what we need to say.
movement = people =
movement = people =
We can change what we are saying to get people into fight mode, ready to mobilize for collective action.
Get the people to the party.
the plan.
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Our fear tactics have been very successful at one thing: making many people—mostly young people— feel like there’s nothing that can be done to stop a climate apocalypse.
We’ve already went over how that’s not the place where we need to be, and in fact, most people (61% of Americans) aren’t already hopeless (despite our best efforts!)
We have to start bringing people towards both hope and defiance—that’s how we convince them that our future is worth fighting for!
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We need to use accessible language, and limit how much we rely on confusing data.
This doesn’t mean we can’t use scientific information, it means we have to be thoughtful about meeting people where they are at.
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We need to use stories and images that reflect the audiences that we’re trying to move.
This helps to make our narratives real for people, which builds an emotional attachment and pushes people towards action. It’s harder to give up on a fight when we see ourselves and the people we love as part of it.
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We need to talk about real solutions, about things we are already doing, and about what more is possible.
Give people easy to understand things to grab onto and organize around.
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No one wants to be on the losing team. We need to talk about how “more and more people” making changes. People are already taking action.
Present taking action as something exciting! Show images of people together. This isn’t about sugar coating things, it’s about making people have FOMO about sitting on their couch.
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We can make people want to be a part of our fight by making them feel like it’s possible to win.
To do this, we need to talk about wins we’ve already had, how we’ve come together in the past, and celebrate when we have a victory.
Celebrating when we win helps us catalyze our momentum towards future victories.
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People in America, especially people of faith, are highly motivated by connecting climate change and morality²
We can bring people into our movement by making it clear that we are on the good and moral side of history.
