Nov 28, 2008 - From Environmental to Sustainability Communication: New Challenges and New Perspectives. Dr. Matthias Barth. From. Environmental to.
28.11.2008
From Environmental to Sustainability Communication: New Challenges and New Perspectives Dr. Matthias Barth
28.11.2008
The broad topic of Sustainability
From Environmental to Sustainability Communication
Current Examples and Consequences
Forming an International Environmental Communication Organisation
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OVERVIEW
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Sustainability and New Challenges • Broadened Perspective towards multidimensional, time‐spatial distant effects: – from local to global and vice versa: «glocal» perspective – from present to future: anticipating perspective – from environmental to sustainability: networked perspective • Sustainability as an analytical framework: focussing on interaction of ecological, economical and social aspects • A Analysing 3 basic patterns of environment‐society‐interactions: l i 3b i tt f i t i t i t ti – Mitigation – Adaptation – Re‐Construction
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From Environmental to Sustainability Communication • Sustainability communication as an umbrella for environmental communication, risk communication, science communication • Main Question «How societies communicate on the far reaching challenges of ‘glocal` environmental changes» opens up new fields of research and development • Strong need for inter‐ and transdisciplinary approaches • Movement from a more passive «communicate about (environment, risk,…)» to a more active, participatory «communicate for (sustainability)» • Is in line with an overall paradigm shift: – from end‐of‐pipe conservation to anticipatory sustainability management – from environmental education to education for sustainability 4
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Paradigm shift: Institutional Innovations ‐ Examples from Germany Institute for Environmental and Sustainability Communication
INFU
• Development of new practical approaches and contribution to a scientific theory‐development in the field of environmental and sustainability communication • Communication, Education and Participation as main focus • Interdisciplinary Interdisciplinary team of researchers from communication science, team of researchers from communication science, socilogy, psychology and educational science • Contributing with Sustainability Communication lectures to a Sustainability Science B.Sc. And M.Sc. Program at the University of Lüneburg 5
Paradigm shift: Publications ‐ Examples from Germany • Handbook of sustainability Communication: • published in 2007, 2nd ed. in 2008, 900p., focus on researchers h and practitioners in the field d h f ld • English version in preparation • International Journal of Sustainability Communication (www.ijsc‐onliune.org): • Peer reviewed open‐access Journal • Particular focus on sustainable transformation processes p • Last issue on CCC with more than 50 papers handed in
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What could/what should that mean for Forming an International Environmental Communication Organization? • Reconsidering an international perspective: – North‐South‐Exchange North South Exchange – Upcoming initiatives like in south‐East Asian • Respecting a intercultural discussion: – Recognising different cultures of discussion, for example on development theories • Integrating an interdisciplinary perspective: – Framing different approaches from risk communication, environmental communication,… – Using experiences from sociology, psychology, educational science… • . . . 7