I have been thinking, a lot, lately, about the difficulties surrounding green communication. And wondering why it has been so hard to engage citizens persuasively on critical issues such as climate change, or biodiversity loss, or deforestation, or the looming water crisis. It is a no brainer that the happy survival of our species depends on a timely resolution of those issues. Yet, we are taking action at snail pace, collectively. It occurred to me that we may be dealing with a problem of confusion of levels. Let’s take climate change for instance.
While we are all concerned by climate change, the locus of action for that broad problem, does not lie in the individual citizen’s hands, but rather with executive entities that deal with global issues: international organizations such as the U.N., legislative and policy making agencies such as the Senate, and Congress, and the Presidential Cabinet, and environmental watchdogs such as NRDC, or the Sierra Club.
As a citizen, I cannot control climate change, hence appeals to my conscience, and admonitions to take action, do little other than make me feel guilty, powerless, and frustrated. Instead, I want to be talked to in terms that I can relate to my normal, everyday life. Exercising my rights as a citizen and voting yes on new laws to mitigate climate change, yes. Participating in a New Deal on climate and energy, and joining the green work force, yes. Buying green products at no extra costs, why not? Reducing my energy consumption, to stretch my shrinking budget, absolutely.
Of course, there are always exceptions. Individuals with a highly developed conscience, who are willing to take on the challenges of the world, and act as beacons of consciousness for the whole. These are a minority, however.
I feel the frustration as well. All the green actions you mentioned are not hard to do; however, I find people just doing the same old same old because it is easier. Global warming, etc does not affect them, they think.
I watch as people throw things in a garbage can which ordinarily can be recycled. No cares. Out of sight, out of mind.
I guess I don’t understand what it will take for people to wake up.
Its the old herd mentality thing. Unless something either becomes an ‘in thing to do’ or ‘everyone else is doing it so perhaps I should too’ things aren’t going to happen.
Its a bit like a road accident. 80% of people stand round like stunned mullets doing nothing. The rest get in and help which can include ordering round the stunned mullet majority. In one local big store fire it turned out that most people were killed because they didn’t want to leave the premises without paying their bill. (This was some time ago and people were well trained into paying etc).
I’m very much afraid that the population as a whole will mimic this behaviour and do nothing unless the 20% of doers get in there and order them around!
That probably means us…so keep it up girls!
viv in nz
“As a citizen, I cannot control climate change, hence appeals to my conscience, and admonitions to take action, do little other than make me feel guilty, powerless, and frustrated.”
As a citizen, you cannot control crime, the general level of fidelity to spouses and honesty. But you can make sure that you are not a criminal, that you are faithful and honest. And that is more useful in effecting general change than you might imagine.
I am only one person, I can only do what one person can do. But what one person can do, I will do.
I like your last paragraph kiashu – very powerful.
Marguerite, you are on to something. The powerless-feelings of the masses turns into a state of complacency and as knutty knitter pointed out, a blind herd of sheep following the many. I’m guessing the sheep-theory is there because people generally don’t want to stick out as (sorry to use this word) mavericks. A person wants to be wanted and liked by others and one sub-conscious way to do that is to emulate and be submissive to the social-order. Social order in this case is to not recycle but to throw all out. The more conservative the people, the stronger the social-order.
Anyway, as you point out, we are dangerously close to making these masses feel bad about themselves in our efforts to educate that what they’ve been doing up to now is not necessarily the right thing. Defensiveness will be next – followed a complete blockage of new information.
So – the next step is to figure out how to make the masses feel empowered – to offset the guilt-factor.
Like climate change and a solution for it – there’s not just one. To educate a public in that they truly DO make a difference, there’s not just one solution.
Guilt is one aspect, lack of care is another, simple education is another, personality is another – and on and on. Not sure it’s possible to create a common thread of an answer to a quilt of a problem. This site, ours, and the many others, is the hope to reach the various levels. Thanks.
This guilt thing is a real problem. I think the solution lies in not trying to save the planet at all – but rather promoting the things that will save the planet, and promoting them in ways that appeal to people. So weather-proofing your home cuts your fuel bills, makes you warmer in winter and cooler in summer, leaving the car gives you exercise and helps make you feel better mentally and physically. Shopping locally for local produce may be healthier, but also promotes social cohesion and sense of place.
We can all switch on to these motivations. But it’s only part of the solution of course – the re-distribution of resource use is a far harder nut to crack though. How can we sell a cut in material living standards?
I’m frustrated by constantly running into people who don’t even believe in water shortages (even here in TX), or global warming, or any of our current problems. If there’s no fundamental, basic belief, how do you change their minds?
bobbi c.
Bobbi,
For what it’s worth, I suggest that all you can do is do what you know is right, and quietly encourage others to do the same if they feel receptive. They’ll catch up eventually. Of course we need much more action than this – but on an individual level we can’t create such change – except through the democratic process. So urge your candidates to make the policy changes that are needed.
Thanks all. As usual, lots of wisdom and beginning of solutions, just in this short thread. What comes for me, carrot and stick, yes, systemic approach, yes, more attention to group psychology, yes, and new leadership, in the U.S. particularly, absolutely.
Get out your votes.
[...] is to help this process: arguments have to be tested and strengthened if they are to hold up. And ‘green communication’ is difficult in academia also. So, improvements I can see, from the criticisms, would [...]
[...] is to help this process: arguments have to be tested and strengthened if they are to hold up. And ‘green communication’ is difficult in academia also. So, improvements I can see, from the criticisms, would [...]