During the COVID-19 pandemic, I have spent a lot of time trying to reflect and reconnect. Many of us are having conversations with those we haven’t spoken to in a while, and discussing topics we normally wouldn’t.
As a self-proclaimed ‘Climate Change Person’, I am often looking to have conversations with regards to what I believe is the greatest threat our species and planet are facing (aka the climate crisis/6th mass extinction/human-induced snowballing interactions of doom). And even though we are currently in a pandemic worth talking about, I still find myself wanting to talk about COVID-19 and the chaos it has created in relation to the climate crisis.
That being said, I rarely find myself actually having climate conversations. And it seems like I am not alone. Only 19% of Americans discuss the climate crisis least once a month. After seeing this, I asked myself “WHY?”. Then, I answered myself (I talk to myself a lot), “Because it’s not like I can just bring it up easily.”
We often think talking about the climate crisis has to be in a formal, direct, and emotionally heated manner. But it can start with a simple question. Below are some questions I came up to help myself jumpstart conversations, and hopefully they will reach and help some fellow climate conversationalist wanna-bes as well. Because in the words of Voltaire, ‘Judge a man by his questions rather than his answers’.
Questions to lead into climate change discussion:
What is your favorite plant/animal? Why? Have you seen it in the wild?
What is your favorite memory in nature?
Would you rather explore the deep ocean or the densest forests?
Do you think we should spend money on restoring Earth or colonizing new planets?
What is your favorite disaster movie? Do you think natural disasters are getting worse?
What do you think the benefits/dangers of current technology are? Do you think technology is helping or hurting our relationship with nature?
If you could make any change to the Earth, what would it be?
What do you think is the biggest problem we will face in the future? What do you think is the biggest problem we have faced in the past?
How far do you think the influences of your actions go?
Have you ever experienced fake news? What was it? How did you find out?
What are your hopes for your children?
What do you value most about nature?
What would you say your privileges are? How can you use them to help those that are under-privileged?
When was the last time you were influenced by something/someone?
Where do you get your information about the world?
What do you want your legacy to be?
What is your relationship with food?
What kind of traditions do you practice, and what role do they play in your life? Do you think traditions should adapt with new generations?
What freedoms are you thankful for?
Questions once on the topic of climate change:
Do you think humans have a moral responsibility to protect other living things?
How do you think we ended up in this climate crisis? What actions do you think led us here and why?
What is your relationship with nature/the climate? How do you think that relationship will look like in the future?
What are the things you think humanity is doing right?
Do you think we as humans are part of ecosystems? Or are we in control of them?
What is something you want to learn more about with regards to nature/climate?
What emotions come up when you think about our history/future on Earth?
What are some changes you want to make but are struggling to? What do you think are the biggest roadblocks to creating change?
Do you worry about climate change? Why/why not? Why do you think some people may think the opposite?
Do you feel guilty about doing anything which is bad for the environment? Have others made you feel guilty? Do you think you have made others feel guilty?
What actions should we take for a better future / to re-create how things were in the past?
What systems need to change the most to tackle the climate crisis?
What do you think your individual role is in taking action against the climate crisis? What sacrifices would you need to make to fulfill this role?
What are some changes you’ve seen in your hometown with regards to the climate? Has it affected your life? Do you think it will in the future?
What jobs do you think are the most important now/will be the most important in the future?
What are actions you want to take to be more environmentally friendly? Where did you learn about these? What are some you’ve made in the past? What moved you to make them?
??????
And that’s all I came up with for now! Feel free to add your own and share with the hashtag: #TalkClimate2Me
Happy discussing :)