names to bring awareness to conditions in the Arctic and to help get their message through at COP27. “I am an Arctic risk name changer which is going to be a game changer,” Wilson said in a video released by Arctic Basecamp on Twitter.
Nancy Pelosi, the current Speaker of the House of Representatives, made a surprise appearance yesterday at the climate summit. U.S. President Joe Biden is due to appear at COP27 today; a delegation of his cabinet has been present all week.
