Dr Charlie Gardner Profile picture
Aug 9, 2021 44 tweets 10 min read Read on X
1/ You’ve seen the fires
You seen the floods
You’ve read the news reports
You’re scared
And now you want to do something about it

But what? And how?

A (longish) thread
2/ First of all, welcome!

Whatever gifts or talents you bring, we need them in the climate movement and will put them to good use

We have been waiting for you, and we need you, so welcome aboard
3/ Also, well done!

Facing up to this is hard, and takes courage. Even thinking about taking action is a courageous first step, and you've done it!

So give yourself a small (maybe medium) pat on the back
4/ Let's start by jumping some of the barriers that hold us back

First, it's never too late to start - no matter what you have or haven't done up till now, it's what you do from now on that matters

So don’t worry about being late to the party, just get ready to dance till dawn
5/ Second, you don't need to know everything or be able to answer every question

We don't all need to be scientists, and you have your own knowledge and experience. You know enough to be concerned, and that's plenty
6/ Third, there is no purity standard to meet

I don't hugely care if you aren't vegan and still fly sometimes. What's important is that you take the action you're able to

We all have a footprint, don't let that hold you back (but more on this later)

vox.com/the-highlight/…
7/ Ok so now that we're confident and ready to roll, what can we actually do?

As I see it, there are five main things we could and should all be getting on with
1⃣ communicating
2⃣ influencing
3⃣ activism
4⃣ building better alternatives, and
5⃣ looking after ourselves
8/ We need to reach social tipping points so leaders have no choice but the take the required action - and that means putting the climate and ecological emergency on everyone's lips

So 1⃣ communicate. Take every opportunity to talk about it, to whoever you can
9/ I don’t mean full-on deniers – forget them, they can’t be reached

But between the activists (<1%) and the deniers (<1%), there’s a full 98% of the population who know it’s happening but aren't doing enough about it

They are the ones we have to motivate and mobilise
10/ We're conditioned to not talk about it - nobody wants to bring down a social occasion or annoy their friends with piety, but we just have to get over these taboos and social norms

It's hard, and makes us uncomfortable, but this is an emergency
11/ It's important because person-to-person is the most potent form of communication there is

People can easily dismiss something on the TV or Facebook as unimportant, but you are a real person that they respect or love. They might listen to you
12/ So talk, but don't focus only on scientific or technical arguments - 420 ppm, 1.5C and other such concepts are abstract and difficult to comprehend.

They don’t feel real, and they don’t get through on a meaningful level
13/ In any case our rational brains aren't even the key player here - our emotions are

@GretaThunberg showed us this. Decades of technical arguments by scientists didn't break through, but when Greta started speaking in emotive language, people started listening
14/ We know the facts. What we don’t see is the fear, the grief, the emotional devastation

But they are hugely powerful and persuasive, so use them. ‘Weaponise’ them

Rage and injustice too – they help turn anguish into motivation to act
15/ We’ve spoken from the head and been ignored, so speak from the heart a bit more

But we also need to be clever with our communication, as we're competing with a lot of other stuff out there

So think about your audience, and craft your messages
16/ Many people might not think they care about climate change, but they do care about some of its impacts

If they're into justice, focus on justice. If they garden, talk about plants

Sports, business... this changes everything, and there's an angle for everyone
17/ And don't just focus on the risks and dangers

Climate justice means creating a better world - it will be cleaner, healthier, fairer and richer

Focusing on opportunities, rather than just challenges, may be more motivating for some Image
18/ So talk, talk, and talk some more - to friends, colleagues, the lady at the bus stop...

But also make opportunities to reach beyond your circle - get yourself in the local paper, or on the radio

Do something to get noticed, then let rip. Or if you have a platform, use it
19/ Talk to your political representatives too, loudly and often. Show them what their constituents care about

(but then you already knew that)
20/ The next thing is 2⃣ push for change in your circles of influence

Climate change changes everything, so everything must change – your schools, businesses, sports clubs, all of it!

But change doesn't just happen - someone needs to make it happen, and that's you
21/ So push for change, but remember our strategic messaging - don't focus on climate, but the advantages to be had from the transition

Every organisation has to adapt to a post-carbon world, and those who do so quickest will have a great advantage

Make the 'business case'
22/ The world is changing fast, so don't let your organisations be left behind!

Don’t let them be the delivery company who stuck with horses because they thought those new-fangled automobiles were too expensive
23/ Ok so you’re talking to everyone, and pushing for change where you have influence. What next?

3⃣ Get active, and join a group!

Link up with others - there is power in numbers, and you'll feel good to be one of many
24/There's a huge range of groups, from traditional campaigning ones to those who engage in non-violent direct action

They work in different ways and have different views of how to make change happen

So find one that feels right for you
25/ Personally I believe in civil disobedience, the symbolic refusal to behave and just let it happen to us

We've been campaigning politely for decades and been easy to ignore. It's beyond time to step it up

So I do stuff with @ExtinctionR (continues..)
26/ If there's no group in your town, set one up!

I started my local group @xrkingslynn and we've since done great things

Literally all it took was setting up a Facebook page and calling a meeting

rebellion.global/groups/#countr…
27/ I know NVDA seems scary, especially if you only ever see it on the news

But getting involved doesn’t have to mean getting arrested!

Most people in the air force aren't pilots, and most people in XR haven’t blocked a road
28/ Whatever your skills, you can safely put them to good use

If you're creative, make artworks

If you're caring, join a wellbeing group

If you write, write press releases
29/ Also, much direct action doesn’t risk arrest – think of it as performance art

You can get arrested for breaking the windows of Britain's dirtiest bank, but I don't think you can for cleaning them. So get creative!

(Photo Amanda Fox @NorwichXr)
30/ And let’s not limit our civil disobedience to the streets either

Refusing to take that unnecessary work flight, or join in with activities that normalise wastefulness, is disobedience too!
31/ Ok you can take a break if you like, that’s a lot already!

But actually we’re nearly there and my fourth theme is really short because I don’t know much about it
32/ Opposing everything wrong is great and all, but it’s not enough. We also need to 4⃣ develop and support better alternatives

Better ways to govern, better ways to grow food, better ways to trade and meet public needs...

There are people doing this all over
33/ So find, support and join them

They are countercultural now, but with or without collapse our mainstream ways of doing things are on the way out, and we’ll need better ways in the new world we build
34/ You'll notice that one thing I haven't discussed much so far is reducing our personal carbon footprints

And not just because that's what most articles and blogs seem to focus on exclusively
35/ Doing so is important

It helps us feel better, and it makes us much more legitimate and effective activists - our messages carry greater weight if we also walk the walk
36/ This is particularly important for people with high-carbon lifestyles, like frequent flyers. It's why I gave up my job leading tours to Madagascar

But not everyone can afford only organic food or do without a car, so don't let that hold you back
37/ Some fear being labelled a hypocrite, but own the label

It's not possible to exist in the modern world without having a negative impact, and they are not arguing in good faith

They'll use any excuse to discredit you, so ignore them
38/ But most importantly, forgive yourself over it

Don't give yourself a hard time over your inability to eliminate your impacts

Don't let ‘micro-consumerist bollocks’ (@GeorgeMonbiot) distract you from bigger battles

monbiot.com/2021/04/09/sea…
39/ Which brings us to 5⃣ - the importance of self care

Unlike many 'campaigns', the struggle for climate justice will never be won. There's no end point at which we can relax

So we're in this for the long haul, and must take care of ourselves. Burn out is a real problem
40/ So make time to switch off, to unwind, to just think and feel

Go for a walk, get out in nature, have fun, do what you love

Just leave your phone behind!
41/ Actually one of the things I love most about Extinction Rebellion is our emphasis on wellbeing as part of our regenerative culture

extinctionrebellion.uk/act-now/resour…
42/ That’s pretty much me done I think. For now at least

I'm not a veteran activist, I'm no scholar of social change and I'm not a psychologist, so I hope none of what I’ve said is bad advice

And I hope it has been useful for some of you
43/ Thanks for sticking with me!

May you feel emboldened, and take inspiration from the great man @mackab

🎶I might not change the world with my views, but I might just light a fuse 🎶

Hey, no photo! Oops Image

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with Dr Charlie Gardner

Dr Charlie Gardner Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @CharlieJGardner

Mar 12
We all know that plastic is now everywhere, but the great drifts of it on the world’s beaches barely scratch the surface of the plastic pollution problem

Here’s a thread on just how deep the crisis goes

🧵1/ Image
It's in the earth beneath our feet, buried underground

In places it has already become the earth, forming new kinds of rock known as pyroplastics and plastiglomerates

2/


Image
Image
Image
Image
It covers the oceans in great floating islands, and has reached the deepest trenches

It’s in the bellies of
-albatrosses and penguins🐧
-fish 🦈🐟
- turtles
- and whales🐳

And it is killing them

3/


Image
Image
Image
Image
Read 9 tweets
Jul 28, 2023
1/ Inspired by the arrival of this beauty, here’s a thread of books that help us understand and overcome the barriers that people put up to save ourselves from having to think about climate change and take action
#ClimatePsychology 🧵 Image
2/ Margaret Klein Salamon @ClimatePsych's 'Facing the Climate Emergency' is the most clear-headed guide to understanding ourselves as we face up to this emergency, and commit to taking action, as you could hope for

I'm excited to read this 2nd Ed Image
3/ George Marshall @climategeorge's (2014) classic ‘Don’t Even Think About It' explores how our brains are evolutionarily hard-wired to ignore the danger Image
Read 7 tweets
Jul 27, 2023
1/ It's not annual emissions that ultimately matter but the concentrations of greenhouses gasses in the atmosphere - and these are already dangerously high

That means net zero is not enough
🧵
2/ Net zero means reaching equilibrium at much higher concentrations than they are now

27 years' (!) worth of emissions higher if we're going for 2050 🤯

And the consequences would be unimaginable
3/ Instead, we must aim for net negative, to bring atmospheric concentrations back down to safe levels

It's not enough to slowly brake towards 2050 (even if we actually were). We must slam on the brakes and engage reverse
Read 5 tweets
Mar 24, 2023
Why is individual action* on climate change and the destruction of nature so powerful and important?

Well, imagine yourself at a concert or party where you've had a couple of drinks, the music's getting good... but nobody's dancing

🧵 1/
You tap your feet and start to sway, but there's no way you're going to get up in front of all those people and show off your moves
2/
Someone eventually does, but they're a much better dancer than you or, worse, a little weird

So still you hold back
3/
Read 11 tweets
Mar 21, 2023
9 years in the making, yesterday's #IPCC 6th assessment report synthesises a 6000-page (?) summary of climate and related sciences, and is arranged around 18 'headline statements'

I'm going to try and summarise it in 18 plain-language tweets 😬
1/ By burning stuff & emitting gasses we’ve DEFINITELY heated the world by 1.1C, but we haven’t stopped doing it. Wealthy countries and individuals have contributed much more to the problem, so we’re not equally to blame
2/ This has already had massive impacts on the weather, the oceans and the living world, everywhere on Earth. These changes have been catastrophic for people and nature, but those who have contributed least to the problem are the ones paying most of the costs
Read 20 tweets
Mar 21, 2023
This amazing figure from yesterday's #IPCC report shows the potential of different approaches to mitigate climate change

It exposes two common misconceptions about 'natural climate solutions'
1/
First, BECCS (growing trees or logging forests to burn for energy) has very limited potential compared to solar and wind

Since it also destroys nature and competes for land with food, it is bad news. Burning trees is not a climate solution
2/
Second, protecting existing forests is more important than planting trees

A forest of mature trees is also an irreplaceable community of beings that provides essential services, while a plantation of saplings is not
3/3
Read 4 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us!

:(