From a Eurekalert press release, it seems the polar bears just aren’t doing the job anymore: “Communicators need to move away from the traditional images of polar bears or fear-laden imagery to find new, inspirational motifs to engage people with climate change.”
Beyond polar bears? Experts look for a new vision of climate change to combat skepticism
Climate change is about more than just polar bears. That is the message from Dr Kate Manzo whose research into climate change communication has been published in Meteorological Applications. The research, which reviews the efforts of journalists, campaigners and politicians to engage the British public with climate change, explores how new ‘visual strategies’ can communicate climate change messages against a backdrop of increased climate scepticism.
“There have been various efforts to put a face on the climate change issue,” said Dr Manzo, from Newcastle University. “Communicators need to move away from the traditional images of polar bears or fear-laden imagery to find new, inspirational motifs to engage people with climate change. My research has uncovered a variety of possibilities – such as windmills as icons of renewable energy – as well as alternatives to documentary photography as the dominant form of climate change communication. Artists and cartoonists are among the producers of inspirational alternatives.”
“A recent study of American public perception showed that fewer people are convinced of the reality of climate change, and of those that are only 36% attribute it to human activity. This shows the variance of levels of climate change knowledge and understanding, which effects how people behave in response. It also highlights the need for strategies to boost the cognitive and behavioural elements of climate change engagement without resorting to methods such as fear appeals that are, at best, a double edged sword.”
In her study Manzo analysed the traditional standard bearing symbols of climate change, especially polar bears, which (like the images of the global poor that sometimes appear in relation to climate change) are traditionally cast as being ‘helpless’ and ‘stranded’ victims as their habitat changes around them.
The most famous example of a polar bear gaining iconic status is Knut, the cub from Berlin Zoo whose image was used so successfully for political and commercial campaigns that he became the biggest cash grossing animal of all time.
“Polar bears score highly in the so called identifiable victim stakes. Findings suggest that the image of a lone polar bear, like Knut, wins hands down in the affective stakes provoking feelings of pity and concern as well as charitable giving.”
But is it time for those communicating climate change messages to find a new motif? To answer this question Manzo studied recent charity campaigns, climate change photography and the framing of climate change articles in the press.
Dr Manzo suggests that icons of extreme weather and renewable energy are the standard alternatives to faces of climate change, with images such as windmills providing an inspirational approach to a climate change message which is inherently difficult to visualise.
“Visually pleasing images have indirect value when they allow organisations that use them to raise money for climate action and science. Icons of renewable energy, such as windmills, change the frame of reference from either business as usual or visions of apocalypse to possible strategies of mitigation.”
“All of these alternatives represent efforts to move beyond polar bears as the iconic representation of climate change and the visual sign of the so called ‘age of the melt,'” concludes Manzo. “The challenge is to use visuals creatively in ways that can address all three aspects of climate change communication, i.e. cognition, affect and behaviour, without enhancing a sense of fatalism and disengagement.”
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You plug one kiddie murder hole and they open another, because they care.
As people become desensitized to Milgram-esque manipulation and over-the-top propaganda, several psychologists are clamoring to be the next Joseph Goebbels. Nice! When they make AGW Propaganda Minister an official office, maybe they’ll campaign against each other. That could be fun!
Shewchuk said there is no clear evidence to support assigning that status to the polar bear despite recommendations to the contrary by Environment Canada and a federal scientific panel.
“We live in polar bear country,” Shewchuk told reporters in Iqaluit on Friday afternoon. “We understand the polar bears, and we do actually think our polar bear population is very very healthy, with the exception of a couple of populations that we are taking action on.”
Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/north/story/2010/05/28/nunavut-polar-bear-status.html?ref=rss#ixzz0pKpisBhc
The natives seem to have a handle on the Poley Bears. It seems most of the issues are raised where we have an excessive overpopulation of politicians and pretend eco doo gooders.
They are talking about the effectiveness of various propaganda tools. The best propaganda is probably where they are telling the truth selectively in order to create a false impression.
The danger, when it is repeated continuously, is that little by little folks start to realize that they being misled. After that, each repetition of the same propaganda tool only serves to further reduce the credibility of the source of the propaganda. I suspect that the polls reflect that people are catching on.
…..against a backdrop of increased climate scepticism.
They need to get used to it. Next winter should be a cold one if La Nina does indeed start this year. That would be a 4th harsh winter in a row. And no barbecue summer this year either.
Funny I just stumbled upon Philip Stott’s site where he parodies Lewis Carrol’s Through the Looking Glass Chttp://web.me.com/sinfonia1/Clamour_Of_The_Times/Clamour_Of_The_Times/Entries/2010/5/28_Through_the_Looking_Glass_with_Connie.html.
I think these people have been swotting up their lessons learnt at the School under the Sea. such as reeling, & writhing (which they have especially been doing a lot of recently), – “and then the different branches of Arithmetic– Ambition, Distraction, Uglification, and Derision”.
Windmills as an icon can be shoved back in Warmists’ faces by revealing the government subsidies required to erect just ONE! Realityists should use the pictures with a dollar figure superimposed over each one, to the tune of a cool million, a figure I heard. At the overpriced cost of these things, there is no way even one would be erected without massive subsidies.
oh yes, a pic of a lovely windmill
If only wind mills were understood, remove the investment incentive, figure energy required to manufacture, locate, install, maintain, connect,/ maintain PRIMARY source of energy so wind energy can be frittered away when it is inconveniently generating.
Only one thought comes to mind, boondoggle.
lastly anyone ask why the windmills installed twenty years ago have stood useless for the last eighteen?
These clowns forget society has been desensitised to ad campaigns.
This is an information age, 20 years ago it was a phone book and a Library. Now they all phone a friend. They can check it out.
Still doing Phillby and his Cambridge mates. Dumb.
Al Gore’s Holy Hologram says:
May 29, 2010 at 7:21 am
…And because of the media’s cuddly image of the dangerous beast, in 2009 a German woman visiting the zoo decided it would be fun to enter the polar bear sanctuary and was viciously mauled. Had she not been rescued she would have been dinner. Idiot media
Think of it as Evolution in action.
Jim G: Where can I get one of those coins?
“A recent study of American public perception showed that fewer people are convinced of the reality of climate change, and of those that are only 36% attribute it to human activity.”
And so the reaction is to create another advertising campaign.
How did so many people become so disconnected from reality?
The general public is just getting more skeptical about everything, and why not?
They have witnessed every authority – government, environmental, banking, businesses, you name it – get caught in lies, exaggerations, fabrications……….
It’s only that 20%, that shows up in almost every poll, that consistently falls for it.
I’m in the advertising business and know what Dr Manzo doesn’t: A brand’s “personality” is determined by its customers, and its “promise” is what it stands for in their eyes. If consumers are no longer attracted to the brand and no longer believe its promise no amount of repositioning will help. Think Firestone and new Coke et al, brands that were damaged beyond repair.
Well, she’s just doing what she says she’s done on her website!
“The move from academic writing to fiction came after I joined a creative writing group for ‘tired and busy academics’ “
The lunatics have taken over the asylum. The only doom coming our way is that perpetrated by the warmists, who are hell bent on our destruction under the guise of “saving the planet”. Our only salvation from eating lentils will be to lurk beneath the millions of windmills, and gather the bird carcases for meat, which we can cook over our candles in our caves.
Kate Manzo:
My research has uncovered a variety of possibilities – such as windmills as icons of renewable energy
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
What she hasn’t recognized is that many “environmental” groups are seeing windmills as the antithesis of environmentally friendly. If the US were to put in enough windmills to achieve currently stated goals, it is possible that windmills could kill as many migratory birds as hunters … assuming any are left for hunters.
As for bats, we already have Montana and Alberta wiping out thousands of migrating Alberta bats every year …. expect lots more mosquitoes and West Nile …
And we won’t even talk about the Altamont wind farm in California.
http://www.savewesternny.org/wildlife.html
The trouble with those darn Polar bears as an icon is that they are adaptable and with still breed opportunistically with Grizzly bears so their genes are likely to stay around for a few thousand years yet, even if the ice was continuing to melt rather than recover.
Did I mention I am looking out the window at a blizzard as I write this? Typical Alberta spring, May 29. Calgary set another snowfall record for May 26. Forecast for snow all over the place this weekend. And don’t worry about the Polar Bears, they are fine. Probably good to change the focus, then we can talk about how to fix wind and solar.
But I am going to have to go out and drive to town in a blizzard.
http://www.ama.ab.ca/road_report/camera/camera_images/2-26b_3.jpg
Well off to put put out hay. Have a good day Y’all
Wayne, Central Alberta, Canada
Notice the number of times the words “iconic”, “icon”, “believe” and “inspirational” are used. These are religous terms. The new religion has been established. They are called the Climate Catholics (apologies to Rome). The new Pope is Al Gore. The Cardinals are Jones, Mann, etc. The Priests are all the so-called Climate Scientists that follow the dogma. They haven’t decided who their devil is. I’m sure they have nominated several demons. You know who you are. Their IPCC Bible is rewritten every few years. The Warmist papers are the religious Tracts and Prophesies. The Cathedrals are East Anglia, U of P, etc.
The problem is, you can’t fight a religion. You can only establish a competing one. Our only hope is that enough of the Prophesies are proved false that the whole structure collapses. That will take years. Meanwhile, their religion is causing cr@p that will take centuries to undo.
Obviously it just happened in the UK, Global Warming under the bus?
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article7139407.ece
Gary Pearse says:
May 29, 2010 at 7:36 am
http://windconcernsontario.wordpress.com/2010/05/01/wind-turbine-protest-blows-into-queen’s-park/
There are a number of groups fighting wind installations in Ontario
to move beyond polar bears as the iconic representation of climate change
Fish and Wildlife Research Institute
http://research.myfwc.com/manatees/
http://research.myfwc.com/features/default.asp?id=1001
FWC News – Record cold leads to record number of manatee deaths
http://myfwc.com/NEWSROOM/10/statewide/News_10_X_ManateeRecordDeaths.htm
As of March 19, biologists with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s (FWC) Fish and Wildlife Research Institute (FWRI) have documented 431 manatee carcasses in state waters so far in 2010. This preliminary data indicates that in just three months, the number of manatee deaths has exceeded the highest number on record for an entire calendar year, which was 429 in 2009. The cause of death for the majority of these animals is cold stress.
If they’re looking for new art, what about Avian Cuisinart?
Alan Simpson says: May 29, 2010 at 7:05 am
. . . I do marvel at her ability to produce a paper whilst her head is stuck so firmly up her behind and with one of her feet wedged in her mouth.
I find such language offensive, sir. It displays a complete lack of parallelism and respect for the syntactical sensitivities of others.
I suggest either
“. . . whilst her head is stuck so firmly up her behind and
withWHILST one of her feet IS wedged in her mouth,”or (preferably)
“. . .
whilstWITH her headisstuck so firmly up her behind and with one of her feet wedged in her mouth.”I recommend a subscription to the College Board’s free
Question of the Day for practice. The question for Saturday, May 29 is even on our theme.
Al Gore’s Holy Hologram says:
May 29, 2010 at 7:21 am :
“And because of the media’s cuddly image of the dangerous beast, in 2009 a German woman visiting the zoo decided it would be fun to enter the polar bear sanctuary and was viciously mauled. Had she not been rescued she would have been dinner. Idiot media.”
Here’s a pic of the bear’s new best friend.
R. de Haan says:
May 29, 2010 at 7:22 am
Stirs up images of Bhuddist Monks lighting themselves on fire to protest.
Never quite got what they were thinking. So much for the after-protest interviews.
The ‘Communicators’ are not the people really interested in the welfare of Planet Earth.
Nothing new in message content or delivery is going to change the perception that the folks with the
loudspeaker are clueless paid mouthpieces. Dinner is ruined, the keynote speaker has flopped and the guests are leaving.
Here are some images of windmills which allow me to visualize, and thus inspire me to have my positions on, the
global warmingclimate changemassagemessage.This one I remember well, it is indeed iconic. Had to search for it, found it with this article.
The search lead to this image (article) and this one (article) as well.
Truly inspirational imagery, indeed.