Professor Siperstein said we could write about our idea for the Final Project and ask for feedback from you guys. It took me a while to figure out what aspects of climate change I wanted to tackle, but over the course of the last few days, I kept coming back to the question: Why does no one seem to care about climate change?
Over the course of the term, I’ve noticed that the biggest reason for “not caring” is linked to the fact that people do not understand how climate change will affect their lives–even though climate change has already started to. The Global Weirding website definitely struck a chord with me because it transformed the information in the IPCC Climate Report into something tangible and easy to understand. So my question is: What is the most effective way to get people to start caring about climate change? Should we play on people’s fears like Mitchell does? Or is it better to just stick to the facts and let people interpret them for themselves?
I pose those questions because I want to create a video that helps educate people on climate change and ultimately acts as a call-to-action for people to write their congressman about increasing federal funding towards climate change solution research. The video will be a catalyst for a larger climate change public service announcement-esque campaign. I want to touch on the information within IPCC Report, but frame it in a way that resonates with every day people. People need to understand that impacts that our generation will have on future generations. And with that understanding and awareness in mind, I truly believe people will start to act.
That being said, I haven’t figured out the fictional narrative element of the project. I could somehow incorporate a fictional family or person who is living in a “climate changed” world. It would help build empathy for the cause because people will see themselves as that fictional character or family.
I would love to hear everyone’s thoughts on which approach would work best with getting people to care about climate change. Is it simply that they do not understand the facts and how the effects will change their lives? Or is there something else I’m missing that is more important?
Thanks!
Your focus on trying to get people caring about addressing climate change by encouraging them to get involved politically is a really important one! However, I think many people in our society today see the government (and politicians) as the problem, not as part of the solution and not as something to put our hopes in or have faith in (http://www.people-press.org/2014/11/13/public-trust-in-government/). There are also people (many of whom on the right end of the political spectrum) who are afraid that if the government implements climate change solutions, it’s going to result in some sort of government take-over (this fear is quite misguided).
This suggests that another barrier to addressing climate change is people’s lack of faith that government can be a positive instrument of change. Thus, maybe you could think about what kind of fictional narrative would help address this — perhaps some kind of speculative or near-future story in which you envision government (perhaps national government or perhaps local government) as a positive agent of change and the politician(s) as the heroes? When we think of dystopian fiction, we often think of “the government” as the bad guys, but why does that have to be the case? How might you craft a persuasive and convincing story (using the tools of narrative discourse) to help get people to care about climate change and to care about the government?
(Also, you might want to check out Kelsey’s post about not using the phrase “climate change” itself)
I agree with you in the many times reports are given and we do not know how to interpret them, which is why the global weirding site was so impactful, it made the facts come to life. I think that a fictional story that used this same tactic would be a great way to show people how to use these facts as more than just numbers. Many of the short stories we have read have skimmed on this but none have dug in deep with the numbers of what is going on.
I love the concept of having a public service announcement, but in a fictional context. It’s basically comes down to how will you make it stand out to grab peoples attention without seeming to “non-fictional.” Global Weirding was one of my favorite things we went over in class, so finding a connection with that, but in a different format would definitely grab peoples attention. Like mentioned in the above comment, it was impactful because it made the facts come to life!
I like the idea of a public service announcement kind of project. I suppose the trick would be to touch the audience in a way that moves their hearts and minds without being too forceful. I’ve seen commercials on TV where they try to get your attention on a certain topic, but they end up going too far with the shock value. Also, with the fictional element, try to make a story that would seem very believable to the audience.
I think it is a really good idea to make a video to educate the public on climate change. I think technology is becoming a huge part of our lives and it is a great way to get through to the public using technology.
I think this is a great idea for your final project! I agree with you 100% when you say, “the biggest reason for “not caring” is linked to the fact that people do not understand how climate change will affect their lives–even though climate change has already started to.” It’s important that we find ways to educate the public in fun and factual ways. Your project can start brain storming different ways for us to do so! Good luck!