Our Quest: Climate Change, The hero: You

(This started off as a learning resource post at WOW Kampung, but the more I wrote, the more it turned into a discussion of the motivators for action more than a learning resource)

Although this paper from Breakthrough Strategies & Solutions is aimed at the political discussion around climate change in the United States, something we can all learn from it is the story context they put it in: The Quest.

The last two pages frame it beautifully:

The Quest: A better world for our children.
The Threat: Climate disruption and extreme weather
The Villain: Fossil Fuels
The Hero: You and your community

As the Heath Brothers say, just having any story will do wonders for learning (or spreading ideas of any kind) and the quest isn’t just any story, it’s a story that we all love and get on board with.

The paper also breaks climate change into three primary messages to tell the story: responsibility, patriotic pride, and accountability – though these are also aimed at an American audience, they should also resonate pretty strongly with a more local audience:

Responsibility

Addressing climate change is the right and responsible thing to do.

We have a duty to leave this world in a better state, and to ensure a bright future for our children and their children.

This one really speaks to the quest story, every good hero has a sense of duty and creating a better world for our children is a universal value.

Patriotic Pride

We can rise to the challenge. Don’t underestimate our resilience, strength and ability to innovate.

Again, this is directed at an American audience, but I’d argue that Singapore has even more claim to pride in adaptability and resilience – just look at the change in the country of the last 40 years.

Anyone who doubt’s Singapore’s ability to adapt and thrive in a clean energy world is ignoring what’s already been accomplished.

Accountability

You might also think of this one as meritocracy – something that’s considered important in Singapore. The fossil fuel industry, however, has a huge advantage in that the true cost of their extraction and use is never paid by them.

In the absence of a carbon tax or other pricing mechanism, the fossil fuel industry is essentially receiving a substantial subsidy from the governments that have to pay millions in clean-up and related costs from extreme weather catastrophes.

This cuts completely against the usual policy of not wanting to distort the market – without accountability for the emissions and their impact, the market is grossly distorted in favour of fossil fuel companies.

Read more about it at Think Progress.