Acclaimed author and queer activist Taylor Brorby confronts the escalating authoritarian backlash against LGBTQ rights, questioning why this battle persists. As a writer also addressing the fossil

Acclaimed author and queer activist Taylor Brorby confronts the escalating authoritarian backlash against LGBTQ rights, questioning why this battle persists. As a writer also addressing the fossil fuel industry's role in climate chaos, Brorby faces a dilemma: the existential crises impacting nature and LGBTQ people.

He argues these struggles are interconnected. Brorby seeks to reconcile nature, culture, diversity, and belonging, emphasizing that all these elements are part of a unified fight.

Taylor Brorby, a poet, writer, and activist, grew up in North Dakota, witnessing the environmental and personal scars inflicted by the fossil fuel industry. A profound critic, his works include

Taylor Brorby, a poet, writer, and activist, grew up in North Dakota, witnessing the environmental and personal scars inflicted by the fossil fuel industry. A profound critic, his works include the memoir *Boys and Oil: Growing Up Gay in a Fractured Land*, essays in *Civil Disobedience*, and co-edited *Fracture*. He seeks to inspire passion to protect the biosphere.

Brorby is also the author of *Crude: Poems*, with work appearing in *The NY Times* and *Orion*. He has received prestigious fellowships and teaches nonfiction writing at the University of Alabama.

This keynote talk was delivered at the 2024 Bioneers Conference. Explore other talks at bioneers.org.