As always when talking about climate change, I took a pragmatic perspective: working through what needs to happen in order to respond effectively to the challenge. This means considering how to approach a problem that has scientific content, but also brings in a multitude of political issues. A "wicked" problem indeed.
My strategy was to begin with an overview of the current state of science and politics: what the latest research tells us, and how humans are (or aren't) responding. Then I reviewed how climate change is understood as a scientific problem -- in other words, explaining what climate scientists actually do. From there, we moved onto politics: how uncertainty is constructed, and how climate change can be linked to other issues. We also spent a little time looking at options for geoengineering -- as a case study of the unpredictable consequences of technological solutions.
And finally, we devoted quite a bit of time to exploring how to communicate effectively about climate change: strategies for encouraging a commitment to acting on what we already know. This also connected to larger course themes about effective communication of science. Here too I emphasized pragmatism, especially the need to apply a wide range of strategies, since people think about climate and their place in the world in so many diverse ways.
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