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Talking Turkey About Climate

Without starting a food fight

Climate change has become one of those divisive, polarizing issues that confound our political system. It's often hard to even have a civil conversation with folks who disagree, even with close relatives or friends.

But in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, and after the last year of devastating extreme weather, it is clear that the climate crisis has arrived. And the key to solving it is educating those around us.

Chances are your friends & family fall into one of the following six categories:

• Alarmed Aunt Anna
• Concerned Grandpa Christopher
• Cautious Cousin Charlie
• Disengaged Grandma Denise
• Doubtful Brother David
• Dismissive Aunt Debbie

The way people in each category respond to the climate issue varies. If you want to have an effective conversation, the way you talk about climate with different types of people should adjust accordingly.

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Alarmed Aunt Anna & Concerned Grandpa Christopher

They believe the science is real, but may doubt our ability to solve the climate crisis.

Here are a few points that may inspire them to keep up the fight:

• California the 8th largest economy in the world just implemented the world's most ambitious climate action plan.
• At the national level, the EPA is starting to regulate climate pollution using its existing authority under the Clean Air Act.
• The renewable energy industry is growing exponentially -- in fact, the clean energy economy is growing twice as fast as the rest of the economy, and we have enough potential wind and solar energy in the U.S. to power our economy 100 times over.

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Cautious Cousin Charlie, Disengaged Grandma Denise, & Doubtful Brother David

These folks probably (and wrongly) believe that there isn't a true consensus on the science of climate change. We know that's not true, but don't go on the attack! They tend to be more open to changing their minds if they are engaged in effective conversation.

Here are some basic facts that they'll find engaging:

• Carbon dioxide is a heat-trapping gas, and that's generally a very good thing. Without greenhouse gases, every night when the sun sets, temperatures would immediately plunge to frigid levels.
• But, we are now emitting 9 billion tons of CO₂ into the atmosphere every year, and CO₂ levels have increased by about a third since the industrial revolution. If we don't reduce emissions, we could more than double the level of CO₂ in the atmosphere over this century.
• Already, food growing patterns are changing, seasons are coming earlier, water resources are strained and the number of natural disasters in the U.S. has more than quadrupled in the last 50 years.

Dismissive Aunt Debbie

The truth is, there is almost no chance of changing her mind, and it's probably not worth trying unless you like banging your head against a wall. Ironically, research shows that the more facts you try to present, the less likely she will be to agree. However, even Dismissive Aunt Debbie will be open to arguments about stimulating the economy and protecting national security.

Try steering the conversation towards those issues:

• America needs to rebuild. Did you know the clean energy sector creates 3 times as many jobs as the fossil fuel sector? We can't afford to pass up those jobs.
• Other countries are taking advantage of the economic stimulation that comes with climate action. China is testing carbon cap-and-trade markets in an area encompassing 250 million people. The U.S. needs to stay competitive.
• America's billion-dollar-a-day dependence on oil from hostile nations directly funds our most dangerous enemies, putting guns and bullets into their hands and putting our soldiers in danger. It is time for America to stand strong on its own independent and in control of our energy future.