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Planet Now
Blog on Effective Environmental Communication
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Like many young adults, I enjoy taking personality tests. What can they teach us about communication to help the environment? The Enneagram is one personality test that can provide insight about the types of messages that resonate with us and other people.
The Enneagram system categorizes people into nine personality types based on their worldviews and emotions. The lines in the chart below connect each Enneagram type to two other types that represent how they act when they are experiencing personal growth or stress. For example, a person who is an Achiever becomes like a Loyalist when growing and becomes like a Peacemaker when stressed. Learn more about Enneagram types here. It is not necessary to understand all the details of the Enneagram to use it as a communication tool. The important part is that these personality categories show there are many ways for people to think, so different messages will motivate people to protect the environment. The Enneagram could be beneficial if you plan to communicate about climate change with an individual and know that person’s Enneagram type. You could find ways to connect to that person based on the characteristics of their personality. Even if you are communicating with many people at once, you can still consider how information will resonate with people of different Enneagram types. Here are some ways Enneagram types may respond to communication about climate change: 1. Reformers are rational and principled. They may engage with content about the reasons people, businesses and governments are responsible for mitigating climate change. As a Reformer myself, I like how Dr. Katharine Hayhoe’s book Saving Us explains how people can communicate about industries causing climate change in order to encourage policy changes. Recognizing my Enneagram type reminds me that accountability is a topic that appeals to me but may not appeal to all Enneagram types. 2. Helpers are caring and generous. Messages about climate threats people face and how to help could appeal to this group. 3. Achievers care about success and images. They may engage with information about climate careers or ways to make lifestyle changes that align with images of being sustainable. 4. Individualists are sensitive and expressive. Emotional imagery could be an effective way to reach this group. For example, images or videos of animals suffering from heat could motivate Individualists to fight climate change.
A polar bear looks for food in the Canadian Arctic in 2017. It struggles to find food since climate change has melted ice that it needs to catch seals. This video could appeal to an Individualist.
5. Investigators are intense and innovative. Information about entrepreneurial initiatives to solve climate change could engage this group and motivate them to find more solutions.
6. Loyalists are committed and responsible. Effective communication with this group could focus on showing them ways they can commit to climate advocacy, like volunteering for environmental organizations. 7. Enthusiasts love to be busy and have fun. Communication efforts could show them how they can use their time to mitigate climate change in enjoyable ways, like attending protests with friends or volunteering at community gardens. 8. Challengers love power and confrontation. Effective climate communication could show this group how they can confront the powerful oil and gas industry to encourage a transition to cleaner energy sources. 9. Peacemakers are easygoing and agreeable. They could be successful at connecting with people who disagree with them about climate change. Effective communication with this group could teach them how to talk with others to help more people understand climate change. This approach is out of this world! Of course, people do not fit perfectly into Enneagram categories, and there is no guarantee that a message will appeal to someone because they received a certain Enneagram result. The Enneagram is still a unique way for someone to understand how others may view the world differently. It could help people get creative with generating new ideas and strategies for communicating about climate change. Your turn! I encourage you to take the free Enneagram test if you have not taken it before. Once you have your result, read the description about your Enneagram type and reflect on how it affects the ways you communicate. Answer the poll to share your Enneagram type!
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Welcome to my blog! It is a combination of posts from my strategic writing (spring 2022) and personal branding (spring 2023) courses at UNC. I hope you will enjoy reading the posts and learning about the environment and communication.
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