Make Climate a Meeting

Climate scientist Dr. Katharine Hayhoe says, “the best way to address the climate crisis is pretty simple: we all should talk about it with people we know.” But how do we start these conversations? Below you will find resources compiled and created by the LSA Sustainability team to help you make your meetings about climate.

Why?

A Fall 2023 study by Yale’s Program on Climate Change Communication and George Mason University’s Center for Climate Change Communication found that Americans who think global warming is happening outweigh those who do not believe (72% versus 15%) but 65% say they “rarely” or “never” discuss global warming with friends and family. This further points toward a need to have open, honest, and respectful conversations, even in places where it might not feel applicable.

A 2020 study by Hugel and Davies found that public engagement or conversations in this space are fundamental for climate action. The success of large-scale projects such as decarbonization solutions and the construction of renewable energy infrastructure depends on community buy-in.

When?

The best time to start is now! Below you will find tips, tricks, and resources to get started with making your meetings about climate. The Year of Sustainability team is happy to come to talk for a few minutes of your meetings to get you started. You can contact us at sustainable-lsa@umich.edu.

How?

There are numerous ways to kick off a conversation about climate. In meetings, you can start with a quick question, conversation starters, an overview of unit sustainability initiatives, or dive into what U-M is doing to move toward carbon neutrality.

Karin Tamerius of Smart Politics has created a framework for starting and having conversations. They suggest asking open ended-genuinely curious, non-judgemental questions. Listening to what people say and deepening your understanding with follow-up questions. Reflecting back on their point of view by summarizing their answers and noting underlying emotions. Agreeing before challenging them by pointing out your areas of common ground. Sharing your thinking by telling a story about a personal experience.

Similarly, The #TalkingClimate Handbook by Climate Outreach and EIT Climate-KIC suggest using the REAL TALK framework. Respect your conversational partner and find common ground, Enjoy it, Ask questions, Listen and show you’ve heard, Tell your story, Action makes it easier (but doesn’t fix it), Learn from your conversational partner, and Keep going and keep connected.

Conversation Starters

The LSA Sustainability team, in addition to the Planet Blue Resource Toolkit, has compiled general and subject-specific conversation starters. You can find the full list here as well as drafted slides below.

MCaM-Conversation-Starters

Have LSA Sustainability Talk to your Team

The LSA Sustainability team would love to talk to your unit/department to hear what you are doing and to share larger LSA & U-M initiatives. You can contact us at sustainable-lsa@umich.edu.

Climate Foundations

Climate Solutions – Staff

Planet Blue{Prints}

Action Steps

You’ve started to have the conversations, but what’s next? Below are some suggested next steps.

Get trained as a Planet Blue Ambassador. This is the entry point to sustainability at U-M, with the goal of empowering you with the information and resources you need to live, work, learn, and play sustainably.
Fill out the Sustainable Office Assessment through the Office of Campus Sustainability. This will give your unit/department a good baseline of what you are doing and other actions you can take in office spaces.
Stay up-to-date with local initiatives in Ann Arbor and explore volunteering opportunities.