John Marshall: 3 strategies for effectively talking about climate change | TED Countdown

Transcriber:

譯者: 耀祖 施 審譯者: SF Huang

我常有一個奇怪的想法

外星人來到地球觀察人類

抓走上百位科學家，問他們：

「你們的星球怎麼了?」

I often have this strange thought

外星人很快就會知道

that aliens come down to Earth to check us out.

所有科學家都認為

They beam up a hundred scientists and they ask them,

工業污染造成地球溫度不可逆地升高

"What's going on on your planet?"

And the aliens quickly learn something:

人類將難以安全安居於此

that all of these scientists have concluded

接著，他們又做了同樣的事

that pollution from our industrial activity is irreversibly heating the earth

但這次另外抓了 100 個人

他們不是科學家 只是和我們一樣的普通人

in a way that will make it very hard for us to live here safely.

外星人一隻手就數得出來

Then they do the same thing,

這些人之中，提到氣候變遷的人數

but this time they beam up another 100 people,

有二十到三十幾個人完全沒聽過

and they're not scientists, they're regular people like us.

抓來的美國人裡

They could count on one hand

how many of those people would even mention climate change.

只有四分之一的人， 會高度關注這個議題

Two or three dozen of them may never have even heard the term.

我可以想像外星人有多震驚

「為什麼人類不知道發生了什麼事 或情況有多糟呢?

And among the Americans in the group,

only one in four would be highly concerned about the issue.

快來人告訴他們啊!」

這荒謬的情況既明顯又真實

The aliens, I think, would be shocked.

是由於我們無效的溝通所造成

"Why don't people know what's happening or how bad it is?

Someone should tell them!"

我的工作是教育人們氣候的變遷現象

The absurdity of the situation is so clear and so real.

所以我會看這些概念、訊息與專有名詞

What we have here is a failure to communicate.

並用百萬人來做測試

My job is to educate people about climate change.

我告訴你們我學到了什麼

So I look at the concepts, the messages, the images and the terms,

對非常多人來說

氣候變遷是個很抽象、 太遙遠、難以想像的東西

and I test them with millions of people.

用來說明氣候變遷的字──

I'd like to tell you what I'm learning.

像排放、二氧化碳、甲烷 淨零、人為引發──

For so many people,

climate change seems abstract, distant, too big to imagine.

只會讓人混淆

The words we often use to describe it --

沒人起床時會說

emissions, CO2, methane, net zero, anthropogenic --

「今天是個美好的無碳日」

這些字反而變成理解的障礙

are, simply put, confusing.

Not that many people wake up in the morning and say,

更別說要關心議題了

解決無效溝通的方式

"It's a great day for some decarbonisation."

不是透過談論議題本身

These words become obstacles rather than gateways to understanding,

而是從人開始，先從個人角度出發

let alone caring.

人們心中有大大小小的事

The way to fix this failure to communicate

is to start not by talking about the issue,

各式各樣的擔心和挑戰 還有希望以及啟發

but to start with people, to think first about individuals,

氣候變遷是人類最大的威脅之一

the people who have millions of other things on their mind,

如果人類不在乎

a million worries and challenges and hopes and aspirations.

不到緊要關頭

是不會正視這個問題的

Climate change is one of the biggest threats humanity has ever faced,

以人為首來了解氣候變遷的方法

要做到三件簡單的事

and we won't face it,

not to the degree that's necessary,

首先，用詞要單純、明確和通用

if people don't care.

The people-first approach to climate communications

可以確定的是，人們並不真的明白

demands three simple things.

碳排放，淨零等

The first one is plain, obvious and universal language.

大多數為教科書用字

老實說，對一般人而言 這些字很多聽起來沒那麼可怕

One thing for sure people don't readily get --

carbon emissions, net zero --

「50 年內氣溫會升高 2 度」

are most terms that can be found in a science book.

或聽起來糟到沒辦法想像

And frankly, to the uninitiated, much of it doesn't really sound that bad.

「1.2 兆噸的冰」

困惑和絕望是理解的敵人

"Two degrees warmer in 50 years,"

or it sounds so bad, you can't even get your head around it --

有個測試用語的好方法 那就是聽到時會想到什麼

"1.2 trillion tons of ice."

聽到像是「氣候變遷」的字眼 你會想到什麼?

Confusion and hopelessness are the enemies of understanding.

對多數人來說，都是「沒什麼想法」

A good test for language is, what pops into your head when you hear it.

這樣的用語不生動

我們要大家都理解的生動用語

If you hear a term like "climate change," what pops into your head?

搞混氣候變遷跟臭氧洞的人數

Well, for most people, the answer is "not much."

還真的很驚人

10 個美國人就有超過 4 個人

The language isn't vivid.

What we need is vivid language that everyone gets.

認為氣候變遷就是臭氧洞造成的

It's remarkable how many people actually confuse climate change

而且他們許多人都記得也知道

很多臭氧層破洞的事

with the ozone hole.

More than four in 10 Americans

為什麼 ？

think the ozone hole actually causes global warming.

因為是破洞，是表層

And so many of them remember and understand

人們看得到、想得到，能產生連結

so much about ozone depletion.

這裡用了立即明白的簡單暗喻

Why is that?

Because it's a hole, it's a layer.

說個小故事

讓大家對氣候變遷產生類似的共鳴

People can see it, imagine it, relate to it.

人類出現在地球已經約 30 萬年

It uses simple metaphor that's an instant get.

但近 60 年才開始帶來污染

Here's a little story that gets a similar "aha"

這些污染會留在空氣數千年

for climate change.

Humans have been on Earth for about 300,000 years,

像條厚厚的毯子包覆著地球 吸收聚集大氣中的熱能

but we've only started polluting like this in about the last 60.

這些熱能會導致更強的颶風

更大的火災，更多的水災

Our pollution stays in the air for thousands of years,

與數千物種的滅絕

creating a thickening blanket that traps heat in the atmosphere.

但還是有好消息

要阻止這污染層

That heat causes stronger hurricanes,

我們只要停止污染

bigger fires, more frequent floods

這個「污染層」 是我們測試過 讓人們了解這個議題

and the extinction of thousands of species.

But there's good news.

最有效的說法之一

To stop the pollution blanket,

we just have to stop polluting.

這是可見、明確的說法

人們聽到這個訊息時 明顯地更能感同身受

This "pollution blanket" framing is one of the most effective we've tested

他們懂了

at getting people to understand the issue.

有許多其他常見的說法和概念

It's visual, it's vivid,

能感染人們

and when people hear the message, they become significantly more engaged.

與其說「暖化」

不如說「過熱」

They get it.

與其說「氣候」, 不如改說 「極端的天氣」

There are so many other regular speak words and concepts

提到「潔淨能源」

that stick with people.

Instead of "warming,"

也可說成「便宜能源」 因它正快速地變得便宜

try "overheating."

Instead of "climate," talk about "extreme weather."

而「不可逆」這個字 確實引起大家的關注

When mentioning "clean energy,"

污染確實不可逆

you might say "cheap energy" as well, as it's rapidly becoming cheap.

如果一定要談論氣溫上升

且你住在美國

The word "irreversible" really gets people's attention,

拜託，請用華氏來講述氣溫

嚴重性會加倍

as the pollution certainly is.

「在孩子的有生之年， 氣溫會上升 9 度」，這聽起來可嚴重

And if you absolutely must talk about temperature increases

「攝氏 1.5 度符合巴黎協議」 會讓人直接無視

and you live in the US,

heck, use Fahrenheit for goodness sake.

It doubles the severity.

不要使用晦澀難懂的用語

"Nine degrees during your kid's lifetime" sounds pretty serious.

要用直覺就能理解的話來說

"One point five degrees Celsius to meet the Paris Accord" is pretty ignorable.

這就是第一步：理解

This is about going beyond arcane policy language

理解但缺乏關聯性，會讓人缺乏方向

第二個關鍵

into language that we all intuitively get.

要讓氣候對於你的人生

That's the first step: understanding.

個體與本人都是重要且相關的

But understanding without relevance is rudderless.

公眾提案不會讓你我感同身受

So the second key then

覺醒是個人的事

is to make climate feel like something that matters to you,

它們要有地緣相關性

to your life, individually and personally.

它們要與你的人生和關注的事物有關

比如說 我們給上千位佛州民眾兩個訊息

Nobody has an epiphany about policy proposals.

Awakenings are personal.

一個請他們 「要求零排放以阻止氣候變遷」

They have local relevance.

They're about your life and your concerns.

另一個只說「阻止水災」

As an example, we presented two messages to a few thousand people in Florida.

後者比前者吸引人們 多達 4 倍以上的注意力

One asked them "to demand that we get to zero emissions to stop climate change."

當地水災比全球暖化更切身相關

Another simply said, "Stop my flooding."

無須更好的政策描述

The latter message was over four times more effective in getting their attention.

只需更深入、與自身更相關的即可

Local flooding was so much more relevant than global warming.

來看看另一個例子

我們與優秀女科學家們 所組成的團隊合作

What's needed isn't better policy descriptions,

幫助加強他們想傳達的訊息

but rather deeper, more personal connections.

他們以研究此議題為職志

Here's another example.

We work with a team of remarkable women climate scientists

發展複雜的計算模型以了解北極的變化

to help elevate their voice as messengers.

搭上飛機測量野火煙霧中的氮含量

They've dedicated their careers to studying the issue,

所以必須了解的科學知識 他們都說得出來

developing complex computational models to understand the Arctic processes,

不過我們問的卻是 他們做這個研究的原因

and climbing into planes to measure nitrogen in wildfire smoke.

他們說是為了兒女

They could tell you everything you need to know about the science,

希望為孩子保有一個

but what we asked them about was why they study it.

安全、健康和活力充沛的世界

我們將這些故事分享給其他的父母

And they told us about their daughters and their sons,

他們也變得更加關注氣候變遷

about wanting to keep the world safe and healthy and vibrant

接著就會觀察全球的氣溫圖表

for their children.

And when we shared these personal stories with other parents,

人們看到父母為孩子

they started to care far more deeply about climate change

打造更好的世界而奉獻一生

所有父母都能產生共鳴

than they did from staring at charts of global temperatures.

這件事與我有關

正確的訊息是那些能將氣候變遷 與個人認同連結在一起的

People see a parent who's dedicated their life

to creating a better world for their child.

我們的生活──而非未來的生活

Every parent can relate to that.

不是全世界──而是我們的社區

It matters to me.

The right messages are those that connect climate change to personal identity.

不一定是環保主義── 而是我們的價值觀

不僅只是孩童們──而是我們的孩子

Our life -- not future lives,

最後，第三個氣候變遷謎題的關鍵

not the world -- our community,

not necessarily environmentalism -- our values,

展示氣候變遷 對我這樣的人來說是一個議題

and not just children -- our child.

人類是社交動物

這點也可用在構築信仰上

Finally, the third key to the climate communications puzzle

你可以告訴許多人一模一樣的訊息

to show that climate change is an issue for people like me:

但由相似口音或背景的人說出口時

Humans are social animals,

and that's true for how we form our beliefs, too.

訊息的效用將兩位數增加

You can present the exact same message to many people,

有個意想不到的人，抓到這個重點

but when it comes from someone with a similar accent or background,

我們叫他佛州男

他住在佛州北部，有次他買啤酒時

we see double-digit increases in message effectiveness.

把短吻鱷帶到到超商

Here's an unexpected messenger who really lands the point.

讓他陷入一場小官司

A guy we call Florida man.

不算是最顯著的氣候變遷傳訊者

He's a resident of North Florida who got into a little trouble with the law

但他在網路廣告上，用他的方式

after taking an alligator into a convenience store

說明他對生活的擔心時

when he was on a beer run.

大幅增加佛州年輕保守男性 對氣候的關注

Not exactly the most obvious climate change messenger

yet when he appeared in an internet ad describing in his own way

大部分人不認為自己是 「環保主義者」

how he's worried about his way of life,

他們覺得氣候變遷是「環保者的事」

it significantly increased climate concern among young conservative men in Florida.

如果訊息跳脫狹隘的身分認同

Most people don't see themselves as "environmentalists" per se,

就能使議題產生關連

讓人們有理由去關注

and they see climate change as an "environmentalist issue."

核心概念不是對人們說明此議題

But messages that break away from those narrow identity markers

而是把他們帶入議題

make the issue relatable.

他們才會說：「我懂了。」

They give people a reason to care.

這跟我有關

So the core idea is that instead of explaining the issue at people,

「這對像我這樣的人來說很重要」

只有那樣我們才會採取行動

it's essential to bring people into the issue,

我故事中聰明的外星人 如果也擅長溝通

so that they say, "I get it.

It matters to me.

It matters to people like me."

可能會說：「地球人，注意了!

Then and only then are we primed to take action.

你們正打造巨大的污染層 這讓你們家園的溫度過高

If the intelligent aliens in my story were also intelligent at communications,

這將傷害你們所愛的人、事、物

they would say to us, "Hey, Earthlings, pay attention,

雖是咎由自取， 但你們可以修復。」

you're building up a massive blanket of pollution that's overheating your home.

我們只要讓地球 80 億人類知道

And it's going to hurt the people and the things that you love.

發生了什麼事

我們別無選擇

You did this and you can fix it."

一旦我們做了

大家眾志成城，為我們的未來

We simply have to let our fellow eight billion inhabitants of our home know

打場雖龐大但仍可致勝的戰役

what's happening.

We have no choice.

謝謝

And when we do,

we'll achieve the public will necessary to take on this colossal

but winnable fight for our future.

Thank you.