Natural photographer on climate change: 'It's a tragedy that it's been politicized'

SARASOTA — Photographer James Balog spends his time documenting climate change with his camera, capturing time-lapse images of retreating glaciers and footage of raging wildfires ravaging a landscape.

It may feel like his life's purpose, but the job still takes a toll. Balog has had knee surgeries and seen humanity's effects on nature at their worst. Yet he's guided by one firm belief: stay positive in the wake of climate change.

"How do I keep from being depressed and upset?" Balog said. "That hits me often at 3 in the morning. But I believe that the only thing that does good is optimism."

Balog spoke to a full audience at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall as part of the Ringling College Library Association’s Town Hall Lecture Series. Much of his presentation focused on his work depicting the changes in glaciers over time. Starting in spring 2007, Balog set up stationary time-lapse cameras at 36 sites across the globe, including Alaska, Iceland and Antarctica. The result was 1.4 million pictures showing the deterioration of glaciers in an attempt to illuminate climate change in real time. The project also resulted in a documentary on Balog’s efforts, entitled “Chasing Ice.”

“We have lived in a fairly narrow zone of temperature and moisture for the last 10,000 years,”  Balog said. “To ignore (climate change), we’re basically gambling in our world."

Although climate change has been a controversial topic politically, Balog rejected those who view it as a partisan topic. Instead, he said climate change is simply an objective fact regardless of political party.

“It’s a tragedy that the issue has been politicized,” Balog said. “It never should’ve been turned into political football.”

At that statement, nearly the entire audience began to applaud.

Outside of the Van Wezel, friends Marcia Knight, Lynne Bennett and Joan Paulus lingered by the bay, discussing the talk. Knight said she found it “enlightening” and that Balog's passion for the issues came across.

“I’m moving back north,”  Bennett joked in response to his comments about sea level rise.

“Because we’re all going to be flooded,”  Paulus seconded.

Such conversations seem to be part of Balog’s objective in his daily work. His chief concern now is looking to the future.

“I want to be able to tell my daughters, ‘Girls, I did the best I could,’” Balog said. “I want to use my voice to help others use their voices."