Creating a Climate for Change With Susanne Moser

Communicating Climate Change

This episode of Communicating Climate Change features a conversation with decorated scientist, consultant, and all-round gem of a human, Susanne Moser. Recorded in August 2022. It serves as a starting point for the series, taking a zoomed-out look at where we are right now and where we need to go when it comes to this pressing topic.

Susi’s resume is long and distinguished, but some highlights include her roles as Social Science Research Fellow at Stanford University’s Woods Institute for the Environment; as staff scientist for climate change at the Union of Concerned Scientists, and her contributions to several IPCC reports. Her work focuses on equitable adaptation and transformation in the face of climate change; on climate change communication in support of social change; and decision support and the interactions between scientists, policy-makers, and the public.

She’s also been responsible for a number of influential books, including as co-editor of the ground-breaking anthology on climate change communication, “Creating a Climate for Change”, alongside Lisa Dilling.

In fact, this book is exactly what led me to reach out to Susi in the first place and, as you’ll hear, had a real impact on me. It also provided a perfect jumping-off point for our conversation, which weaves through what’s still missing in a lot of communication around climate change, what communicators could do differently, and how technology has changed the game.

Additional links:

Susanna Moser’s website

Creating a Climate for Change: Communicating Climate Change and Facilitating Social Change

Reflections on climate change communication research and practice in the second decade of the 21st century: What more is there to say?