ENGLISH 23
(A.K.A. CLIMATE CRISIS 101)
Deep Dive
Communicating the Climate Crisis: vegans and freegans, vegetarians and climatarians
Like we have discussed in the class already, we already have the technology needed to meet the planet’s energy needs, the problem lies elsewhere. One of the problems being an uninformed public, mostly through no fault of their own.
Talking to an Uncle Pete I think would be challenging because it’s hard to control the anger I feel in their ignorance on something that is obviously happening.
I think that the most striking point this literature made was comparing climate scientists to physicians or doctors. I had never thought of making this comparison before reading this and it really stuck with me. It is true that people do not question doctors in the same way they question climate change and this can be due to political influence or sheer ignorance.
I agree with Ken in that sometimes I feel it is best to communicate without words and let people come to you. A couple years ago, I became close with a friend I met at UCSB. She was vegan, but she did not advertise it in the way that I had seen others advertise their veganism on social media. I became intrigued about her experience with eating a vegan diet and what led her to those choices. After a few long informative discussions and a couple of vegan turkey sandwiches, I made the decision to cut meat out of my diet. I have now been vegetarian for over two years without any pressuring or persuading. When I moved in with a different friend last year, she eventually noticed I didn’t eat meat and asked why. I explained my reasoning to her and we would occasionally have casual conversations about the climate crisis. One day she came up to me and said “I am giving up beef for lent,” and she hasn’t eaten beef since. A few months later she informed me that her brother stopped eating beef as well! In retrospect, I am amazed by the power of this form of passive communication and the domino effect it had created.
My little domino train came to a screeching halt when I moved back home at the start of COVID. My family has constantly made fun of me for all of my choices and opinions regarding climate change ever since I became vegetarian. I have tried countless methods of communication with all of my family members, but they refuse to even consider anything I say. I have shown them the data and cited my sources and debunked the myths and presented the solutions. I have explained the science and politics and industries behind everything. They just aren’t interested in hearing what I have to say. Both Ken’s video and this week’s reading, “Communicating the Climate Crisis,” provide a lot of useful tools for communicating climate change, but I am not sure if there is any way to effectively communicate with someone that refuses to listen. I used to be passive about my feelings regarding climate change because my family would immediately knock them down. The struggle of communicating the climate crisis is real.
I think that when it comes to effective communication, how you say it, and who says it, is more important than what you say. Chapter 8, in the “Preparation” section, notes that “trusted messengers can have an enormous impact and can motivate people to bring about change.” Messengers can carry certain personas that draw groups of people in, or have certain audiences that are willing and eager to listen. The book mentions Katherine Hayhoe as a climate change messenger to the Christian community. I had the opportunity to attend two lectures by her at UCSB in January of 2020. The first was a “conversation session” in a small lecture hall; this more intimate meeting was geared towards the topic of engagement and outreach. Dr. Hayhoe described what she calls the “outreach spectrum”: the many different ways and degrees to which people are involved in environmental activism. It ranges from being a scientist and writing scholarly articles, to being a nature photographer and running an instagram account. Her point was, there are so, so many ways you can get involved in environmental outreach that everyone has a place in the movement— you just have to find your niche. She made sure to note that not everyone can or should play certain roles; for example, if you are poor at public speaking, don’t engage in outreach that involves public speaking! If you aren’t religious, don’t be the person that tries to work with churches! Someone else can and will fill these roles and you can pick the one most suitable and exciting for you. Being a climate change messenger isn’t for everyone, but for the people who have the speaking skills, outgoing personality, or any sort of platform, this is a good role for you. Hearing Dr. Hayhoe describe the outreach spectrum in this way really inspired me to start thinking about what I’m good at and how I can start using my own talents and passions to be a better advocate and activist for the planet.
I know that most people’s reaction to this reading will likely be appreciation for how the author attempts to help us communicate climate change, however, while reading the chapter, I was immediately struck by how disheartening the whole thing was. The fact alone that scientists need to put so much thought into their communication of climate science is beyond me. As the chapter mentions, medical science would never be scrutinized to the same extent. I’d be hard pressed to believe any field would. Rather than trusting the professionals, the fossil fuel industry has been so successful at causing doubt, that climate scientists now have to take time away from their work solely to equip readers with communication tactics to reinforce something that is fact. While I appreciated that the author was trying to make climate science more accessible and understandable, it’s shameful that this is even something that needs to be considered. Why is it so difficult for people to trust the work of established and credible scientists, even when they’re talking about an issue that could save our population?
I really enjoyed this week’s reading “Communicating Climate Change Science” and Ken’s introduction video. I recently listened to a podcast explaining how to talk about politics with your family and friends during the holidays (where many of us will see someone with opposing views like Uncle Pete). The podcast discussed how a group, Better Angels, would host workshops that promoted self-reflection and mutual understanding. An example of questions they were asked is: “What are some of the common stereotypes about my group, and what truths are those based upon?” Both liberals and conservatives had reasons to explain the truths. Having reflected on their own group’s stereotypes, conservatives and liberals were able to see each other more as humans than as a stereotype that threatened their morals. This podcast, the reading for this week, and Ken’s introduction reiterated my belief that communication is essential to getting someone to understand you, let alone change their opinions to agree with you. However, I had not before broken down the steps one must take to communicate effectively with opposers like the reading this week did. I’m happy to have gained new insight from this reading to use for future discussions with others who disagree with me on any topic. It is sad that the important discussions I want to have would be with people who disagree with me on environmental issues, social justice issues, and politics, and yet, these are all interwoven. There is hope, though. Communication is powerful, and if there are enough of us having conversations with the right people using these communication skills, I think we can stir a lot of change in all of these realms.
Another week, another fantastic reading. As I’m sure many of you do, I have an Uncle Pete in my extended family. About a year ago, long before I enrolled in this class, I got into a pretty heated argument with him about climate change. A few hours after the discussion, I felt like I had completely missed an opportunity to accurately argue my side, and I felt as if my emotions got the best of me when going head to head with a true climate change denier.
I really liked this week’s reading. I really appreciated the advice about waiting to be asked about climate change as opposed to bombarding someone with all your knowledge about climate change. I often have friends wanting to have in-depth conversations about a topic I don’t really care about, and it makes me even less interested in the topic when they do so.
One of the main problems with climate change is that big businesses, like fossil fuel and oil companies, are much better at communicating an idea to the general public than scientists are. If we work on getting clear messaging out about the dangerous effects of global warming, it may help convince people who have been previously turned off from climate change…
This reading made me very hopeful that communication about climate change will get better and inspire more to take action in fixing it. Spreading hopeful solutions and impassioned information will certainly be more effective than complex, boring, data about climate change.
Reading Chapter 8 this week, it’s sad to see how we’ve all met some forms of “Uncle Pete” in our lives and how he’s so stubborn and never willing to change his mind. As people grow older, they’ll gradually develop their own sets of values and knowledge, making it harder for them to change their minds. That’s why teaching children about climate change is so important – Only when kids accept the importance and urgency of climate change at a young age could they go on and take action on this matter. In addition, climate change is always considered as something irrelevant to people’s daily life, which is probably why many people fail to recognize it as a top-tier problem. Communicating climate change should definitely involve emotional stories, like the first few documentaries we’ve watched, so as to impress people through means of pathos.
As for communicating with our friends and relatives, I found it unhelpful to start a conversation on climate change that they didn’t want. After watching Fire in Paradise, I recommended it to six of my friends yet none of them eventually finished that documentary. There’re definitely more effective ways to communicate climate problems, but I always feel like I’m not “professional” enough to do that. Yes, I know the facts and statistics, but when asked to explain the deeper, tangling root causes and science behind all this, I don’t think I’m equipped with knowledge for that.
[T]he part I found most intriguing was Ken saying not to push the conversation of the climate crisis on people. While this definitely made sense after he explained it, I was initially very surprised to hear Ken advocate this stance. Of course, unloading your passions onto an uninterested and unwilling audience won’t bring them any closer to agreeing with you, but I guess I wasn’t expecting that answer. But when Ken compared this to veganism I understood. I have seen conversations shut down right before my eyes when someone says they are vegan. My brother and his wife are vegan and have been for many years, when this comes up at gatherings with extended family, I can see people get uncomfortable. Both veganism and the climate crisis have a way of making people feel guilty, because morally, we all know it is something we should pay more attention to. There is no strong reason to not know more about the climate crisis and be involved in halting emissions. Getting the conversation started and educating people is one of the first and best places to start with making a difference, and it is somewhere we can start today.
“Deciding to do nothing about climate change is like deciding not to have serious elective surgery, such as declining a coronary artery bypass operation that your cardiologist recommends. The operations will involve risks and costs. But declining it will also involve risks and costs, including the risk of a fatal heart attack” (Bending the Curve). This was my favorite quote from the reading. The other day, I attempted to talk to my mom about the climate crisis. It seemed that no matter what I said or what statistics I gave her she just did not understand why climate change was such a big issue and why change needs to occur right now. This quote really resonated with me because I felt like everyone, including my mom, could understand the metaphor, and therefore understand why we must make changes for the sake of our planet…
Going back to the quote I originally brought up, many people are scared of what will happen if we start implementing major changes. I agree, change is scary, but we must help these people realize that without making changes ourselves, changes will come eventually. These changes won’t be renewable energy however, they’ll be climate disasters. Everyone has power in making a difference when it comes to climate change, whether we are taking action ourselves or encouraging others to do the same, everything matters. I feel much more confident in bringing change after this reading, as I hope you do as well.
I really really loved this week’s reading and I think it was my favorite out of all of them! I live in a very conservative city where a lot of people don’t believe in the climate crisis and I have many family members who don’t as well. This chapter really helped me understand how to effectively communicate with these people, as I’d often just grow upset and leave the conversation. I told my mom about this reading and she too wanted to read it so we could be prepared for the next time we go to her parents’ house. They’re the type of people to say that the climate is always changing, but they live in Texas, so I’m hoping I can use the tragedy of an event that just happened there to my advantage in explaining the climate crisis to them.
I also happen to live in a very conservative region where many people are climate change deniers. I was happy to receive some advice on how to approach speaking to these people. I found the comparison of climate science to the medical field really moving because I had never considered it before. I definitely am one to trust what the doctor is telling me 100% when I am at the doctors’ office, not question it and take his or her words for granted. Climate scientists are constantly questioned and undermined by deniers who try to use false claims to fight against climate change, such as the climate is always changing, like you mentioned. It would be very beneficial for our Earth if climate scientists’ words were taken as seriously as doctors’ words were.
Another great piece of advice that stuck out to me was to always be sure to include information on solutions. Nobody wants to solely hear about hopelessness and this was definitely something I noticed in the first few weeks of this course. It was very hard to hear about how deep in trouble our generation is in with the first few readings and films, but now that we are getting into solutions more I feel alot better. As the book stated, research suggests that messages that may invoke fear or dismay are better received if they also include hopeful messages. I will definitely keep this in mind for future conversations.
This reading brought to mind a personal connection with the material. My whole life, I have never enjoyed eating meat. I was raised on a largely plant-based, mediteranean diet, and so this is what is natural and desirable to me. Upon becoming aware of the climate impact of eating meat, and the benefits of a plant-based diet, my passion for eating this way and learning more about it became heightened, and I’ve never looked back since. While I would label myself as a pescatarian, I hardly ever announce or broadcast this label. Rather, I simply choose to stay away from meat options and do all that I can to make my meals plant-based. Thus, my peers are often surprised when they put it together and realize I am pescatarian. This is widely considered a good thing, to me and them, because by not advertising my dietary choices, I open up the topic to discussion, as Ken notes in the video. Often, people ask me why I choose to eat this way, and their curiosity effectively leads me to enlightening them on the benefits of a plant-based diet. Instead of casting shame, thus closing off curiosity and discussion, by not ostentatiously advertising my lifestyle choice, I have been effectively communicating climate change and continue to do so day-to-day. Although this may only have a minute effect (if any) on the lifestyle decisions of people around me, at the very least, it makes others aware of the ramifications of their food choices. I’d like to think I set a positive example for how to actively combat the climate crisis on a personal level, at a benefit to your own well-being – a win-win! If people come to see that combating climate change as a win-win scenario, they will be more effectively inclined to make choices with the climate in mind.
I found this week’s reading to be the most useful by far. In this class, we talk a great deal about what climate change is, the principle causes, and how to make an impact. All of this knowledge is incredibly powerful and I’m so grateful to have the opportunity to learn about the environment in this way at a collegiate level. All that being said, it is critical that we acknowledge the obvious: millions of people around the world have never and likely will never have access to this kind of education. It is therefore of chief importance that we pay equal attention to how our knowledge can be made understandable and accessible to the general public. That requires understanding how the average citizen absorbs information like this and how we can develop strategies to have the largest impact. “Bending the Curve: Climate Change Solutions” tackled this issue in depth and provided concrete tools for how students like us can implement our knowledge in a public activism setting.
I’ve mentioned this in my comments before, but this reading reminded me a great deal of my own volunteer experiences at my local zoo. My job essentially boiled down to accomplishing exactly what this reading talked about: communicating conservation information to a public audience in a way that was straightforward and understandable. I was delighted to recognize many of the tactics that I was familiar with in this chapter. For example, the reading discussed the importance of language and how different words communicate different things depending on the audience. The reading gave the example of how scientists speak of “postive feedback” loops to explain climate change, a term that can be confusing for folks only familiar with “positive feedback” as a good thing in a job setting. Likewise, in my volunteer work, I practiced modifying my language depending on the audience. When explaining the conservation of rhinos, I might explain to a six year old that rhinos are especially cool animals because their horns are made of the same stuff as our fingernails. If I was discussing the same topic with an adult, I might go into the name of that material (keratin) and discuss more mature ideas about the threats of poaching. Though the information I would be presenting varies slightly in content and language use, I would make a conscious choice about how to have the greatest impact depending on my audience.
The reading also discussed the importance of solutions and formatting messages. This idea is also something that I experienced in my position, as I was often working with zoo visitors hurrying to see their next animal or rushing to find the nearest lunch option for their hungry kids. Especially when you’re working with a limited time period, it is critical to include a solution or positive action step at the end of your message. If you aren’t careful, your guest may walk away learning only the disheartening aspects of a particular conservation issue. Just as the reading suggested, it is often more valuable to start with the bottom line and work outwards from there. If a child is anxiously looking for the next exciting topic, it is always more valuable to impart the lesson of recycling paper than to try to explain the details behind how deforestation harms binturongs. As someone with experience with public activism, I can confidently say that this chapter of reading is an incredibly useful resource.