Happy endings for climate change?
Welcome to our first comms issue, by the C40 Centre for City Climate Policy and Economy's Chiara Morfeo.
There are two kinds of people who work in climate communications. Those who are passionate about all things climate and then end up communicating about it. And those who are in communications and then end up applying their skills to climate. I count myself among the latter camp.
For a while I tried to hide my late conversion to the climate cause. But the deeper I dive into the research of narrative and climate change, the more I see my humble beginnings in studies on Scottish fairy tales and dissident Chilean poetry as an asset for what I do now.
The Power of Storytelling
Humans are 22 times more likely to remember a story than any other communication and believe anecdotes over evidence (Bruner 1986, Kubin et al. 2021). This love for stories is hard-wired into our brains (Zak 2015). In 2022, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) recognised that this matters for climate change in its 6th Assessment Report. Stories get people to act and can drive individuals to adopt new norms and policies.
But what oh what makes a good story?
Scholars have long sought to find an answer to this question. Russian folklorist Vladimir Propp famously analysed Russian folk tales and posited that they are always structured around a certain set of characters and narrative events. While his approach has since been criticised as too paradigmatic, there are story paradigms that, for better or for worse, have an enduring hold on our imagination.
Communications agency Futerra have produced a thought-provoking deck that shows how we see certain paradigms play out in the context of the climate crisis.
Read on for my highlights from their work.
Ineffective climate story paradigms
The Frankenstein or Doom story: I am sure you have seen this one. The age-old morality tale: man makes monster, then monster destroys man. This ‘earned dystopia’ tale is creeping into discourse and beliefs about climate change. However, it risks hindering climate action as the effectiveness of using fear and guilt to motivate climate action is at best questionable (O’Neill et al. 2009, Reser 2017)
Tech Saviour: The narrative frame of ‘techno-solutionism’ is another favourite these days. Let’s innovate our way out of the climate crisis. This story can breed complacency and distract attention, and money, from other proven mitigation and adaptation solutions. At worst, the techno-saviour story could justify ineffective geo-engineering projects or waste millions on unproven carbon capture plants.
Enlightened Elites: Perhaps the most pernicious eco narrative is one of ‘awakening’ and values change. In this story, people denounce the over-consumption and exploitation of climate-destroying capitalism, but focus on actions that can be taken at the individual level—promoting eco lifestyles based on foregoing material luxuries. These revelations are often conveyed with a heavy dose of moral superiority. The resources (e.g. money, time, knowledge) needed to access these lifestyles are seldom mentioned or acknowledged, ultimately contributing to the conviction that climate action is only for those who can afford it (This article rings true decades on Brisman 2009).
So what stories could we be telling about climate action instead?
Action as adventure: Tackling the climate crisis requires change, upheaval, and conflict, including within our own hearts. Stories of re-building the world can be epic, and people banding together and finding their strength to fight climate change can be moving. Let’s sell the adventure of reaching a sustainable, equitable and regenerative future because that’s what we are living through anyway. Kim Stanley Robinson’s book The Ministry for The Future is a good example of this kind of story.
Normalising sustainable actions: Living sustainably isn’t yet the norm. But many other things also weren’t normal once – divorce, designated drivers, women in the workplace, equal marriage. Stories, especially sit-coms, have already normalised so many ways of living (Swigger 2017). Humanising climate action, with a bit of gentle comedy, could be powerfully subversive.
Indigenous stories as guide: Let’s uplift (and recompense) indigenous storytellers who use story frames that have a long tradition of intimately connecting nature and humans.
Messy Utopias: Most positive visions generated by environmentalists are too homogenous. Instead, we need to tell stories, diverse in their particulars but consistent in their message (e.g. MeToo). Dr Francesca Polletta has given an eye-opening talk on this (tune in from minute 25).
Character-led climate action with a systemic impact: Let’s showcase people working in government who are moving mountains. Or bold, brave and uncompromising women leading the climate movement, like the Swiss pensioners taking their government to court for its lack of climate action. This kind of story is in opposition to the aforementioned “enlightened elites” one and shows the power of individuals and community in changing systems, not just their lifestyles.
Thinking about my work through the stories that shape us has transformed how I approach climate communications. I hope this is the first of many Centre newsletters in which I get to share those insights with you.
💡 Call for papers from the Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy
How can cities shape and support thriving places that create prosperity for all residents within Earth’s planetary boundaries? The Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy, a collaboration between C40 Cities and the University of Toronto Press, have just published a call for papers for their upcoming Special Issue on sustainable prosperity in the 21st century city.
The Special Issue invites contributions from:
Researchers and academics;
City practitioners (city officials and civil society organisations) with relevant case studies.
For more information on how to submit your 250-word abstract (deadline Friday 6 September 2024) visit the JCCPE website.
On to yet more stories OR 📚 What we’re reading
: If anyone is looking to practise their German, Elke Heidenreich has written a great essay on ageing “Altern”. Another topic that would benefit from updated narratives.
: I’ve been re-reading Italo Calvino’s “Marcovaldo” (originally published as “Marcovaldo, or The Seasons in the City”), a collection of short stories on an unskilled worker who has recently moved to the city and attempts to adapt to it. Among my favourite ones is ”park-bench vacation”— in which the main character plans to spend the hot summer night on a bench in search of some solace that remains always just out of reach.
So much YES to the point about normalizing sustainable actions. And, we can do this both through stories about citizens who are making big shifts AND by highlighting the "surprising validator" leaders with decision-making responsibilities who have integrated their personal climate values into policy and other decisions. C40Cities' own, David Miller is one such North American example, as are Mark Gamba (OR), John Bauters (CA), Barbara Buffaloe (MO) and Robbyn Lewis ( General Assembly member in Baltimore MD) - most of whom I've interviewed for my Living Change podcast . Leaders being SEEN leading, by riding a bike or eBike, or using transit, is how political capital and resilient stakeholder trust is built. THAT is climate influence we can start more intentionally building in our city governments right now.