The best thing you can do to tackle global warming

Is going vegan or driving an electric car the best thing you can do to mitigate climate change? How about voting out climate deniers? According to author Grant Ennis they are not. But, he says, there is a single best thing you can do to help tackle global warming.

In his new book, Dark PR, Grant starts by outlining some of the industry and government tactics which misdirect citizen efforts. Some are obvious like outright denialism or even arguing that climate change is good for you. But there are many other tactics which are not so obvious.

For example he cites the objective of the Bush administration in 2002 to reframe the discussion to ‘climate change’ rather than ‘global warming’. They believed that ‘global warming’ had catastrophic connotations attached to it, while ‘climate change’ suggested a more controllable and less emotional challenge¹. Researchers found that “the use of the term climate change appears to actually reduce issue engagement”². And it worked. Climate change is the more common terminology today.

Another approach is to convince people that the solution potentially lies in unviable technology. The best example is the continued funding of carbon capture and storage technology which has failed to make any progress over two decades, but remains the “preferred vehicle for perpetual climate delay”³. In my opinion, the latest pin-up boy is Hydrogen, which, while having niche applications, will not come close to solving the climate problem. Nevertheless it sounds convincing and is cheap greenwashing for companies and governments alike.

Then we move onto victim-blaming or suggesting that personal actions will make a difference. The FrameWorks Institute in Washington says that “once personal responsibility gets into the conversation, it crowds out thinking about collective solutions”⁴. In the meantime we still feel guilty about ordering steak, or imported food, or flying. Just remember, this is a distraction.

Finally, by making out that the solution is complex, or as Chevron put it: “Addressing climate change risks in a meaningful way is a complex, long-term proposition”, simple and effective solutions like carbon pricing get dismissed.

Ennis’s book also suggests that some well-known, favored approaches to climate change advocacy are surprisingly ineffective, and have been weaponized by industry to distract. A few examples include:

“Just vote” – voting didn’t give women the right to vote, focused citizen advocacy did.

Consumer and investor boycotts/divestment – analyses show that these approaches don’t always change global industry behavior.

Blaming corporations, politicians, and the wealthy – although these make us feel better they do not necessarily achieve the desired end results.

Controversially, Ennis argues, it’s not just that these actions don’t achieve the desired effect but that, disastrously, research shows they distract from what does. Counterintuitively, he makes the case that “any progress” is not welcome.

So what is the most effective thing you can do to tackle the climate crisis? According to Ennis, it is to participate in organized citizen advocacy seeking meaningful legislative change with solution-focused policy objectives.

My view is not as black and white as Ennis’s. I can see a hybrid approach — adding an umbrella of advocacy to the ‘ineffective’ approaches, as an improved way to increase the weight of support for policy change. For example, a protest to stop a coal mine is more powerful if it’s part of advocating for a policy of no more coal mines. Or a student rally protesting the lack of political action is stronger if it also calls for a policy of 100% renewable energy. Or investment groups advocating for a policy of zero emissions by 2050 carries more weight than merely making public their divestment strategy. The point that Ennis is making is to put forward policy solutions, not just objections or protests.

Ennis cites the Citizens Climate Lobby as one of the best examples of citizen advocacy. CCL started in the USA and now has chapters in most countries. They have a single focus, to advocate for legislation to introduce a carbon fee and dividend. It is simple. Put a price on carbon and return all collected revenue, bypassing government, directly to all adults in the country equally. Under this scheme the average household would receive a dividend exceeding the additional costs caused by the carbon price.

The CCL approach is very professional, meeting with politicians at all levels and persuasions. It welcomes anyone to join. And CCL America has progressed to drafting a legislative bill for Congress.

Another international example goes by the name of Fossil Free Politics. FFP is a coalition of organizations, so to join you have to be an organization, which itself has many advantages. Wherever you live there will be local organizations which are focused on policy-based solutions. Look for them.

Finally, Ennis suggests that you can form your own group of five or so friends or trusted acquaintances. He quotes Margaret Mead: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”

In an earlier post I quoted Dr Bob Rich’s advice to do what you can about climate change and then don’t worry because you’ve done the best you can. Grant Ennis has done us a favor by telling us what that best thing is. Let’s do it.

The writer is a co-author of Court of the Grandchildren, a novel set in 2050s America.

(This post was updated in March 2023 after the launch of Dark PR.)

IMAGE CREDIT: Venita Oberholster from Pixabay