Rabbi Ora Nitkin-Kaner
I know how it feels to live tensed for likely or unlikely disaster. I know how it feels to wish for a brighter collective future and feel powerless to make it happen.
My goal is to help you catch your breath and find your agency, aliveness, and even some playfulness in all this.
I am a rabbi, trauma-informed climate change chaplain, educator, and meditation teacher who leads with warmth, curiosity, gentle humor, and compassion. Over the past 16 years I have worked in prisons, hospitals, and congregations to steady folks through hard times.
Exploring Apocalypse climate change chaplaincy is an extension of my rabbinic and pastoral care work (Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, 2016), and is shaped by additional professional trainings in Climate Psychology (California Institute of Integral Studies, 2022), Clinical Pastoral Education (East Jefferson General Hospital, 2017 and Bellevue Hospital, 2013), and certified yoga and meditation teacher training (Yoga Sanctuary Academy, 2011), as well as graduate work in intergenerational trauma narratives (University of Toronto, 2008).
Please note: Rabbi Ora Nitkin-Kaner is a climate change chaplain and ordained clergy; she is not a mental health provider, and no service provided through Exploring Apocalypse should be construed as a substitute for or treatment by a mental health professional.
“I wanted to find a way out of the disbelief, despair and hopelessness that the impact of climate change was stirring in me. I tired of hearing myself having the same conversations with family and friends, some version of ‘how could this be’ and ‘what can I do?’ The sessions I had with Rabbi Ora were immensely helpful. ”
“There are so many emotions, thoughts, and fears, as well as hopes, all wrapped up together. Rabbi Ora is exquisitely skilled at guiding me through the process of untangling these many threads and exploring each one. ”
“This is an ongoing amorphous unraveling crisis...Working with Rabbi Ora has helped me experience more peace and hope, even on challenging days when the crisis seems to be worsening. As a result, I’m able to show up better for myself, my family, and my community.” ”
“I’m grateful for the opportunity to exercise the muscle of visioning positively for the future.”
but we are still alive
every time i feel lost frustrated stuck angry
or overcome by despair and grief
meaning every day, every single day . . .
i find my eyes in a mirror
and whisper: you are still alive
and to each loved one: we are still alive
- adrienne marie brown