Public Engagement with Climate Change: Interdisciplinary Challenges
Symposium at SGM 2019
This session aims to provide multiple perspectives into the challenges and opportuni-ties of climate change communication and education. Inviting contributions from a broad range of disciplines (e.g. education, psychology, communication, public under-standing of science, humanities, social & natural sciences), this session focuses on the perception, processing, communication, application, learning, and education of climate information and knowledge.
Despite high levels of public awareness about anthropogenic climate change, climate action among large parts of the general public still remains relatively low. However, Greta Thunberg’s global activism and ensuing national climate demonstrations with ten thousands of predominantly young participants may have uncovered potentially new drivers, processes, and forms of public engagement with climate change.
So what are the pre-conditions, factors, and mechanisms that facilitate or prevent public action on climate change among different segments of the population? And what are the consequences for climate change education and communication efforts? Here, various disciplines within the educational, psychological, social, and climate sciences as well as humanities can provide the theoretical and practical instruments to under-stand publics‘ engagement with climate change.
Talks or posters may relate to all approaches (both theoretical and practical; quantitative and qualitative), scales (i.e. local, national, global), and age levels (i.e. children, youths, adults). Contributions from young scientists (MSc- or PhD-projects)are encouraged, while interdisciplinary projects are especially welcomed too.
Organiser:
Swiss Association for Geographic Education (VGD-CH)
Contact:
Pierre Dèzes
Swiss Academy of Sciences SCNAT
Platform Geosciences
Laupenstrasse 7
CH-3008 Bern
Switzerland
phone: +41 (0) 31 306 93 25
e-mail :