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The Climate Voices Science Speakers Network:
Connecting to Communities Through Non-partisan Conversations about Climate
Climatevoices.org
Climate Voices Connects to Communities.
Tips for the congregations
• Who are you? (Include your academic and personal background)• What is your current science/research? What attracted you to this field of
research? • What led you to believe that humans are contributing to climate change?
What are the local/regional impacts of climate change in the area you are speaking in?
• Why should we care?• How can we respond? (Perhaps give one or two personal examples that are
encouraging/inspirational to you) • (Optional) Feel free to share your personal beliefs/faith/philosophy IF you are
comfortable doing so
Tips for the speakers
“Usually when I give a public presentation, I’ve got tons of slides with data to back up what I’m saying. Having a well-illustrated talk is important to me. Giving that up for all three presentations was not easy!”
GreenFaith coaching webinar:
Cassandra CarmichaelNational Religious Partners for the Environment
Communicating Climate Science with Congregations
“I found the webinar very useful when preparing my talk, especially the slides about how faith organizations think about the environment
(stewardship, justice, sustainability, etc.)”
• Stewardship - caring for God’s planet: Genesis (till and to tend)
• Sustainability - Caring for God’s planet as caretakers (Genesis)• Justice - Just as you do to the least of these (Matthew), caring
for neighbor• Sufficiency - Caring for neighbor; intergenerational
Webinar “Theology and Framework”
“Many said my discussion of Islam and ecology was a first for them.”
- Dr. Syed Hassan traveled more than 350 miles to meet with a Unitarian Church in Kansas
Congregation Connections
Congregation Connections
Paulina Arancibia• Chilean Fulbright student studying Ecology and
Evolution at Rutgers University• Met with three services in New York in both
English and Spanish
Congregation Connections
“We tried to emphasize that there is hope in climate change solutions, that there are many success stories about solutions
already being implemented worldwide.”Greg Seroka, Catholic, Climate change mitigation
“Our introduction was that we state our faith backgrounds and science, and how we merge the two together. Then we move on to explain the science behind what’s happening.”Ilissa Ocko, Jewish, Climate change science/communication
Husband-Wife team blended faith and science expertise at Episcopal Church in New Jersey
GreenFaith Day Challenges• High demand in some areas, low demand in others:
• Not enough speakers in New York and New Jersey• Solution: Reached out to other networks, like NJ Sea Grant
and Fulbright• Travel Distance:
• Speakers drove hours• Multiple requests for same day/time:
• Some speakers presented a few times in one day or weekend, other congregations had to reschedule for summer/fall
• Matchmaking Time Demands: • Luckily we had an intern to pair matches!
• Expanded our network• Reached new community networks• Overwhelmingly positive feedback
from congregations and scientists• Many said each group had “similar
visions and missions”• Speakers were prepared to convince
skeptical audiences, but groups were “savvy,” “pro-science,” and “curious about solutions”
GreenFaith Day Successes
• Connecting with community groups through a team of partners• Achieve the most impact and connectivity with the public
On-the-ground partners help coach the community groups and field questions
• Talking to public audiences without props (like data, PowerPoint) can be challenging• Coaching sessions about audience-specific talking points
• It’s possible to successfully pair scientists and audiences with very different belief systems• Coaching sessions about open conversations and guiding
questions
Lessons learned
• Encourage conversations about relevant action-items • Stewardship activities that congregations can do, such as
recycling, solar projects, and educational campaigns
• This was a good experience to help us prepare for future partnerships!• Audiences were supportive and encouraging• We are ready for partnerships, including audiences that may
not be as receptive to the basic message of anthropogenic climate change
Lessons learned
“We discussed mitigation measures at a local scale, and these include use of electric, hybrid,
or clean diesel cars, solar and wind energy, walking and cycling, and use of efficient
electrical appliances.“
Climatevoices.org
