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Building Carbon Literacy: How the Irish Press Normalise Public Discussion About Climate Mitigation Actions

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Handbook of Climate Change Communication: Vol. 3

Part of the book series: Climate Change Management ((CCM))

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to extend current research on climate change communication by zoning in on communication about societal responses to climate change or Low Carbon Transition (LCT). Specifically, it contributes to thinking about communication strategies to foster public discussion about reducing carbon emissions. To do so, the research examines how news media represent LCT and thus act as resources for public talk about tackling climate change. This paper argues news media representations of LCT offer essential insights about the range of processes for LCT that are being made publically available and are therefore highly significant in terms of building carbon literacy and broadening public talk about carbon reduction activity. In particular, it highlights why communications strategies for building climate ‘smart’ publics in response to COP21 must consider the implications of how news media normalise LCT as a social issue. Drawing on an Irish case study, this research presents a novel method for analysing press representations of LCT and shows that press treatment constrains carbon literacy by deploying a limited range of topics. The paper concludes by offering insights for communication strategies aimed at building carbon literacy: it highlights that fostering public discussion about LCT can broaden public engagement with climate change.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    For example, Turner (2013) claims ‘it is the ability to understand the carbon implications at every scale in the landscape of our lives and lifestyles’ thus involving energy consumption; transport; homes and offices.

  2. 2.

    This list contains the most commonly used words in online discussion about carbon management.

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Acknowledgement

This research was supported by a Conference Travel Scheme award from the Faculty of Humanities and Social Science, Dublin City University.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Communications, Dublin City University, Glasnevin, Dublin 9, Dublin, Ireland

    Brenda McNally

Authors
  1. Brenda McNally
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Brenda McNally .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. HAW Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

    Walter Leal Filho

  2. Department of Forestry and Management, Democritus University of Thrace, Orestiada, Greece

    Evangelos Manolas

  3. Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    Anabela Marisa Azul

  4. Department of Biology and CESAM, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal

    Ulisses M. Azeiteiro

  5. Manchester Museum, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom

    Henry McGhie

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McNally, B. (2018). Building Carbon Literacy: How the Irish Press Normalise Public Discussion About Climate Mitigation Actions. In: Leal Filho, W., Manolas, E., Azul, A., Azeiteiro, U., McGhie, H. (eds) Handbook of Climate Change Communication: Vol. 3. Climate Change Management. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-70479-1_17

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