Maeve Merwin
I am a changemaker, and I’m a CEC Climate Steward.
Maeve Merwin working as a guest experience associate at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History Sea Center.
“Most people feel uncomfortable talking about climate change, so that’s exactly where I wanted to start. The Climate Stewards course gave me the tools to have those conversations in a way that feels approachable and brings people together.
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About Maeve
Maeve Merwin came to CEC's Climate Stewards course with a solid foundation — a degree in Environmental Studies from UC Santa Barbara and two years working at the Museum of Natural History's Sea Center. But knowing the science wasn’t enough to move the needle. She wanted to learn how to connect with people outside the environmental community and inspire action, not just awareness. She enrolled in the Climate Stewards course to find that missing piece.
Through the course, Maeve learned that while many people care about climate change, they often feel uncomfortable talking about it. Rather than avoid that discomfort, she decided to create space for it. Her Stewardship Project, the “Climate Change Chat,” is an interpretive talk at the Sea Center designed to provide the public with a safe, participatory space for honest conversations about the climate crisis.
CEC equipped Maeve with communication tools tailored to diverse audiences, strategies for connecting across differences through shared values, and techniques for making climate conversations more memorable and meaningful. Today, her Climate Change Chat helps visitors engage with climate change in a way that feels approachable and participatory rather than intimidating. Inspired by her experience, Maeve has also stepped into a teaching assistant role for the Fall 2026 Climate Stewards course, helping guide and support the next cohort of community climate leaders.
