Communicating Climate Change
If you want to communicate climate change issues in your community, there are ways to do this. But the overriding message is - keep it simple! When we think of prime movers in the communication of climate change, probably the first name that comes to mind is former US Vice-President Al Gore. His slideshow-turned-documentaryfeature has been screened in cinemas, schools, village halls and community buildings across the UK, and now he’s a Nobel Peace Prize winner to boot. However, the reality is that few people have the resources, the time or the stature for this kind of exercise. And so with Al Gore setting the benchmark for climate change communications, should the rest of us bother?
The answer, according to CAfE manager Robert Bell, is a resounding ‘yes!’. “For many people the most persuasive messages come not from hi-tech shows like Gore’s or from mainstream media like TV or national press, but from
people within their own community.And this is where CAfE has strength in abundance.” Of course a great many CAfE members are already communicating climate change. Some do this directly. For them, climate change is the motivating factor behind their work. For others it is issues like fuel poverty, or saving money on energy bills that drive the project - climate change may be a secondary issue, but one still communicated nonetheless.
Communicating climate change
• do stay positive
• do accept that others may have different priorities
• do keep it simple and avoid contradictory or multiple messages
• don’t terrify your audience or bamboozle them with information
• don’t exaggerate
• don’t be angry or critical
So how do we communicate effectively? Robert stresses the virtues of ‘keeping it simple’. “Polls show that virtually all UK adults have heard of climate change, and that two-thirds believe it is human induced. In other words, the overall level of understanding of the issues is high, and there is generally no need to tell people what they already know. We don’t have to tell the whole story.”
Find out more
Should you wish to delve deeper into the science of communicating climate change, the following reports will help:
Tipping Point or Turning Point? (available from www.ipsos-mori.com)
New Rules: New Game (available from www.futerra.co.uk )
