Core Team’s Toolkit
It's the core team's job to communicate the urgency of climate change to the public, and give them a strategy for solving the problem.
They do this by learning from the non-profit's media, sharing it, and then creating and sharing a bunch of their own content with the world.
Non-Profit's Media
The non-profit's media exemplifies the ideas style of content that the core team can create in their own words and style to share with the public. It comes in two forms: video and documentation. These cover the same topics and come in the following categories:
- Communicating the problem (with a call to action)
- Communicating the solution (with a call to action)
- Communicating both the problem and the solution (with a call to action)
- Learn More
Video
These videos haven't been created yet, but here's how they can be envisioned:
- Communicating the problem (with a call to action)
- A 2 minute animated explainer video describing what climate change is, the urgency of the issue, and a call to action TBC.
- A 2 minute animated explainer video describing a future where climate change hasn't been taken seriously, from Chapter 2 of The Future We Choose, with a call to action TBC.
- A 2 minute animated explainer video describing a future where climate change has been taken seriously, from Chapter 3 of The Future we Choose, with a call to action TBC.
- A 4 minute animated explainer video incorporating the previous two videos together.
- A 2 minute video featuring celebrities from all over the world, from all parties and affiliations, speaking directly to the camera, explaining what climate change is, with a call to action TBC.
- Communicating the solution (with a call to action)
- Communicating both the problem and the solution (with a call to action)
- Learn More
Writing
- A one page document to understand climate change
- A one page document outlining a unified plan to tackle climate change.
- A one page document of great statistics worth memorizing.
- A one page document explaining what you as an individual can do.
- A one page document with resources you can use to learn more.
- One document to rule them all - a 5 page document, which includes all of the above.
Core Team Strategy
Aside from sharing the content above, it is vital that the core team creates their own media that shares these messages. They will use their own voice and perspective, since people have differing experiences of what content is effective for differing audiences. Here are some ideas, but do not feel limited by them:
Content
Social Media Videos or Images
- Direct to camera approach - speak directly to your audience. Tell them what's happening and how it makes you feel.
- Animated explainer - do you have design skills? A simple animation, often with text or recorded VO, is sometimes the most effective method.
- Special skill - do you have a talent or special skill that can convey your message? Are you an artist? Draw a picture in a timelapse. Are you a songwriter? Make a music video or record that song to camera.
- Do you have any really jarring or interesting bits of live captured video that you can share? Environmental catastrophes that can be clearly tied to climate change? Use them to create a compelling piece of content.
- Images - Powerful images with readable, short, simple text are a great way to get your point across.
Writing
There is less guidance on this, but don't feel restricted. Blogs, letters to media editors, essays, books: the sky is the limit!
Style
Simple
The message must be simple and easy to understand. It should be direct, and easily consumable. Bite sized chunks work the best.
Focused
Some people, especially progressives, want to use climate change to solve other problems. This will fail. Climate change solutions will benefit many people, such as investors in green technologies and poor people without electricity. But climate change should not be mixed with other agendas. This will confuse the message and create disagreements.
Inclusive
Climate change is not a partisan issue. Solving it will cost a lot, but ignoring it will cost more. Conservatives should not resist it. We see its worsening effects every day.
Audio-Visual
Text is great, but pictures and sound amplify the message. Video is even better.
Call to Action
Always include a way for the audience to take the next step. That could be a call to action, or simply an invitation to visit the savetheworld.wiki.
Message
Here is the basic message:
- Climate change threatens our very existence. It will kill millions of people, destabilise governments, and have a devastating permanent effect on our economies. It is in everyone's interest, rich and poor, conservative and liberal, to act now.
- The laws we have in place right now prop up an energy system based on using fossil fuels, and there is a powerful group of very rich people who pressure governments to keep it that way.
- If governments enacted new laws to invest in and subisidize green technologies, they wouldn't just save the planet, they would make energy far cheaper, and save people money almost immediately.
- That's why people need to act now - to demand that their governments change.