I powered through this book today in preparation for an event with the author this coming week. (So, full, and quite a lame, disclosure: I know the author, many of the people interviewed for this book and climate change makes up about 87% of my life).

It's been awhile since I've read a non-fiction book in one sitting though, which I think is a testament to the accessible language Huntley writes with. Given that this book is about how we can better communicate and engage with people on climate, that's a good thing! There's a focus on doing so through using social sciences especially psychology and how we process our emotions. It's interwoven with her journey over the course of a year since her own "a-ha" moment, propelling her to many changes in her personal and professional life.

I'd recommend this for people "newer" to the climate "space" (both are pretty amorphous things in my opinion, that is probably best left undefined) looking for an overview of communications best practices. And, maybe there's no higher praise, from someone who is up to their eyeballs in all things climate, that this felt like a good use of my Sunday.

On how to engage with the disempowered, the disengaged, and the sceptical (if not those in willful denial) about facing up to the greatest emergency we have ever faced (and tried to ignore).

A rewarding read. I say that because it will literally reframe the way I "talk about climate change". The premise is simple: we cannot persuade with more climate science; we can only persuade with emotion. Something that should have been obvious to me as a tutor of rhetorical writing. But there it is. For some reason, we seem to think that political action will be taken on climate change 'if only' climate sceptics and deniers 'knew' the science. The science was known in the 1970s. All the scientists have been doing since then is tracking the losses. Instead, Huntley takes us through the emotions that climate change invokes, and shows us how these emotions hinder communication on climate change and how they can be harnessed. And like everything else, it all boils down to storytelling. Stories are how we make sense of who we are in the world. Compelling climate change stories are local and personal. This is a book I will need to read again and again.

Vitally important. A book that I'll be returning to and using with my students.

This year I have been on a bit of a journey around my place in the environment, what I do about it and how I engage with the things I can control. So it is logical that this book has a place in this journey for me.

This book really worked for me. It was presented in a way I could relate to and understand it, and on finishing it I feel even more empowered to have more discussions about this topic which I care quite a lot about but don't talk about enough.

One thing that really hit me was the whole concept that if we don't talk about it to avoid conflict, politicisation or general discomfort we are only doing ourselves a disservice. We just need to talk about it no matter where we stand on the political spectrum (cause frankly the science doesn't have multiple sides, just facts).

Recommended reading. Thanks Rebecca Huntley!