Researchers propose creative storytelling in science to urgently act on the climate crisis<\/p>\n
Our planet faces several major threats. Near or at the top of the list are climate change and biodiversity collapse. In many cases, the approaches used to address such critical issues, especially by governments and the academic and scientific communities, don\u2019t resonate with society.<\/p>\n
A research team at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom argues that engaging the public by transforming jargony, inaccessible and detached language into more personal, emotional and narrative-driven communication can inspire real action to tackle crises. The paper was published in the journal \u2018People and Nature\u2019.<\/p>\n
The researchers call for a shift towards storytelling in science, especially environmental science communication. \u201cAs environmental scientists ourselves, we feel frustration, a sense of loss, fear and sometimes helplessness at the lack of action to protect the planet,\u201d commented climate scientist Karen Anderson from the university\u2019s Environment and Sustainability Institute in a news release. \u201cBut researchers are expected to be rational \u2013 not emotional \u2013 for fear of being seen as less objective and trustworthy. This prevents scientists from using their knowledge, passion and creative skills to fully communicate the work.\u201d<\/p>\n
Climate scientist Katherine Crichton, professor at the Department of Geography, added: \u201cExisting methods of communication haven\u2019t worked: the destruction of our climate and the natural world continues. We need to try something different. Humans are inspired by stories. By telling better stories, scientists can help inspire meaningful action to protect ourselves by protecting our environment and the planet.\u201d<\/p>\n
The paper trials three new communication models for scientific writers. These action points aim to diversify environmental science communication.<\/p>\n
Today\u2019s academic writing is based on the methods of 17th- and 18th-century gentleman scientists \u2013 financially independent male intellectuals who pursued scientific study as a hobby. \u201cThat form of writing clearly has its place \u2013 but we\u2019re not only debating technical aspects of science for academic interest,\u201d stated Crichton. \u201cEverybody should be interested in the climate and biodiversity crisis \u2013 we are talking about our home, and that subject is too important to be confined to academic journals.\u201d<\/p>\n
Angela Gallego-Sala, also a professor at the Department of Geography, explained: \u201cWe study these ecosystems because we love them \u2013 but we are expected to be removed from our subjects. In almost all communication of our work, the scientist remains \u2018masked\u2019 \u2013 a dispassionate source of data and analysis. In fact, as scientists we all have stories to tell about ourselves, the people we work with and the places we work in \u2013 and these stories could be vitally important.\u201d<\/p>\n
The authors urge experimentation. \u201cThere is plenty of other academic work that advocates for scientific storytelling,\u201d Anderson concluded. \u201cThe problem is that these other pieces don\u2019t demonstrate how this can be done. Our piece tries to showcase different ways that scientists can experiment with more creative communication methods. We understand that it might feel strange to do this, but we hope that other scientists are willing to give this a try. It\u2019s the start of a different type of experiment \u2013 an experiment with stories.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Researchers propose creative storytelling in science to urgently act on the climate crisis Our planet faces several major threats. Near or at the top of the list are climate change and biodiversity collapse. In many cases, the approaches used to address such critical issues, especially by governments and the academic and scientific communities, don\u2019t resonate\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":19662,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_scj_primary_category_id":70,"_scj_featured":false,"_scj_featured_from":"","_scj_featured_until":"","_scj_featured_order":0,"_scj_visibility_class":"current","_scj_layout_family":"standard","_scj_article_style":"","_scj_display_overrides":[],"_scj_intro_image_id":19662,"_scj_intro_alt":"Researchers at the University of Exeter promote storytelling to address climate and biodiversity crises","_scj_intro_caption":"","_scj_intro_class":"","_scj_intro_float":"","_scj_full_image_id":19662,"_scj_full_alt":"Researchers at the University of Exeter promote storytelling to address climate and biodiversity crises","_scj_full_caption":"","_scj_full_class":"","_scj_full_float":"","_scj_media_type":"","_scj_media_provider":"","_scj_media_external_id":"","_scj_media_url":"","_scj_media_poster_id":0,"_scj_media_width":0,"_scj_media_height":0,"_scj_media_aspect_ratio":"","_scj_media_description":"","_scj_gallery_items":[],"_scj_related_post_ids":[],"_scj_additional_authors":[],"scj_layout_family":"standard","scj_media_provider":"","scj_media_url":"","scj_full_caption":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70],"tags":[2408,187,245,2407,2406,4527],"class_list":["post-19663","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-climate-change","tag-academic-research","tag-biodiversity","tag-climate-change","tag-environmental-crisis","tag-science-communication","tag-storytelling"],"yoast_head":"\n