Blues for a Blue Planet: Narratives of Climate Change and the Anthropocene in Nonfiction Books

The planetary changes associated with the Anthropocene, including climate change and extinction of species, pose severe threats to civilization, humanity, and the natural world as we know it. They also pose special challenges to the human imagination. To meet these challenges, climate change communicators use narratives. Non-fiction books intended for a general audience employ two radically different narratives: the “We can solve it” (WCSI) narrative, and the “We won’t solve it” (WWSI) narrative. The WCSI narrative currently dominates mainstream media and books, but there is a strong possibility that the WWSI narrative is closer to the truth. Differences between the two narratives center on the meaning and usefulness of hope. In Elizabeth Kolbert’s The Sixth Extinction (2014)—a WWSI narrative—wonder, lament, and understanding replace hope. Strategies of non-attachment also fulfill psychological functions. A WWSI perspective provides a much-needed complement to the triumphant narrative inherent in most mainstream popular science. Keywords : climate change; the Anthropocene; hope; optimism; non-attachment; grief; narrative; non-fiction; Elizabeth Kolbert; The Sixth Extinction

Despite the ample coverage of climate change in the mass media of developed countries and the increasing scholarship on climate change communication, how climate change is covered in developing nations remains understudied. Yet, developing nations are the most vulnerable to climate change effects. An understanding on climate change narratives in these countries may contribute to innovative ways to address this sustainable development issue. In this study, 31 print climate change news articles that were published from 2013 to 2017 in three major Philippine newspapers were analyzed to answer the research question, “What are the climate change narratives that are present in Philippine print news media?” Using close reading techniques and Arnold’s integrated model of cultural narrative analysis, four main narratives were extracted: (1) the narrative of international cooperation with a sub-narrative of internal struggle between climate action and national development; (2) the narrative of government "war" against climate change with three sub-categories: economic aspects, disaster preparedness, and calls for public cooperation; (3) the narrative of climate justice; and (4) the narrative of science as an answer to climate change. In each news story is a layering of the narratives which was made possible by its episodic nature.

What may we hope for? Education in times of climate change

The Black Summer of 2019/2020 saw the forests of southeast Australia go up in flames. The fire season started early, in September 2019, and by March 2020 fires had burned over 12.6 million hectares (Werner and Lyons). The scale and severity of the fires was quickly confirmed by scientists to be "unprecedented globally" (Boer et al.) and attributable to climate change (Nolan et al.). The fires were also a media spectacle, generating months of apocalyptic front-page images and harrowing broadcast footage. Media coverage was particularly preoccupied by the cause of the fires. Media framing of disasters often seeks to attribute blame (Anderson et al.; Ewart and McLean) and, over the course of the fire period, blame for the fires was attributed to climate change in much media coverage. However, as the disaster unfolded, denialist discourses in some media outlets sought to veil this revelation by providing alternative explanations for the fires. Misinformation originating from social media also contributed to this obscuration. In this article, we investigate the extent to which media coverage of the 2019/2020 bushfires functioned both to precipitate a climate change epiphany and also to support refutation of the connection between catastrophic fires and the climate crisis.

The Conflicting Messages in Climate Change Communication: A US Coastal Management Example

There is a strong view among climate change researchers and communicators that the persuasive tactic of arousing fear in order to promote precautionary motivation and behavior is neither effective nor appropriate in the context of climate change communication and engagement. Yet the modest research evidence that exists with respect to the use of fear appeals in communicating climate change does not offer adequate empirical evidence—either for or against the efficacy of fear appeals in this context—nor would such evidence adequately address the issue of the appropriateness of fear appeals in climate change communication. Extensive research literatures addressing preparedness, prevention, and behavior change in the areas of public health, marketing, and risk communication generally nonetheless provide consistent empirical support for the qualified effectiveness of fear appeals in persuasive social influence communications and campaigns. It is also noteworthy that the language of climate change communication is typically that of “communication and engagement,” with little explicit reference to targeted social influence or behavior change, although this is clearly implied. Hence underlying and intertwined issues here are those of cogent arguments versus largely absent evidence, and effectiveness as distinct from appropriateness. These matters are enmeshed within the broader contours of the contested political, social, and environmental, issues status of climate change, which jostle for attention in a 24/7 media landscape of disturbing and frightening communications concerning the reality, nature, progression, and implications of global climate change. All of this is clearly a challenge for evaluation research attempting to examine the nature and effectiveness of fear appeals in the context of climate change communication, and for determining the appropriateness of designed fear appeals in climate change communications intended to both engage and influence individuals, communities, and “publics” with respect to the ongoing threat and risks of climate change. There is an urgent need to clearly and effectively communicate the full nature and implications of climate change, in the face of this profound risk and rapidly unfolding reality. All such communications are, inherently, frightening warning messages, quite apart from any intentional fear appeals. How then should we put these arguments, evidence, and challenges “on the table” in our considerations and recommendations for enhancing climate change communication—and addressing the daunting and existential implications of climate change?

Communicating Uncertainty about Climate Change: The Scientists’ Dilemma

Climate change communication increasingly unfolds within digital environments, where social media platforms such as Twitter play a pivotal role in shaping public discourse (Papacharissi, 2015). This study combines Social Network Analysis (SNA) and Discourse Analysis (DA) to explore how climate change is discussed and structured through Twitter interactions. A dataset of tweets mentioning Greta Thunberg and Donald Trump—the two most frequently mentioned figures identified through network centrality measures—was analyzed. Using Gephi software, network properties such as modularity, degree centrality, and graph diameter were evaluated and visualized through the Force Atlas layout. The findings reveal a fragmented but interconnected network structure, with modular clusters aligned with political, activist, and organizational affiliations. Discourse analysis of the tweets highlights contrasting narrative strategies: while Greta Thunberg is framed through language of solidarity, urgency, and mobilization, Donald Trump is predominantly referenced through oppositional and critical discourse. These patterns exemplify the dynamics of connective action in digital environments, where personal engagement drives collective narratives (Bennett & Segerberg, 2012). Overall, the results suggest that Twitter reflects and amplifies emotional and ideological currents within the climate change debate, fostering both polarization and solidarity across different stakeholder communities. This study contributes to understanding the complex interplay between digital communication structures and climate change narratives.

This paper examines the manner in which Pakistani and Indian media represent the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) in the bigger picture of climate change and transboundary water politics. The study will analyze the tone, thematic emphasis and narrative approaches of top newspapers in the two countries on times of increased levels of water-related tensions and extreme climate phenomena using comparative framing analysis. This research aims to reveal whether the media discourse serves to support cooperation or trigger the conflict discourse, and how the narrative of climate change is placed in such frames. The study will present the availability of perspectives contributing to the overall understanding of the impacts of media in shaping the public deliberation and perception of common natural resources in South Asia and it will do so through the integration of the vision of environmental communication, international relations studies and media studies.

Climate change communication is a crucial strategy for addressing the major challenges of climate change, and the knowledge mapping analysis and overview of it helps to clarify research progress. Based on CiteSpace, 428 pieces of domestic and foreign literature are collected to clarify the basic status of climate change communication research and summarize research hotspots and prospects. The study found that: (1) The earliest traceable English literature on climate change communication appeared in 2000. The number of articles published has risen steadily since 2008, reaching its first peak in 2015. (2) In contrast, research into Chinese climate change communication began late and progressed slowly. The Chinese literature on climate change communication first appeared in 2009. Although domestic research generally continues to pay attention to this phenomenon, there is still room for development compared with international research. (3) The research hotspots for climate change communication are obtained through keyword co-occurrence analysis. Public perceptions of climate change are strongly influenced by political ideology. Since climate change has political attributes, people from different political parties or groups form their views on climate change through identity protection. (4) The research content on climate change communication can be summarized into the following six aspects: the development of climate change communication research; differences in public perceptions of climate change; factors influencing climate change communication; key elements of the climate change communication process; the important role of the media in climate change communication; and effective strategies for climate change communication. Finally, the shortcomings of this study are summarized and future research prospects on climate change communication are put forward from the perspectives of research methods, research contexts, and research paradigms.

This paper investigates the use of science in British newspapers’ narratives of climate change between 1988 and 2016. It is based on the analysis of eight newspapers and their Sunday and online versions (Daily Mail, Daily Mirror, The Daily Express, The Sun, The Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Guardian, The Independent). We used the keywords “climate / climatic change”, “warm / warming” and “greenhouse / greenhouse effect” to retrieve the articles from the Nexis / Lexis database. To identify the articles with a specific focus on climate change, we included only those containing the keywords in the headline (9789 items). Framing theory helps interpret the process of construction of the “threat” through science by showing a tendency towards scientific consensus for the centre / left-leaning newspapers, and an instrumental use of consensus for the centre-right. These findings are useful for both scientists and policymakers interested in understanding how climate narratives can promote delay in action on climate change.

‘Climate Change Perception and Changing Agents in Africa & South Asia’ presents first-hand experiences of climate change perception. Now more than ever understanding public perceptions of climate change is fundamental in creating effective climate policies, especially within countries that are particularly vulnerable to climate change. Striving to present a comprehensive study of climate perception in Africa and South Asia, this volume presents seven in-depth case studies from Cameroon, the Eastern Himalayas, Kenya, Nepal, and Zimbabwe. In order to combat climate change, effective communication is essential in order to educate, persuade, warn and mobilize the masses. Therefore, climate change communication is shaped not only by our different experiences and beliefs but also by the underlying cultural and politic values of a country. Within this volume, climate change communication is examined from Cameroonian, Kenyan and Zimbabwean perspectives. From the role of stakeholders to practical field experiences, the individual case studies present an interesting and informative portrait of climate change communication. It is often the poorest and most vulnerable people who are most affected by the impacts of climate change. Therefore, community-based adaptation is an approach that is aimed at empowering communities in the process of planning for and coping with climate change. In this book, this progressive and innovative approach is examined from a grass-roots perspective that looks to both the Eastern Himalayas and Zimbabwe. Readers are presented with case-studies that investigate the importance of indigenous knowledge, community-based research and the role of social workers in climate change mitigation. This high-quality resource puts forward a well-informed and accessible discussion of climate change perception that will be of interest to both students and scholars, alike.

Climate Change and the Health of the Public

Climate change, which includes global warming, is a serious and pervasive challenge for local and global communities. Communication theorists, researchers, and practitioners are well positioned to describe, predict, and affect how we communicate about climate change. Our theories, research methods, and practices have many potential roles in reducing climate change and its effects. Climate change communication is a growing field that examines a range of factors that affect and are affected by how we communicate about climate change. Climate change communication covers a broad range of philosophical and research traditions, including humanistic-rhetorical analyses, interpretive qualitative studies, and social-scientific quantitative surveys and experiments. Climate change communication examines a range of factors that affect and are affected by how we communicate about climate change. Much of the research in climate change communication focuses on public understanding of climate change, factors that affect public understanding, media coverage and framing, media effects, and risk perceptions. Less prevalent, growing areas of research include civic engagement and public participation, organizational communication, and persuasive strategies to affect attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors related to the climate. In all of these areas, most of the research on climate change communication has been conducted in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and Western European countries. There is a need to expand the climate change communication research into other regions, particularly developing countries. In addition, climate change communication has natural links to environmental and health communication; therefore, communication scholars should also examine research from these areas to develop insights into climate change communication.

"Climate change communication" is taking the strategic position in the international and national politics around the globe. In the recent decade, different developing nations have started considering "climate change communication" as an integral part of the political campaigns and sustainable development. Specifically, the current document comprised of two sections. In the first section of the study, authors briefly compared the attributes related to "climate change communication" in the mainstream political parties' manifesto for the general election 2018 in Pakistan in a qualitative manner. In the second part, the difference of opinion among voters of mainstream political parties towards "climate change" was examined. In a bird's eye view, the perceived seriousness of "climate change" as a real challenge among voters mapped by the independent factors of "urbanization," "industrialization," "transportation," and "waste management" for sustainable development through the primary quantitative survey of 732 voters in the country. The finding highlights (1) public understanding of "socio-scientific issues," i.e., climate change is easy to communicate, and (2) how political parties are framing and communicating about "climate change" plays a significant role in climate change communication. The study concludes that "climate change communication" holds a critical role in developing regions' future political discourse to shape sustainable development policies.