On hope, apathy and scaremongering

The evidence for biodiversity loss and climate change is overwhelming. The need to do something is clear. But what is the best way to communicate these issues?

Photo by Marc-Olivier Jodoin on Unsplash

We’re in a mess.

And things seem to be getting worse.

1.5 degrees is out the door. Species continue to vanish. Continued inaction will be catastrophic.

But nobody seems to care. At least it seems that way.

It’s heavy stuff.

So, I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the balance between hope, apathy and scaremongering.

What’s the best way for us as individuals to help make change? It’s clear that it requires collective action and responsibility. But how can we make the biggest impact with our communication?

I believe it is to cultivate hope.

But I’m here to ask you.

Before that, here are some of my thoughts on the subject.

Apathy

In the about page for my newsletter, I talk about my desire to provide solutions. I don’t think I’ve done that overly well yet, but I’m trying to balance things between sharing the cold hard facts, personal reflections and solutions (e.g. rules for reforestation). And I have a number of posts lined up to cover more solution-oriented work in the future.

My feelings have been that to reach a wider audience, I need to continue to convey the bad news to a certain point. People need to know how bad things are and how bad they can get. As I pointed out here, we need scientists to be telling it like it is (not that they haven’t for decades!).

But I also recognise that we need positivity.

I like to think of myself as a stubborn optimist. I’m hopeful that we can turn things around, or at least limit the worst of the damage.

Continuously bombarding readers with doom and gloom risks leading to apathy and denial. We can’t afford to bury our heads in the sand as a society. There may be comfort in denial, but this comfort won’t last. Now is the time we must mobilise more than ever in response to the greatest threats to humanity.

Yet, climate change apathy is real. It’s with us and we need to find ways to overcome it. Three primary tools to overcome apathy are to:

1. Brainstorm solutions

2. Imagine

3. Find success stories

This is comforting to me as these are three aspirational themes of my newsletter and research. I’m trying to be solution-focused in what I share here. In my research, I use ecological forecasting and projections as key tools to explore the outcomes of various interventions in the environment, like how to re-operate a dam for better ecological performance. And, finally, I’m looking for success stories to provide hope that positive change is possible. So, I think I’m on track, relatively speaking, if I stick to my plan. (Admittedly, more of my posts on here have been philosophical than anything so far.)

It’s not that people don’t care about climate change

Lack of action is also partly a perception issue. It’s not that people don’t actually care. It’s that we think people don’t care.

As shown in this excellent piece by Hannah Ritchie, more people care about climate change than you think. She points out how this is important because strong public support can shift government policies.

The corollary is that government inaction in this space reflects a lack of public support.

However, if governments realise that we’re all worried about climate change, and it’s not just radical folks who are worried, then perhaps shifts in government policies would be more rapid.

So broadcasting these messages is important, but so too is building a sense of community in response to shared challenges.

Shouting from the rooftops

I’m angry.

I’m angry that we’re in this mess. I’m angry that we can’t seem to do enough to turn the mess around quickly enough.

But I do remain hopeful we can limit the damage.

I came here to Substack to try to find a way to communicate a message that might reach a new audience. A message that I believe is extremely important. That we can turn things around if we take action, collectively.

We need to take responsibility for the mess we’re in.

I’ve published almost a hundred peer-reviewed papers but I doubt more than a handful have ever been seen by people outside of research spheres.

So, I want to find a way to reach people who will reach other people in spreading the word that there is a way out of this mess, but it needs to be now.

So, I’ll continue to try to balance providing solutions alongside the cold hard facts, trying my best not to scaremonger. I’ll continue to share important updates on the state of climate and biodiversity trajectories. And I’ll shout from the rooftops.

Things can be better. I’ll do my best to share how and why.

This is where you come in. I’m keen to hear your thoughts on how to do better. How can we get this message out there more? What can I do in this newsletter to have a greater impact? I’m still finding my voice on here. But I’d love it to reach a much bigger audience. I’m hopeful that will happen, but I’m keen to find ways to make it the most effective as possible. Thanks for reading! And thanks for sharing.

---

PS: If you’re new here, welcome! Thanks for subscribing. Please do check out the archives on the Substack website. I’ve covered everything from why we should think like the Stoics to the need for transdisciplinary research.