Progress depends on being able to disagree in ways that do not turn every aspect of climate politics into an identity-driven tribal war between good and evil.
The dehumanization of opponents is such a big problem that goes beyond climate science. It’s so tempting and so easy to exercise continuously in our modern media environment. I am not sure what the antidote to this is but I wish things were less rather than more politicized. Universities can play a big role. We need to teach students to disagree constructively and to see disagreement as an opportunity for growth rather than as a fight to win or a fight to avoid. I discovered the Nonviolent Communication (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nonviolent_Communication?wprov=sfti1) approach from Dr. Rosenberg many years ago and I always thought that it is a fantastic template. I wish it was more known and taught more broadly. Are you familiar with it Matt?
I just saw that you chose to follow me on Substack. I think that you probably are mistaking me for someone else. Because I'm still learning to navigate Substack, can you let me know if there was a comment I made that caused you to follow me or just a case of mistaken identity? Thanks!
The algorithms are so interesting! I'm not connected in with social media much, and I generally ignore "likes" and "follows". For me, Substack is a fertile field to find good writers. If you do have time to engage, what do you think are some of the biggest obstacles to science communication?
All very nice, but money's money, and that's at the heart of it. Americans are not Swedes and we are the #1 fossil fuel nation in the world. Who's going to leave money in the ground to protect their grandchildren? Precious few--who count.
The dehumanization of opponents is such a big problem that goes beyond climate science. It’s so tempting and so easy to exercise continuously in our modern media environment. I am not sure what the antidote to this is but I wish things were less rather than more politicized. Universities can play a big role. We need to teach students to disagree constructively and to see disagreement as an opportunity for growth rather than as a fight to win or a fight to avoid. I discovered the Nonviolent Communication (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nonviolent_Communication?wprov=sfti1) approach from Dr. Rosenberg many years ago and I always thought that it is a fantastic template. I wish it was more known and taught more broadly. Are you familiar with it Matt?
Hi! Matt,
I just saw that you chose to follow me on Substack. I think that you probably are mistaking me for someone else. Because I'm still learning to navigate Substack, can you let me know if there was a comment I made that caused you to follow me or just a case of mistaken identity? Thanks!
this is so true. What has to work is bioregional coordinate climate change response. Dehumanizing your opponents keeps that from happening widely.
The algorithms are so interesting! I'm not connected in with social media much, and I generally ignore "likes" and "follows". For me, Substack is a fertile field to find good writers. If you do have time to engage, what do you think are some of the biggest obstacles to science communication?
All very nice, but money's money, and that's at the heart of it. Americans are not Swedes and we are the #1 fossil fuel nation in the world. Who's going to leave money in the ground to protect their grandchildren? Precious few--who count.