Rainn Wilson "changes" his name to raise awareness for climate change
Describing it as a "cheap stunt," actor Rainn Wilson introduced himself with a new name on social media Thursday, calling himself "Rainnfall Heat Wave Rising Sea Levels Wilson" in an effort to raise awareness about climate change.
On behalf of environmental advocacy group Arctic Basecamp, "The Office" star posted a video discussing the worldwide impacts of weather shifts in the Arctic.
"What happens in the Arctic, doesn't stay in the Arctic," Wilson said in his video. "As the polar caps melt, it drives up risks throughout the world, including extreme weather events that affect all of us."
Wilson said changing his name, and asking others to follow suit, would help to raise awareness of these dangers, especially as world leaders have gathered in Egypt for the COP27 international climate change conference.
"As a cheap little stunt to help save planet Earth, I've changed my name on Twitter, Instagram and even on my fancy writing paper," he quipped. "I'm an Arctic risk name changer which is going to be a game changer."
Wilson tweeted that he was not actually able to change his name on Twitter, however, because of the temporary restriction on name changes for verified accounts, implemented by new Twitter owner Elon Musk.
The sitcom star also tweeted that if enough people changed their names, they would get the attention of world leaders at COP27.
"If enough of us do this, then maybe @cop27_egypt will be where our world leaders sit up and notice Arctic risks and introduce a solution," he wrote.
Wilson already created a list of new names for his fellow celebrities, such as "Cardi The Arctic B Melting," "Amy Poehler Bears Are Endangered," "Samuel Earth Is Getting Hot As L. Jackson" and "Harrison Why Not Drive An Electric? Ford."