2026 Programming
Check out our programming lineup for this year's conference!
June 3, 2026
10:00 AM
PLURIBUS: ONE MIND, ONE PLANET?
Speakers
Karolina Wydra (Actor, Pluribus)
Alison Tatlock (EP/Writer, Pluribus)
Steph Spiers (Founder, EP, Future in Bloom)
Apple TV+'s Pluribus captured audiences by imagining a future where humanity merges into one mind. But what that mind chooses to protect reveals everything. In conversation with the show's executive producer and cast, the panel unpacks the values embedded in that vision, why the hive mind conserves resources but abandons human longevity, and what it exposes about humanity's fractured relationship with collective action in the face of environmental crisis. “Pluribus” is produced by Sony Pictures Television.
11:00 AM
THE OVERVIEW EFFECT
Speakers
Bill Wolkoff (Writer, Co-EP, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds)
Melissa Navia (Actor, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds)
Manju Bangalore (Astronaut-In-Training & Founder, Operation Period)
Garrett Reisman (Engineer, Former NASA Astronaut)
From the awe-inspiring "Earthrise" photo to iconic sci-fi franchises like Star Trek, the way humanity views the Earth has the power to shift perspectives and forge a blueprint for shared purpose. In this session, space storytellers and experts explore how science and collaboration in storytelling can ignite public imagination and expand ideas of what is possible here on Earth.
12:00 PM
SEEKING COMMON GROUND
Stories to Shape A New Era of Conservation
Speakers
Benji Backer (Founder, Nature is Nonpartisan)
Scott Shigeoka (Author, SEEK, Creator, Curiosity Mobile)
Sacha Spector (Director of Environmental Programs, Doris Duke Foundation)
A new wave of creators is rewriting who belongs in the environmental story, reaching people who care deeply about the places their families call home but who've felt left out or caricatured by the mainstream conversation. They have real stakes in what happens next. Durable environmental action requires nuance and consensus. We'll explore which creators are breaking through authentically, how fuller stories are pulling in the audiences the mainstream is missing, and how this movement can grow the widespread coalition of common ground it needs.
2:00 PM
THE ENDGAME
A Live Playthrough of Climate Storylines in Games
Speakers
Erika Ishii (Actor, Host)
Alan Gershenfeld (President, Co-Founder, E-Line Media)
Taryn Kiekow Heimer (Director, Ocean Energy, Nature, NRDC)
A live gameplay experience where storytelling, environmental expertise, and video games collide. Notable gamers and experts come together to demonstrate how some of the world's best games have already seamlessly integrated climate themes, from tone and setting to character design, mechanics, and storylines.
3:00 PM
GLOBAL SPOTLIGHT
India’s Creative Economy, Climate Reality, & Reach
Speakers
Richa Moorjani (Actor, Activist)
Tamseel Hussain (Founder & CEO, PLUC)
India has spent decades developing climate solutions at scale, with a creativity that matches the ambition of its people, adapting, innovating, and building responses to a crisis already reshaping lives across 1.4 billion residents. The Climate Scriptwriting Lab, launched by Pluc.tv and Netflix India, is bringing those solutions to the screen. This conversation explores why India's storytelling tradition is uniquely equipped to carry that weight, what makes Indian stories distinct, why global demand for them is growing, and why the intersection of one of the world's great creative economies with one of its most urgent climate realities is a moment the rest of the world should be paying attention to.
4:00 PM
Program Details Coming Soon!
Speakers
TBA
5:00 PM
ON THE STAND:
The People v. Big Meat & Dairy
Performers & Experts
Esteban Gast (Comedian)
Joanna Hausmann (Writer, Comedian)
Milana Vayntrub (Actor, Comedian)
Joey Bragg (Actor, Comedian)
Anna Garcia (Comedian)
Suzie Hicks (Educator, Filmmaker)
Dr. Christopher Carter (Associate Professor of Theology, Ecology, and Race at the Methodist Theological School)
The summit’s comedian lawyers are back for the second edition of the On the Stand mock trial. This time, the meat and dairy industries' messaging tactics are on trial: from the "Got Milk" celebrity campaign that permeated the collective psyche to the current misconceptions clouding public understanding of food and health.
June 4, 2026
2:00 PM
FOOD SYSTEM MESSAGING, UNPACKED
Speakers
James Wilks (The Game Changers)
Kip Andersen (What The Health, Cowspiracy)
Stephanie Soechtig (Poisoned, Fed Up)
Got Milk, the food pyramid, free range labels, sustainability pledges… What do these all have in common? They were deliberate disinformation strategies backed by decades of Big Industry investment. This conversation with the filmmakers behind The Game Changers, Cowspiracy, What the Health, Fed Up, and Poisoned goes inside how those narratives were built, the backlash that comes with challenging them, and what it takes to make a documentary that actually changes minds in a world increasingly resistant to being changed.
2:30 PM
HOW FOOD TELLS OUR STORIES
Speakers
Tiny Chef (Star, The Tiny Chef Show)
Rachel Carsen (Co-Creator, The Tiny Chef Show)
Jason Kolowski (Co-Creator, The Tiny Chef Show)
Maggie Baird (Actor, Activist)
Carmen Santillan (Founder, Cena Vegan)
Alex Blue Davis (Actor, Grey's Anatomy, Station 19)
The food on our plates and the stories we tell are two of the most powerful levers we have for the planet. But how do we connect the two in a way that actually moves people? This conversation brings together plant-based chefs, storytellers, and advocates to explore how transmedia food messaging is shifting culture and, from the internet's tiniest herbivore chef to the frontlines of plant-based food advocacy, and what it looks like when the kitchen and creativity become catalysts for climate action.
3:00 PM
THE PLASTIC DETOX
Speakers
Peyton List (Actor, Advocate)
Josh Murphy (Co-Director, The Plastic Detox)
Rev. Lennox Yearwood Jr. (President & CEO, Hip Hop Caucus)
Dr. Jasmine McDonald (Associate Professor of Epidemiology, Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health)
Plastic is everywhere, even inside our bodies. It's harming our health and our communities, making this crisis deeply personal. How can we break up with plastic and reclaim our health? This session spotlights the new Netflix documentary, The Plastic Detox, in an interactive conversation with storytellers, experts, and advocates.
4:00 PM
GREENLIGHT CALIFORNIA
Why Hollywood's Future Depends on CA's Infrastructure
Speakers
Bill Wolkoff (Writer, Co-EP, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds)
Carter Lavin (Co-Founder, Transbay Coalition and Author: If You Want to Win, You've Got to Fight: A Guide to Effective Transportation Advocacy)
From greenlighting High Speed Rail development projects to keeping film and TV production in LA, California stands at a pivotal crossroads for the future of its industries. LA's climate infrastructure is directly linked to Hollywood's long-term viability, and this session brings together cross-industry coalitions to imagine and shape what that future could look like.
5:00 PM
CHEW ON THIS
Live Documentary Pitch
Competition Judges
James Wilks (The Game Changers)
Kip Andersen (What The Health, Cowspiracy)
Stephanie Soechtig (Poisoned, Fed Up)
A live pitch show down for storytellers brave enough to tackle our broken food system. Take the stage in LA, win up to $50,000 and help us figure out what on earth we’re supposed to be eating.
7:00 PM
SCORCHED: Comedy Show
Comedians & Actors
Reggie Watts (Comedian & Musician)
Esteban Gast (Comedian)
Rasheda Crockett (Actor, Comedian)
Andrew Zuber (Magician, TV Writer)
Brittany Bell Surratt (Comedian)
Brad Einstein (Comedian, Writer, Puppeteer)
Chloe Hull, Koyote Manske, Liam Connelly, & Sam Nelson (CU Boulder Performers)
An interactive comedy, sketch, and variety show to close out the 2026 Hollywood Climate Summit!!!
8:00 PM
CLOSING PARTY
HCS 2026 Closing Party!
Drinks, bites, the best vibes!