How to communicate about climate change

This article was originally published by Farm Radio International. Read more about the On-Air for Gender Inclusive Nature-based Solutions project here.

It’s almost Earth Day, and more people than usual are thinking and talking about the environment and climate change.

At Farm Radio International, we think about climate change a lot. One of our biggest projects right now is on that topic exactly: “On-Air for Gender-Inclusive Nature-based Solutions.”

This five-year project, funded by Global Affairs Canada, uses radio to share stories of rural African communities partnering with nature to adapt to climate change — and to give other communities the tools they need to implement those solutions themselves. The project has several components, including On Air Dialogue polls to find out rural Africans’ experiences with climate change, radio documentaries and a podcast.

At Farm Radio, our expertise does not lie in climate change, sexual and reproductive health, or even agriculture. Rather, we’re experts in communication — in using radio in combination with mobile phones to get accurate, entertaining and good-quality information to people and start a conversation between listeners and their radio station.

Here’s what we’ve learned from our Nature-based Solutions project about how to communicate about climate change to inspire action.

1. Rely on facts

There can be a lot of confusion and misinformation around climate change. Relying on facts from trusted organizations like environmental organizations, government agencies and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change makes sure that your communications are accurate and evidence-based and make a positive contribution to climate discussions.

Example: Because we are not experts on climate change (though we have climate experts on staff), we work with local experts to ensure we are communicating accurately and effectively. These include experts in areas like climate change, gender equality, youth inclusion and policy advocacy. These individuals help our team identify relevant Nature-based Solutions to focus on, appear as guests on radio programs and contribute to policy propositions. 

We also run six national advisory panels in the main countries where we are implementing the project, as well as a global advisory panel. The members of these panels include representatives from government ministries, research organizations and universities, youth and women’s organizations, and environmental non-governmental organizations, like the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). They help our team understand current knowledge related to Nature-based Solutions and adapt it to local contexts, and provide advice on project implementation and design.

2. Know your audience

Everyone has a unique knowledge of, experience with and attitude toward climate change. Meeting people where they are, providing them with relevant information, and relating climate change to their concerns and interests will all help you have a productive conversation.

Example: At Farm Radio, this looks like providing radio stations with tools to learn more about their audience, such as coverage maps and our Uliza Interactive suite, which facilitates listener polling, live call-ins and more. It also means talking with communities before any radio program begins to learn what people know, what they don’t know and what they want to know about a given topic — even what radio stations they listen to.

In this project specifically, radio stations are running On Air Dialogues — an innovative type of interactive radio programming, which combines radio and mobile phones to gather thousands of rural people’s perspectives on issues that affect them (in this case, climate change). In this way, broadcasters can learn about listeners’ experiences, needs and challenges related to climate change, which then informs the content of radio programs. Learn what listeners in Ghana had to say here.

3. Use a trusted speaker

Who you use as your messenger — and how much they are trusted — affects how your message is received. This may mean relying on a climate change expert or other authority, but it could also mean delivering the message yourself. After all, people are more likely to listen to a friend or family member than to a stranger.

Example: Part of the reason that we work with radio broadcasters is that they are trusted in their communities. Working with broadcasters allows our programs to have a greater, longer-lasting impact than if we were working on our own and having to build relationships from scratch.

Broadcasters are well-established and connected in their region and speak the local language. Because of this, they are familiar with community needs and experiences — and people already go to them for information. They can ensure programs are relevant and adapted to the local context. This is especially important when dealing with climate change, which has varying impacts even between different regions of the same country.

4. Tell a story

People are more likely to remember a striking story, an individual who was impacted or how you made them feel than a string of facts. It’s also more personal and relatable. Leading with a story grabs attention and keeps the listener engaged for what comes next — practical information about how to take action.

Example: Though it’s important to be grounded in facts, stories are often more memorable and impactful than statistics. In our Nature-based Solutions project, we are focusing on storytelling in two ways. First, radio stations are producing 200 radio documentaries that share the stories of communities that have implemented Nature-based Solutions. These documentaries — centered on a single person or group and enhanced with ambient sounds and narrative details — serve as inspiration for other communities to try those same solutions close to home.

We are also producing a podcast in partnership with Carleton University’s School of Journalism and Communication. Nature Answers: Rural Stories from a Changing Planet shares many of the same stories as the documentaries, but geared toward a Canadian audience. The goal is to spread these climate solutions globally and start a conversation about how we can all work with nature to adapt to climate change.

Listen to the podcast here.

5. Share solutions

Climate change conversations often have a “doom and gloom” tone that leads people to think the situation is hopeless. Though it’s important to keep a balanced perspective, focusing on solutions brings hope and agency, and suggests specific actions that the listener can take.

Example: As is implied in its name, the Nature-based Solutions project is focused on sharing solutions — specific actions that communities are taking to adapt to the impacts of climate change, improve livelihoods and restore ecosystems. This might look like planting cashew trees between rows of maize or sustainably managing mangroves.

However, it’s not enough to just list or describe solutions. If other communities want to try these solutions themselves, they need to know how to do so, step by step. That’s why radio stations are also broadcasting participatory radio campaigns — outcome-oriented radio campaigns designed to boost the uptake of a specific practice or method.

How to communicate about climate change to inspire action

How we communicate about an issue like climate change affects how our listener receives the message and what actions, if any, they take as a result. Use communication best practices like relying on facts, knowing your audience and storytelling to start your conversation on the right foot and promote climate action effectively in your community and network.