Climate Change: Using Humour to Spread the Word - Matt Winning

Clothes for pets.  Some things will never make sense. Faced with the more absurd side of modern civilisation, what are we to do?  The secret, according to this week’s guest, is to find the funny anyway. In fact, he’s made it his job.   

Integrating Matt’s green split personality: Climate chaos isn’t funny (but we should still make jokes about it) 

…and here’s what it means for politics:

Counting trees, pricing yachts, modelling CCS and other economic puzzles 

The art of climate conversations: keep them light! 

• Here’s the set list for this show: 
• • The Star Wars effect of humour in climate communication 
  • ‘it’s more visceral’ – having a child and emotional engagement 
  • Why we shouldn’t find hope in younger generations 
  • Climate scientists are getting pissed off…  
  •  

As well as his work as an academic economist, he is also a stand-up comedian who has delivered four sold-out Edinburgh Festival shows about climate change, and the author of the book Hot Mess: What on Earth can we do about Climate Change? 

 

Matt Winning is the Senior Research Fellow at the Bartlett School of the Environment, Energy and Resources, University College of London.  

 

To find out how (and why) to make light of the climate struggle for good, join Matt Winning on this episode of Conversations on Climate.

 

It's hard as academics, you can't be making decisions about one technology in a positive way and other technologies in a negative light just because that's how you feel.

... there's choices you're constantly making when you're having conversations about whether you're making things more or less depressing. And it's actively trying to keep the positive parts of your brain engaged and trying to constantly engage other people and their positive parts of the brain ...

… basically I'm saying go and talk to some comedians.

 

 

Reference Links:

The 14th Festival of Education at Wellington College: https://educationfest.co.uk

Book: Hot Mess: https://mattwinning.com/book

Climate Strange - TEDx Newcastle College: https://tinyurl.com/25bbo9p5

Wellington College: https://www.wellingtoncollege.org.uk

 

Conversations on Climate is a podcast produced by United Renewables in association with the London Business School Energy Alumni Club. 

It brings together the best minds from academia and business, to offer their experience and expertise in the face of climate change –from game theorists to corporate diplomats, and oil industry veterans to micro-algae entrepreneurs. 

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We talk about how the scope of the challenge before us is beyond that of any one individual or any one solution. We listen to thinkers, researchers, policymakers, and business leaders. They discuss a diversity of ideas and solutions to global climate and environmental issues and why they matter.

 

Season 2 is presented by Chris Caldwell and produced by UNITED RENEWABLES in association with LONDON BUSINESS SCHOOL, ALUMNI ENERGY CLUB.

 

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