Establishing Climate Narrative 

1. Identify shared values. Drawing on shared values draws out your audience’s sense of morality, which is a great way to motivate them for action and encourage their investment in your projects. You may choose 2 to 3 shared values as a basis for your narrative, to help organize your story, and to express your purpose. [Text Wrapping Break][Text Wrapping Break]Commonly shared values in the context of climate change may be: 

• Family and future generations 
• Justice and equity 
• Freedom 

• Natural beauty 
• The future of work

2. Keep it action and solutions-oriented. Providing clear and attainable action items can also counter denial. Providing solutions is also a great way to make a lasting impact in those you share your narrative with and involve them in your movement. [Text Wrapping Break][Text Wrapping Break]When building a solution and as we learned in our Strategic Planning unit, consider the SMART approach: 

• Specific (simple, sensible, significant) 
• Measurable (meaningful, motivating) 

• Achievable (agreed, attainable) 
• Relevant (reasonable, realistic and resourced, results-based) 
• Time-Bound (time-based, time-limited, time/cost limited, timely, time-sensitive) 

3. Be aware of who your narrative includes- and leaves out. To make your narrative as effective and relevant as possible, it is important to ensure there is a balance of Western and traditional climate knowledge. Western climate knowledge is rooted in the mainstream sciences we’re all familiar with; traditional climate knowledge is rooted in community experience and Indigenous worldviews. Traditional climate knowledge comes from the lived experience of living on and with the land over the span of generations and is often ahead of Western climate knowledge in identifying signals of climate change and solutions. To engage in both and acknowledge that you are doing so will enhance your narrative.

“For Indigenous people, taking care of the Earth is not a movement, it’s a culture. And that’s what I want to see out of these strikes and out of our pressure… Right now I’m seeing a lot of Indigenous voices being lifted up… and we’re saying all that knowledge of taking care of the Earth for thousands of years is so important, because the environmental movement didn’t start 60 years ago. It’s always been here.” - Xiye Bastida, 17-year-old Indigenous climate activist from Mexico.” 

4. Engage storytelling to humanize your narrative. There are reasons Indigenous Peoples around the world have worked so hard to protect their oral traditions, and have structured entire education systems on stories for time immemorial: because they work. Storytelling Stories are also more engaging and memorable when they include personal and emotional components; again, this is backed by neuroscience!  

When we are being told a story, things change dramatically. Not only are the language processing parts in our brain activated, but any other area in our brain that we would use when experiencing the events of the story are too.2 

When practicing storytelling to enhance your narrative, consider: 

• Personalizing your story: This helps humanize your work, and makes it more relatable to your audience. Think about what sparked your interests, who inspired you, or your “AHA!” moment that called you to the path that you’re on. This can also be as a result of lived experiences by yourself, your family, friends, or community.  

• Simplify your story: A story in its simplest form is one of cause and effect, and it’s how our brains function. We think in narratives, all the time.  
• Use a story instead of suggesting: With audiences that may be less eager to engage with a climate narrative, nevermind engage in climate action, using a story to warn, prompt action, or suggest can be an extremely powerful way to reach your audience. 

5. Leverage past- and future-oriented messaging. Past-oriented messaging emphasizes how the climate has changed to-date; future-oriented messaging emphasizes how climate could change in the future. Past-oriented messaging is effective when communicating with older generations, as it can highlight concrete, specific changes that have occurred over their lifetime. It can be used to highlight loss (of ecology, biodiversity, etc.) - emphasizing loss encourages people to take risks to avoid further loss and can incentivize action (but be careful of expressing fatalism or hopelessness, which is demotivating).On the other hand, future-oriented messaging can be effective when communicating with parents, by encouraging them to think of their children and their children’s future wellbeing. 

6. Meet the interests, needs, and language of your audience. Understanding your audience will significantly impact your ability to reach your audience. You may keep your shared values consistent; however, for different audience you may need to present those values in different ways and with different language. You will likely need to “code switch” to do this. “Code-switching” requires an awareness of how words are loaded with social queues and meanings, and that they will be interpreted differently depending on the experiences and background of your audience. This is especially important in your efforts to humanize your climate narrative. Some characteristics of your audience can be anticipated in advance, such as knowing their general age range, geographic locations, occupations, or experiences in the field. In your attempts to meet your audience consider: 

• Informal vs. formal language: For some audiences, using complex words and little-known theories may come across as elitist or inaccessible; on the contrary, for some audiences this tactic will demonstrate credibility.  
• Triggering language: Recognize that for some audiences, terms such as “racism” may trigger a certain reaction that inhibit their ability to digest what you say from there-on-out. Don’t avoid using triggering language if it adds value, but ensure that you provide satisfactory build-up and rationale for using it. 
• Presentation: How you present yourself will be perceived by the audience just as much as the language you use, and so will your presentation materials. Take these elements into consideration when delivering your climate narrative.