The most important thing you can do to fight climate change: talk about it

How do you talk to someone who doesn't believe in climate change? Not by rehashing the same data and facts we've been discussing for years, says climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe. In this inspiring, pragmatic talk, Hayhoe shows how the key to having a real discussion is to connect over shared values like family, community and religion -- and to prompt people to realize that they already care about a changing climate. "We can't give in to despair," she says. "We have to go out and look for the hope we need to inspire us to act -- and that hope begins with a conversation, today."

It was my first year
as an atmospheric science professor

at Texas Tech University.

We had just moved to Lubbock, Texas,

which had recently been named
the second most conservative city

in the entire United States.

A colleague asked me to guest teach
his undergraduate geology class.

I said, "Sure."

But when I showed up,
the lecture hall was cavernous and dark.

As I tracked the history
of the carbon cycle

through geologic time to present day,

most of the students were slumped over,
dozing or looking at their phones.

I ended my talk with a hopeful request
for any questions.

And one hand shot up right away.

I looked encouraging, he stood up,
and in a loud voice, he said,

"You're a democrat, aren't you?"

(Laughter)

"No," I said, "I'm Canadian."

(Laughter)

(Applause)

That was my baptism by fire

into what has now become a sad
fact of life here in the United States

and increasingly across Canada as well.

The fact that the number one predictor

of whether we agree
that climate is changing,

humans are responsible

and the impacts are increasingly
serious and even dangerous,

has nothing to do with how much we know
about science or even how smart we are

but simply where we fall
on the political spectrum.

Does the thermometer give us
a different answer

depending on if we're liberal
or conservative?

Of course not.

But if that thermometer tells us
that the planet is warming,

that humans are responsible

and that to fix this thing,

we have to wean ourselves off
fossil fuels as soon as possible --

well, some people would rather
cut off their arm

than give the government
any further excuse

to disrupt their comfortable lives
and tell them what to do.

But saying, "Yes, it's a real problem,
but I don't want to fix it,"

that makes us the bad guy,
and nobody wants to be the bad guy.

So instead, we use arguments like,
"It's just a natural cycle."

"It's the sun."

Or my favorite,

"Those climate scientists
are just in it for the money."

(Laughter)

I get that at least once a week.

But these are just
sciencey-sounding smoke screens,

that are designed to hide
the real reason for our objections,

which have nothing to do with the science

and everything to do
with our ideology and our identity.

So when we turn on the TV these days,

it seems like pundit X is saying,

"It's cold outside.
Where is global warming now?"

And politician Y is saying,

"For every scientist
who says this thing is real,

I can find one who says it isn't."

So it's no surprise that sometimes we feel
like everybody is saying these myths.

But when we look at the data --

and the Yale Program
on Climate [Change] Communication

has done public opinion polling across
the country now for a number of years --

the data shows that actually 70 percent
of people in the United States agree

that the climate is changing.

And 70 percent also agree
that it will harm plants and animals,

and it will harm future generations.

But then when we dig down a bit deeper,
the rubber starts to hit the road.

Only about 60 percent of people think it
will affect people in the United States.

Only 40 percent of people
think it will affect us personally.

And then when you ask people,
"Do you ever talk about this?"

two-thirds of people in the entire
United States say, "Never."

And even worse, when you say,
"Do you hear the media talk about this?"

Over three-quarters of people say no.

So it's a vicious cycle.

The planet warms.

Heat waves get stronger.

Heavy precipitation gets more frequent.

Hurricanes get more intense.

Scientists release yet another
doom-filled report.

Politicians push back even more strongly,

repeating the same
sciencey-sounding myths.

What can we do to break
this vicious cycle?

The number one thing we can do
is the exact thing that we're not doing:

talk about it.

But you might say, "I'm not a scientist.

How am I supposed to talk
about radiative forcing

or cloud parametrization
in climate models?"

We don't need to be talking
about more science;

we've been talking about the science
for over 150 years.

Did you know that it's been
150 years or more since the 1850s,

when climate scientists first discovered

that digging up and burning
coal and gas and oil

is producing heat-trapping gases

that is wrapping an extra blanket
around the planet?

That's how long we've known.

It's been 50 years since scientists
first formally warned a US president

of the dangers of a changing climate,

and that president was Lyndon B. Johnson.

And what's more,
the social science has taught us

that if people have built their identity
on rejecting a certain set of facts,

then arguing over those facts
is a personal attack.

It causes them to dig in deeper,

and it digs a trench,
rather than building a bridge.

So if we aren't supposed to talk
about more science,

or if we don't need to talk
about more science,

then what should we be talking about?

The most important thing to do is,

instead of starting up with your head,
with all the data and facts in our head,

to start from the heart,

to start by talking about
why it matters to us,

to begin with genuinely shared values.

Are we both parents?

Do we live in the same community?

Do we enjoy the same outdoor activities:
hiking, biking, fishing, even hunting?

Do we care about the economy
or national security?

For me, one of the most foundational ways
I found to connect with people

is through my faith.

As a Christian, I believe that God created
this incredible planet that we live on

and gave us responsibility
over every living thing on it.

And I furthermore believe
that we are to care for and love

the least fortunate among us,

those who are already suffering
the impacts of poverty,

hunger, disease and more.

If you don't know what
the values are that someone has,

have a conversation, get to know them,
figure out what makes them tick.

And then once we have,

all we have to do is connect the dots
between the values they already have

and why they would care
about a changing climate.

I truly believe, after thousands
of conversations that I've had

over the past decade and more,

that just about every single
person in the world

already has the values they need
to care about a changing climate.

They just haven't connected the dots.

And that's what we can do
through our conversation with them.

The only reason why I care
about a changing climate

is because of who I already am.

I'm a mother, so I care
about the future of my child.

I live in West Texas,
where water is already scarce,

and climate change is impacting
the availability of that water.

I'm a Christian, I care
about a changing climate

because it is, as the military calls it,
a "threat multiplier."

It takes those issues,

like poverty and hunger and disease
and lack of access to clean water

and even political crises
that lead to refugee crises --

it takes all of these issues
and it exacerbates them,

it makes them worse.

I'm not a Rotarian.

But when I gave my first talk
at a Rotary Club,

I walked in and they had this giant banner
that had the Four-Way Test on it.

Is it the truth?

Absolutely.

Is it fair?

Heck, no, that's why I care
most about climate change,

because it is absolutely unfair.

Those who have contributed
the least to the problem

are bearing the brunt of the impacts.

It went on to ask:

Would it be beneficial to all,
would it build goodwill?

Well, to fix it certainly would.

So I took my talk, and I reorganized it
into the Four-Way Test,

and then I gave it to this group
of conservative businesspeople

in West Texas.

(Laughter)

And I will never forget at the end,

a local bank owner came up to me
with the most bemused look on his face.

And he said, "You know, I wasn't sure
about this whole global warming thing,

but it passed the Four-Way Test."

(Laughter)

(Applause)

These values, though --
they have to be genuine.

I was giving a talk at a Christian college
a number of years ago,

and after my talk, a fellow scientist
came up and he said,

"I need some help.

I've been really trying hard
to get my foot in the door

with our local churches,

but I can't seem to get any traction.

I want to talk to them
about why climate change matters."

So I said, "Well, the best thing to do

is to start with the denomination
that you're part of,

because you share the most values
with those people.

What type of church do you attend?"

"Oh, I don't attend any church,
I'm an atheist," he said.

(Laughter)

I said, "Well, in that case,
starting with a faith community

is probably not the best idea.

Let's talk about what you do enjoy doing,
what you are involved in."

And we were able to identify
a community group

that he was part of,
that he could start with.

The bottom line is, we don't have to be
a liberal tree hugger

to care about a changing climate.

All we have to be is a human
living on this planet.

Because no matter where we live,

climate change is already
affecting us today.

If we live along the coasts,

in many places, we're already seeing
"sunny-day flooding."

If we live in western North America,

we're seeing much greater area
being burned by wildfires.

If we live in many coastal locations,

from the Gulf of Mexico
to the South Pacific,

we are seeing stronger hurricanes,
typhoons and cyclones,

powered by a warming ocean.

If we live in Texas
or if we live in Syria,

we're seeing climate change
supersize our droughts,

making them more frequent and more severe.

Wherever we live, we're already
being affected by a changing climate.

So you might say, "OK, that's good.
We can talk impacts.

We can scare the pants off people,
because this thing is serious."

And it is, believe me.
I'm a scientist, I know.

(Laughter)

But fear is not
what is going to motivate us

for the long-term, sustained change
that we need to fix this thing.

Fear is designed to help us
run away from the bear.

Or just run faster
than the person beside us.

(Laughter)

What we need to fix this thing
is rational hope.

Yes, we absolutely do need
to recognize what's at stake.

Of course we do.

But we need a vision of a better future --

a future with abundant energy,

with a stable economy,

with resources available to all,

where our lives are not worse
but better than they are today.

There are solutions.

And that's why the second important
thing that we have to talk about

is solutions -- practical, viable,
accessible, attractive solutions.

Like what?

Well, there's no
silver bullet, as they say,

but there's plenty of silver buckshot.

(Laughter)

There's simple solutions
that save us money

and reduce our carbon footprint
at the same time.

Yes, light bulbs.

I love my plug-in car.

I'd like some solar shingles.

But imagine if every home
came with a switch beside the front door,

that when you left the house, you could
turn off everything except your fridge.

And maybe the DVR.

(Laughter)

Lifestyle choices: eating local,
eating lower down the food chain

and reducing food waste,
which at the global scale,

is one of the most important things
that we can do to fix this problem.

I'm a climate scientist,

so the irony of traveling around
to talk to people about a changing climate

is not lost on me.

(Laughter)

The biggest part of my personal
carbon footprint is my travel.

And that's why I carefully
collect my invitations.

I usually don't go anywhere
unless I have a critical mass

of invitations in one place --

anywhere from three to four

to sometimes even as many as
10 or 15 talks in a given place --

so I can minimize the impact
of my carbon footprint

as much as possible.

And I've transitioned nearly
three-quarters of the talks I give

to video.

Often, people will say,
"Well, we've never done that before."

But I say, "Well, let's give it a try,
I think it could work."

Most of all, though,

we need to talk about what's already
happening today around the world

and what could happen in the future.

Now, I live in Texas,

and Texas has the highest carbon emissions
of any state in the United States.

You might say, "Well,
what can you talk about in Texas?"

The answer is: a lot.

Did you know that in Texas
there's over 25,000 jobs

in the wind energy industry?

We are almost up to 20 percent
of our electricity

from clean, renewable sources,
most of that wind,

though solar is growing quickly.

The largest army base
in the United States, Fort Hood,

is, of course, in Texas.

And they've been powered
by wind and solar energy now,

because it's saving taxpayers
over 150 million dollars.

Yes.

(Applause)

What about those who don't have
the resources that we have?

In sub-Saharan Africa,
there are hundreds of millions of people

who don't have access to any type
of energy except kerosine,

and it's very expensive.

Around the entire world,

the fastest-growing type
of new energy today is solar.

And they have plenty of solar.

So social impact investors,
nonprofits, even corporations

are going in and using innovative
new microfinancing schemes,

like, pay-as-you-go solar,

so that people can buy
the power they need in increments,

sometimes even on their cell phone.

One company, Azuri, has distributed
tens of thousands of units

across 11 countries,
from Rwanda to Uganda.

They estimate that they've powered
over 30 million hours of electricity

and over 10 million hours
of cell phone charging.

What about the giant growing
economies of China and India?

Well, climate impacts might seem
a little further down the road,

but air quality impacts
are right here today.

And they know that clean energy
is essential to powering their future.

So China is investing hundreds
of billions of dollars in clean energy.

They're flooding coal mines,

and they're putting floating
solar panels on the surface.

They also have a panda-shaped solar farm.

(Applause)

(Laughter)

Yes, they're still burning coal.

But they've shut down
all the coal plants around Beijing.

And in India, they're looking to replace

a quarter of a billion
incandescent light bulbs with LEDs,

which will save them
seven billion dollars in energy costs.

They're investing in green jobs,

and they're looking to decarbonize
their entire vehicle fleet.

India may be the first country
to industrialize

without relying primarily on fossil fuels.

The world is changing.

But it just isn't changing fast enough.

Too often, we picture this problem

as a giant boulder
sitting at the bottom of a hill,

with only a few hands on it,
trying to roll it up the hill.

But in reality, that boulder
is already at the top of the hill.

And it's got hundreds of millions
of hands, maybe even billions on it,

pushing it down.

It just isn't going fast enough.

So how do we speed up that giant boulder
so we can fix climate change in time?

You guessed it.

The number one way is by talking about it.

The bottom line is this:

climate change is affecting you and me
right here, right now,

in the places where we live.

But by working together, we can fix it.

Sure, it's a daunting problem.

Nobody knows that more
than us climate scientists.

But we can't give in to despair.

We have to go out and actively look
for the hope that we need,

that will inspire us to act.

And that hope begins
with a conversation today.

Thank you.

(Applause)