Citizens Climate Radio Ep 5 Diving into Denial

Ah, Climate Denial, a constant companion. Climate advocates have sought for the silver bullet, that one talking point that will extinguish all climate doubts and dismissals. In this episode host, Peterson Toscano, brings in climate advocates from around the world and climate communication experts to explore what might be behind the denial and how to respond. 

Main Section

Climate denial has distracted climate advocates and slowed down the public discussion and political action. As a result, climate activists and comics have gotten downright snarky and angry at people, particularly politicians, who are skeptical of climate science. Sharing insights about what they have discovered about climate denial, we hear from professional skier, Angel Collinson, and Chilean climate advocate, Andres Forno. We also get some good news from Bessie Schwarz at the Yale Program on Climate Communications. 

Peterson then raises some questions including, What if starting 10 years ago there were no more climate skeptics in the world? What would we be talking and writing about today? And how do we engage the 29 million Americans who say they are alarmed by climate change?  As always your input and responses are welcome. 

Art House

In the Art House you will meet Marvin Bloom, a comic creation who takes a serious look at climate denial. Through his playful meditation on the issue, Marvin humanizes the denial experience and considers various types of climate denial. He also reveals a weird issue that keeps him stuck in denial. 

Puzzler

We received many excellent and downright inspiring answers to last month's puzzler. As an added bonus, Cathy Orlando, from Citizens Climate Lobby Canada (featured in Episode Two) talks about the recent success in Canada. After years of lobbying, the Canadian government has agreed to place a fee on carbon starting in 2018. Cathy shares some of the many ways she and her fellow Canadian Citizens' Climate volunteers engaged lawmakers and the public. 

Here is our new puzzler submitted by Chris Wiegard from Citizens’ Climate chapter in Richmond, Virginia. 

When I blog on climate change or go to public hearings on it, I often hear or read fossil fuel defenders say that "shifting to renewable energy is unrealistic because low income people are dependent on low energy prices. The cheapness of fossil fuel is all that keeps certain people alive." And Chris is right, poor and working class people cannot easily afford buying expensive energy hybrid cars and installing solar panels and the other alternatives currently on offer. So how might you respond to argument that shifting to renewable energy is unrealistic because low income people are dependent on low energy prices. 

Send Peterson your answers. Leave your name, contact info, and where you are from.

Get back to him by November 15th 2016. You can email your answers to radio @ citizensclimate.org that’s radio @ citizensclimate.org You can also text Peterson or leave a voice memo of 3 minutes or less at 570.483.8194. (+1 if calling from outside the USA.) That number again is 570.483.8194

Dig Deeper

• Global Warming's Six Americas, Yale Program on Climate Communication
• Protect Our Winters, professional athletes, including Angel Collinson, promoting climate advocacy
• Nationwide Carbon Price in Canada marks start of transition to clean energy, Citizens' Climate Blog
• Chile faces climate change challenge, BBC News

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