Heres How to Use Social Media to Combat Climate Change
like the rest of the world
i’ve spent the last four months under
lockdown in my apartment
due to the global pandemic and for a
climate activist
whose main purpose is to mobilize folks
this presented a
unique set of challenges you might even
go so far as to say
that being physically distant has
weakened the momentum
behind the climate revolution i mean
we’ve all been stuck inside right
there haven’t been any climate marches
for my friends in eid irelia
no global climate conferences to convene
at
and not even organized beach cleanups to
attend
but despite all of this i’ve been more
engaged than ever
my activism has gone virtual
this isn’t your typical ted talk on
climate change
i’m not here to tell you about dwindling
natural habitats or
how poor air quality is leading to a
public health crisis
you already know that today
i’d like to talk to you instead about
how people are taking climate action
using their smartphones
here’s some food for thought social
media usage in particular
has shot up significantly since the
start of the pandemic
twitter reported that their platform
usage grew 23
over this year alone so
what does this mean for you and me well
companies and leaders are increasingly
aware of what users have to say online
they track our interests our top posts
and our trending hashtags and while this
all sounds surface level
just look at the power a hashtag had in
spreading awareness on a recent global
event
last summer when man-made fires ravaged
the amazon jungle and the brazilian
government chose to turn a blind
eye activists took to their platforms
with over 1.3 million engagements across
the web
the movement went from conversation to
mobilization
eventually mounting international
pressure led
the brazilian government to acknowledge
the fires and has since stepped up
measures against
illegal burning and deforestation
it was maybe time to start using social
media
for environmental activism i was now
certain
that no one else was going to create the
type of platform that i wanted to see
and if there was just the slightest
chance that i could inspire anyone
then i was going to take it
fast forward to my university graduation
my iphone library was filled with photos
both from
commencement and graphic designs for
this new platform i had in mind
called climate action lab i reached out
to
everyone i knew for help my boss for
helping draft our mission statement my
friends who
pitch story ideas and my colleagues for
their recommendations on industry
websites to keep up with
i had no idea what i was getting myself
into
i never ran a site or managed interns
before
and honestly upon launch we had no money
no resources and no clue what climate
action lab would turn into
so we just started doing what young
people do best
we created thoughtful graphics to ease
our audience into data-heavy information
we use memes to make the conversation
around climate
action more relatable and we used
hashtags
to drive our content further into the
digital sphere than we originally
imagined before i knew it
we were gaining traction our community
grew
and by using this platform as a tool
demand for
more stories and more issues to organize
around grew too
somehow we ended up hosting a panel of
young
local climate leaders to share their
experiences
and discuss how to get involved the
night before the event
i stared at my ceiling and wondered if
anyone would show up
but somehow it worked out
members of the climate action lab
community convened
in person and via instagram live for an
unforgettable evening about how to take
action
every seat was filled
so you might be asking yourself
what does social media have to do with
any of this
how are likes going to stop oil fracking
and who is going to listen to a bunch of
angry kids on the internet
anyway well
the people in power are
okay gia someone might say but
social media alone is not enough to
carry the climate movement
to which i would respond of course it’s
not
let me be clear while helpful social
media is a supplement
not a substitute for taking action
instead i want you to use your accounts
as a launch pad
to begin your own research and from
there
real change like the systematic
restructure restructuring of our
government can happen
it’s an incredibly complex thing after
all
but there are some things that
everyone could get started with
individually steps that we each can take
to raise awareness and prompt
transformation
so what are the first four steps to
using your social media for climate
action
let’s jump right into it first
practice self-efficacy if there’s one
thing i’ve learned this past year
running climate action lab
it’s that if you don’t think you are
capable of making an impact
then chances are you probably won’t
think to yourself
when faced with a challenge do you feel
like you can rise up to the occasion
or do you give up in defeat you see
when you believe that you have the
ability to accomplish your goals
then you are most likely to folks who
have high self-efficacy tend to develop
a stronger sense of commitment
to their interests and recover quickly
from setbacks
they bounce back stronger which is
important as an
activist when you are bombarded with
what feels like only negative news
sometimes
trust that your work matters because it
does
second do your homework
one of the many great things about being
an ally
is that we continue to learn and grow
with the climate movement
to protect our air water and land from
pollution
we have to stay up to date with the
newest science and solutions
it’s the same thing when advocating for
social and environmental justice
however what becomes tricky is
identifying what is fact
from fiction the line between journalism
and other content has blurred making it
more important than ever for all content
creators
regardless of their platform to verify
their facts
so i implore you root
your posts incredible and verifiable
information
thirdly make friends with strangers
i personally love this one i
i want to challenge you to reach out to
users you don’t know
the great thing about social media is
that it is decentralized in nature
and allows for us to make connections
with folks from all over the world
this is important because you can
network and
collaborate with other like-minded
activists regardless of your location
geography is no longer a barrier and you
can amass a community
with just a few clicks so sure
it’s great to have one person share a
post about let’s say
signing a petition to ban fracking but
having
2 10 100 even 1 000 people share that
very same post
well that’s a movement not a moment
there is power in numbers and allyship
is key to getting there
finally number four and perhaps the most
important one
expect to learn and make mistakes
we will all make mistakes it’s a part of
continuing to educate ourselves
and grow as an ally even the most
experienced advocates have said
something wrong and i know i have
take a look back at what you’ve posted
before and learn from any past mistakes
you can use this moment to learn what
went wrong
and share what you learned with others
by educating yourself
you can help allies who may be
experiencing similar mishaps
it will be uncomfortable but it is
necessary to make meaningful progress in
the long run
i i never thought that i would be here
making a case for using social media
to raise awareness around climate change
but things have changed
our livelihoods are at stake scientific
evidence for warming of our climate
system
is unequivocal and as we’re bound
indoors by
the spread of a global pandemic and
spending more time
connecting online young people are
learning how to become more tactful with
their activism
and as we look forward to life after the
pandemic
and how we show up online we must ask
ourselves
this how are we being intentional with
our content
how are our actions contributing to the
greater good
and how am i adding to the conversation
are any of the above not reason enough
to engage as a climate activist
are you still questioning the validity
of social media as a tool for change
remember it’s what has caused
millions of youth to flood the streets
and protest
it’s what has created an online
community of thousands of climate
activists
at my fingertips and
it’s what has brought me here on the ted
stage today
you