Program on the Environment

Implementing suitable communication techniques is critical to the effectiveness of an environmental organization. There are large differences in how environmental organizations choose to communicate with the public that, in turn, create differences in how effective an organization is at promoting action. The specific methods employed by an organization can expand or limit its support and scope of influence. Communication methods are largely influenced by organization-specific goals, target audience, available resources, use of emotion, and organization structure. This study investigates communication techniques to identify key differences and determine how communication methods impact an environment organization’s ability to promote action. Evidence was collected through a literature review, supported with anecdotal findings during development of the King County Climate Action Team’s Climate Change Resource Hub. Results indicate that the four aforementioned factors have an interdependent impact on how an organization communicates. Furthermore, how organizations approach each of these factors impacts their ability to promote action. Creating competing audiences, relying on membership funds, failing to incorporate emotion, and inadequate utilization of resources and social media all impede an environmental organization’s ability to promote action. Therefore, communication is a key source of information when analyzing environmental organizations; the public must be conscious of these communication methods when engaging with environmental organizations. Additionally, it is important for environmental organizations to be able to effectively communicate about other ways to participate in climate action outside of their specific goals.