How to frame climate disruption for constructive dialogue

Unexpected Reality Check at the UN: Climate Accountability, Unfiltered 🥵 So, there I was, queueing up at the United Nations two weeks ago and I strike up a conversation with an older British gentleman. We chat about climate action… until his “passion” veers into a full-on critique of India’s climate record. All while he fondly recalls political dinners in India and UK from “the good old days.” 🍽️ Here’s the kicker: not once did he mention the UK’s own environmental legacy or the colonial footprint that paved the way👀 As a climate scientist, urban planner and policy strategist, I’ve seen this “it’s not me, it’s you” mindset too often—more across my work in Europe and North America. Where it is easier to perpetuate the colonial legacy of blaming “Global South” for all things wrong with the world—while rejoicing in the region’s abundance. (Don’t even get me started on “global south” term; those who are close to me know how much I despise this colonial division). And frankly, it’s blocking the very progress we desperately need—for our own future🌍 The planet will survive. Humanity—may not!! 🥵 It would have been easy to short-circuit at this moment. But, past experience of policy dialogue and climate negotiations have taught me how to move beyond finger-pointing to real climate solutions. Here’s how I do it: 1️⃣ Recognise the History 📜 Colonial legacies didn’t vanish overnight; they shape our realities. To truly build sustainable futures, we must confront the past. 2️⃣ Encourage Open Dialogue 🗣️ Real progress demands that all voices, especially those often overlooked, get heard. Collaboration > confrontation. 3️⃣ Focus on Solutions, Not Blame 🔧 Blame or guilt trip won’t reduce emissions. Collective, forward-thinking action will. The climate conversation needs a reset—one that’s honest, inclusive, and actionable. 💭 What are your thoughts? What would you have done in my position? ♻️ Drop your insights below and let’s make content that matters go viral! 💌 For full video of unfiltered thoughts, head over to Instagram - https://lnkd.in/g42drJ6K #ClimateAction #Sustainability #India #PublicPolicy #UrbanPlanning

If we keep framing sustainability as “the right thing to do,” we’ll keep losing the conversation. When I met William McDonough, the renowned architect and pioneer of the circular economy, a few years ago in Saudi, he told me something that has stayed with me ever since: “When we talk about saving the planet, we turn it into an ethical issue. But we won’t solve problems if they’re seen only as ethical. Don’t make it an ethical problem — make it a quality of life problem.” That shifted everything for me. Because when we frame sustainability only as morality — net zero, saving the planet, doing the “right” thing — it polarizes people. It becomes about guilt, sacrifice, or blame. But when we frame it as quality of life, people lean in. In our region, water scarcity isn’t abstract, it’s about health, food, and dignity. Climate change isn’t distant, it’s hotter summers and more extreme weather, already here. This is why jargon may work between professionals, but it doesn’t empower society at large. Real empowerment comes when people see that sustainability is not a burden but an invitation into a better way of living. 👉 How do you think we can reframe the conversation so people feel invited, not judged? #Sustainability #CircularEconomy #ClimateAction #MENAImpact

#Narrativetips. Avoidance of risk VS opportunity framing in climate communication. As I am finalising a big research project we have been doing for a couple years on how to communicate community planning for climate disruption I want to highlight one big challenge - and the opportunity - in framing climate action.  If we work in research or use research a lot in our work or even are just fearful about lack of action, we deal with risk a lot. When we think about risk we also talk about risk and we believe our audience need to hear about risk. Which they do. However it’s not a compelling frame for connecting people to the issue because fear lifts our thinking caps off. Making complex thinking hard.  To invite people into the risk conversation we need to start by framing the better life we can have by acting on climate disruption. Our shared goals for all of us is an inviting opening. And then people need to hear about the barriers to that life (the risk). The twist here is naming in concrete ways that better life and I often see people framing the avoidance of risk thinking that is an opportunity. It is not. It is still framing the risk as an invitation- that is not very inviting. Avoidance of cost, avoidance of disease- not better life framing. So instead try to vision the better world and think of how it looks and feels better in everyday ways. Avoidance of cost becomes ability to invest in the things we care about, avoidance of death becomes everyone living a healthy life etc . Better living everyone!

The way we communicate about climate change is wrong. We talk to everyone in the same way, without adapting our message. The result? Most people outside our echo chambers cannot relate to what we say, and just ignore us or get defensive. Our message is lost and makes no impact. This is why last year I came up with the Climate Funnel framework. To help changemakers like you communicate more intentionally and effectively about climate change. The goal? To inspire more people to take high-impact actions for systems change. The idea is very simple - take a traditional sales funnel, and apply it to climate action. You could actually apply it to any other topic or issue of your choice - biodiversity, circular economy, degrowth, etc. The way we use this framework is very simple: 1. Identify where people are in their journey. 2. Adapt your message to meet them where they are. 3. Inspire them to move forward in the Climate Funnel. We all have different life circumstances and stories. Recognizing this and that we are all at different stages of our climate action journeys is key. Try persuading someone outside the Climate Funnel to go vegan or sell their car or stop flying or go to protests, and watch their reaction. Adapting our message is key. Here are some easy tips for you to communicate more effectively with people at each stage in the funnel: 1. Deniers - Just ignore them and move on. Your energy will be better spent in the remaining 90% of the population. 2. Unaware - Try to find out what they care about and ask them more about it. Keep it super local and relevant to them. 3. Aware - Continue learning more about the local issues that matter most to them. Develop a relationship with them - people will listen to you more if they trust you. 3. Motivated - Help them by joining forces. Suggest a few ideas of very easy actions that you can take together. 4. Low impact action - Firstly, acknowledge the impact they are making with those actions. Secondly, inspire them to start taking higher impact actions, one step at a time. 5. High impact action - The main challenge here is that people tend to remain in their echo chambers. Remind them that one of the most impactful actions we can take is inspiring more people to get into the Climate Funnel and move through it. Right now, there are too many people outside the Climate Funnel, or in the initial layers. What we need is an inverted Climate Funnel, where lots of people have moved through the different layers and are taking high impact action. I recently gave a talk about it in London - I'll drop the link in the comments in case you want to learn more. It would mean the world to me if you could share that video too. Let's inspire more people to get into the funnel and move through it. P.S. What do you think about the Climate Funnel? Helpful or not?