7 Make climate science meaningful

Uncover how your

audience understands
scientific phenomena: the
role of mental models
Use familiar concepts to
Communicate on a human
help people understand
scale
science and statistics

o Most people have some understanding of climate change; they have a mental model of how the
phenomenon works. A person’s mental model of climate change can include ideas about causes,
impacts, and what can be done about it.
o By understanding people’s mental models, communicators can help people update their
assumptions and correct misinformation.
o The confirmation bias makes people seek out information that matches their mental models,
confirming what they already believe to be true.
o Most people are unfamiliar with the metrics and scales that scientists use to describe climate
science. These measures are unintuitive to most people.
✓ Tip: Making audience members aware of the existence of confirmation bias and
encouraging them to have an open mind can help them overcome it.
✓ Tip: Present the same piece of information in multiple formats to help people understand
unfamiliar numbers, metrics, and scales.
✓ Tip: Pick just a few key facts about climate change to share with an audience and put those
facts into a context that audience members will understand, rather than overwhelming
them with too many facts.
Make climate science meaningful
In some situations, the communication of statistical and scientific data, findings, and facts is
important or unavoidable. In these cases, communicators’ aim should be to provide numerical
information in a way that is readily usable and interpretable by their audiences.
Consider the following questions before presenting numerical and scientific information:
> Have you identified what you can and will achieve by communicating numerical information,
scientific findings, or facts? Are your expectations of the effects that such information will have
on audiences supported by past research on and experience with climate change communication?
> What do you want your audience to do with the information you present? Are there ways to
accomplish the same goals by communicating information besides scientific facts about the
climate system, such as information about climate solutions or climate impacts?
> How familiar are people with the metrics and scales you are using? Could they be confused by
an unfamiliar or nonstandard use of an otherwise familiar term (such as “tons”)?
> If you are using numbers or statistics to highlight the scope or severity of the problem, are you
successfully incorporating metaphors and real-life comparisons to help make those numbers
meaningful for people?
> Are you providing enough context for people to understand the new information?
> Are you using numbers and facts sparingly and attributing the one or two facts and figures you
do use to messengers or sources your audience knows and trusts?

CliCK on T is funded by Erasmus+ / Key Action 2 - Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practice -
Strategic Partnerships for adult education KA204 - 2019-1-IT02-KA204-062278