Communicating the Climate Crisis: New Directions for Facing What Lies Ahead

Communicating the Climate Crisis puts communication at the center of the change we need, providing concrete strategies that help break the social inertia that blocks social change and cultural transformation. After reimagining “earth” not just as the ground upon which we walk but as the atmosphere we breathe—Eairth—the book examines our consumption-based identities in fossil fuel culture and the necessity of structural change to address the climate crisis. Strategies for overcoming obstacles start with facing the emotional challenges (and the mental health tolls) of the crisis that lead to climate silence. Breaking that silence through personal climate conversations is a powerful tool that elevates the importance of the problem, finds common ground, and eases “climate anxiety.” The lens of climate justice and faith-based worldviews helps articulate our moral responsibility to take drastic action to protect all humans and the living world. This book tells a new story of hope through action—not as isolated, “guilty” consumers but as social actors who engage hearts, hands, and minds to envision and create a desired future.