Why don’t they get it?

I have personally not been able understand why people reject the messages of climate change when the science all points in the same direction and climate scientists agree.

As early as in 1990 the IPPCC published their first Scientific Assessment Report evaluating how human activities are changing the Earth’s climate through the Greenhouse Effect. Several hundreds of scientists from 25 countries around the world agreed and concluded that climate change may potentially be the greatest global environmental challenge facing mankind (IPCC, 1990). But why are there still climate sceptics out there?

An inspiring lecture by Chris Rapley, former director of London’s Science Museum, the British Antarctic Survey and the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme, combined with the reading of scientific papers I have received a clearer understanding of the physiological and social attitudes associated with rejecting climate change.

During our lecture Chris Rapley referred to the book Thinking Fast and Slow where the author Daniel Kahneman states that the human mind is capable of believing almost anything. As human beings we are influenced by the views of those we identify with and whose esteem we seek (Rapley, 2012). In combination with our surrounding we are also influenced by the media’s representation of climate change. The media plays a crucial role in informing the public about climate change as the public’s perception is influenced by the media’s representation. Because science in the media is a reconstruction and not a mirror the complexity of climate change science makes it difficult to communicate. Even though climate scientists agree the uncertainties involved in climate research is difficult for the media to address as the news demand facts to deliver a streamlined image of the scientific knowledge (Carvalho, 2007).

Climate change challenges the economic structure of modern society– where production and consumption are the ideals of wealth. Taking action against climate change will affect the governance, funding and fuelling of the modern world. The opposing views reported in the media have therefore worked to sow doubt amongst the public reinforced by misinformation campaigns sticking deeper into human needs. As climate change is a frightening prospect choosing to reject climate change is a natural instinct (Rapley, 2012). A combination of phycology and the media's representation of climate change have contributed to climate change sceptics.

Findings from an American nationally representative survey conducted by the Yale Project on Climate Change Communication and the George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication indicated that American’s belief in the reality of global warming has increased by 13 %, from 57 % in January 2010 to 70 % in September 2012. During the same period global warming deniers in America declined from 20 % to 12 % (Leiserowitz et al., 2012). This means it is time for climate scientists to take advantage of their position and be tactical when informing the public about climate change. According to Chris Rapley this can be accomplished if climate scientists “…develop a new, coherent initiative to engage collectively and actively in the political and public discourse.” (Rapley, 2012). 

Come on climate scientists, let us get those climate change deniers converted!