Thursday, 24 February 2011
Photographer Garry Braasch documents since years climate change and nature. Currently he is in the pacific for World View of Global Warming. The stories his pictures tell have a human touch. They not merely document, they tell us about life and resilience on the atolls. He is also co-author of the book How We Know What We Know About Our Changing Climate . A non-scary, action-oriented, and inspiring look at how scientists do their work, what they are discovering about global warming, and how kids are already learning about this through Citizen Science.
Wednesday, 23 February 2011
To prepare for a training workshop it is useful to know more about the audience. An electronic quick scan among participants may help. It can bring to light what the main knowledge areas are for the workshop should be. What skills to focus on. And what learning preferences participants have. I always use the last demand articulation quick scan I did and tailor it (cut and paste) to the new assignment. The feedback you get always helps to design the program and chose the tools and methodologies. As a quick scan also frames the tarining in the minds of the participants, it is important to keep in mind the criteria for success of a survey.
Monday, 7 February 2011
Communicating science can be done without long texts full of facts, figures and footnotes. My colleague Jack Byrne shared this example of Hans Rosling telling the complex story of increasing human health and well being in a very simple but compelling way. For more of his statistics turned into stories see TEDtalks.
Saturday, 5 February 2011
Gasland is a consumer's campaign for a moratorium on new gaz drilling methods. My colleague Keith Wheeler just made me aware of this movie and campaign. Energy producing methods like fracking have a heavy polluting impact on water and air. Existing legislation in the US allows it. The campaign for a moratorium targets consumers. A website offers tools to inform politicians with arguments they care about: health and financial costs. A map shows drill sites and watersheds. Animation illustrates the impacts of fracking and invites you to click for elevator speech basic facts and figures. Postcard size stories show people telling their personal experiences in a few sound bites. Immediate action towards politicians is a button away. Screening the movie in your community is a means to create word of mouth. In short a perfect example of strategic communication.
Wednesday, 2 February 2011
How to make a tiger roar? My colleague Ana Puyol shared this Traffic video on her facebook page. It is a good example of branding biodiversity by appealing to our awe and wonder for the tiger. It has a simple action perspective that supports awareness raising. Traffic and WWF CHina should put the video on YouTube to get to a global audience.