Find 15 minutes in your day (perhaps on a coffee break) to watch this fun, informative, well referenced and visually engaging video that will fill you with a boost of climate optimism.
“Climate Doomerism”
Often the environmental space is filled with apocalyptic doom and gloom. While it is important to recognise the scale and seriousness of the challenges we face (and many people are far from being there yet) focusing too much on the negatives can lead to as much (if not more) inaction as complacency. “Climate Doomerism” can create an acute sense of hopelessness and apathy which is not only depressing, but counterproductive to working towards a better future.
Reasons for hope
It’s important that we give credit to, and shine a spotlight on, the huge number of people that are working on creating solutions to this problem. There are many brilliant scientists, engineers, policy makers, activists, inventors, farmers, designers, educators and more who are working on tackling climate change/ecological collapse and creating a brighter future. As mentioned in the video “enormous amounts of human ingenuity are being brought to bear on this problem” and if you know where to look, there are positive results and encouraging data that can give reasons for hope.
By recognising, appreciating, and promoting the efforts that are being made, we can justify allocating more resources towards scaling up action and encourage more to follow their example.
Productive Optimism vs Unrealistic Complacency: Greenwashing
Of course, there is a fine line between productive optimism and unrealistic complacency. Greenwashing is a serious problem that can distract from the real issues, mask the true environmental impacts of certain activities, and create a false sense of security with maintaining the status quo. It is important to be aware that some climate positivity hides a dark and often undermining agenda (see this guide on spotting corporate greenwashing).
However, it is equally important to recognise that not all positivity is naïve or disingenuous. The situation is serious, and the stakes are high, but to meet the challenge head on we must strive to maintain the right attitude. Hope, enthusiasm and inspiration are vital tools without which people will lose their appetite for action and change. We must be able to see the light ahead in order to move towards it.
“If we want the world to change, we first need to believe that change is possible.”
Video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxgMdjyw8uw
