climate communications: go beyond fear, co2 and cops! by nalaka gunawardene

Communicating Climate Change:Go beyond fear, CO2 & COPs!

By Nalaka GunawardeneScience writer & communication consultant

Presentation at:Sri Lanka Next: Climate Communications

Workshop for JournalistsColombo, 19 Oct 2016

nalakagunawardene.com

Where I come from… Trained as science writer, worked in

print, broadcast & web media for 25+ yrs Been covering climate change stories

from 1988 Not obsessed with global climate talks;

instead, looking at how to prepare for inevitable impacts + climate solutions

Part of Lankan expert team that prepared National Climate Adaptation Strategy 2011-2016 (esp. comm. strategy)


International climate responsefor 20+ yrs, summed up…This is the way

ththth


Climate communication: Mostlydriven by panic, fear & hysteria…?


Have climate scientists & activists been talking in ‘right’ language?


Communications since Rio 1992:It’s now a multi-narrative world… Mainstream media: still important - even

though their influence slowly declining Many more channels & voices today:

Citizens armed with smartphones accessing online info sources, reacting & sharing

Advocacy orgs doing more direct engagement of public (without mass media)

Social Media: Blogs, FB, Instagram, Twitter: Loud, chaotic & contested public sphere!


A Tale of Two Worlds?

http://www.scidev.net/south-asia/environment/analysis-blog/climate-communication-key-to-survival.html

Proper climate communication is key to our survival. But it’s easier said than done!


Climate Communication: make it ‘Third plank’ in climate response “As climate change impacts are felt more widely,

the imperative for action is greater than ever. Telling the climate story in accurate and accessible ways should be an essential part of climate response. That response is currently organised around two ‘planks’: mitigation and adaptation. Climate communication can be the ‘third plank’ that strengthens the first two.”

- Nalaka Gunawardene, SciDev.Net, 23 Apr 2014


Change is slow…But it IS happening! We are well past the ‘ifs’ and ‘whens’ of climate

change: it’s unfolding here & today — whether we’re ready or not!

Govts are committed to Paris Agreement But they need to persuade their publics on

behaviour changes & reforms needed In democracies: public discussion & debate

vital: climate can’t be saved by diktat! Communications plays major role


Climate Communication is an art(based on science!)

Environmentalists & scientists have failed to build sufficient urgency for action. We need new communication approaches. Some basic tips:1. Tell more unique, local stories.2. Focus on audience, not argument3. Use emotion and narrative. 4. Be sensitive to North-South disparities. https://orionmagazine.org/2013/03/on-the-art-of-climate-change-communication/

Dr M SanjayanVice President & Senior Scientist, Conservation International

TV personality in the US


What is to be done?Get the messages right…

We must move away from disaster-driven climate communications of doom and gloom

Focus on climate resilience & practical solutions to achieve it

What matters to average person: Cheaper energy (economic benefit) Cleaner air (health benefit) Staying alive (public safety benefit)


Clarify popular misconceptions!


Go beyond those already ‘green’… Climate justice notions,

biodiversity conservation & other considerations appeal to those ALREADY concerned with issues.

To reach out & engage those unconverted, climate communication must use health, wealth & children


3 key tips for climate communicators… Don’t peddle fear: enough of

doom & gloom! Talk of more than disasters & destruction

Look beyond CO2, responsible for only half of global warming. Don’t forget the other half!

Focus on local level impacts & responses: most people don’t care about UNFCCC or COPs!


Greenhouse Gases: More than CO2!Others need tackling too…


Breakthrough: Using Montreal Protocol to control HFCs (legally binding treaty)

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/oct/15/climate-change-environmentalists-hail-deal-to-limit-use-of-hydrofluorocarbons


Beyond Carbon: Tackling the rest! Not all greenhouse gases warm equally. Many non-CO2 contributors have a higher

global warming potential -- or how much heat they can trap in the atmosphere.

Some linger on in the atmosphere for much shorter periods than CO2

international attention now being focused on these “short-lived climate pollutants”, or SLCPs


http://www.grida.no/graphicslib/detail/black-carbon-bc-and-co-pollutants-from-incomplete-combustion_00a4


http://www.scidev.net/south-asia/publishing/analysis-blog/sooty-south-asian-air-and-global-warming.html


We need more stories on non-carbon climate actions!

http://www.scidev.net/south-asia/publishing/analysis-blog/sooty-south-asian-air-and-global-warming.html


Challenges journalists face when covering climate change in media…

Technicalities: policymakers and public not clear about science involved

Uncertainties: further confusion caused by scientists not having all the answers

Politics: Some environmentalists use c/c to bash industrialized countries (debate gets polarized)

Language issues: Sinhala terms for weather (kala-gunaya) and climate (desha-gunaya) often get mixed up much confusion!


Update yourself with latest info:Don’t be stuck with old data!

Image by Times of India, 25 June 2015 (using 2012 data)


Don’t get too focused on annual “climate circus” of UNFCCC-COP!


Are climate COPs going to help them in time?


Journalists must connect dots…

“Most people live and work in day-to-day ‘weather’. They can’t relate to long-term ‘climate’. It’s our job [as journalists] to make those links clear, simple and accessible...”- Tarzie Vittachi (1921 – 1993)

Editor of Ceylon Observer & The Asian (Hong Kong); Columnist for: South (London), Newsweek


In connecting the dots… Balance micro level details with the

bigger/macro picture (both needed) Acknowledge nobody has all the

answers (collective action vital)… See climate as much more than an

environmental or ‘green’ issue: it also benefits human health, agriculture, and overall economics


My own Triple-S Formulain covering climate stories… Informed by Good Science (but

not immersed in it!) Tell authentic, compelling

journalistic Stories in Simple (but not simplistic)

ways (using accessible text, images, infographics, audio, video, interactive media…)


Finally, don’t waste your time on climate skeptics and denialists!


SUMMARY: Balances to keep…

Micro-Macro: pixels vs bigger picture Scientists’ cautions vs activist claims Media needs vs. public interest Sense of urgency vs. undue alarmism Catchy headlines vs. uncertainties to

be acknowledged Staying with long-term stories while

reporting current events


Ready or not…Change is coming!

Email:[email protected]:twitter.com/NalakaGBlog:Nalakagunawardene.com