Suggestions for smoother climate change discussions over turkey

Finally – it’s Christmas week, and even us guys are wrapping up our shopping!  Now, it’s time to look ahead to the centerpiece of many families’ celebrations, Christmas dinner.

A big part of solving climate change involves conversations: engaging as many people as possible to create better understanding of the problem and the solutions needed.  But sometimes starting and having those conversations can be a little uncomfortable.  So here are a few strategies that I hope can help make for thoughtful, amicable, productive climate conversations this holiday season:

• Try to find common ground: I’m no expert in conflict resolution, but I know that when I need to have a difficult conversation with someone, it’s a good strategy to start by finding all the things we agree upon.  It sets a nice tone, and can lower barriers to unfettered discussion.
• As Stephen Covey’s Habit 5 goes, ‘seek first to understand, then to be understood’.  Try to listen to someone else’s point of view with an open mind, and to understand where they’re coming from.  Ask questions calmly and sincerely, and summarize back to indicate you’ve understood.  Then ask follow-up questions.  Sometimes the right line of questioning can lead a person to see the folly of their own position and the need to change their minds.  Try to make that easy by challenging less and listening more.  No one likes to be proven wrong or embarrassed in front of others. 
• Speak to values.  As climate scientist Katherine Hayhoe advises, take a bit of time to find out what really matters to someone, and then make a connection: demonstrate how climate change will impact something that really matters to them, and/or how climate action can preserve or reinforce something that really matters to them.
• Related: speak to benefits of action – things like cost savings, better health, better air quality, more resilience, etc.  For example, our family has an EV primarily to lower our emissions (it’s a key value for us).  But I know that doesn’t resonate with everyone, so when speaking with others about EVs, I try to focus on cost savings, low maintenance, power, reliability and other benefits.
• Be prepared to bite your tongue, compromise and let small things go, if it may keep the conversation going and open the door to changed thinking.
• Have some solutions ready to suggest, so that you can bridge smoothly from understanding to action once you sense that the time is right.
• If it’s comfortable, raise the subject of New Years resolutions, and ask if anyone is ready to make some that center around sustainability – IE generate only X bags of trash; take public transit once a week; make sure the next vehicle is electric; even subscribe to a sustainability newsletter like this one.  It’s perfectly fine to start small, as every action is a good action; and it’s nice if you can lead by example with one or two of your own.  Maybe a family challenge could be in order?
• Know when it’s time to change the subject: not everyone is persuadable, and often small progress is as good as it gets, so try to know when it’s time to move on, chat about something else and enjoy that turkey.

Happy holidays, and may comfortable conversations about sustainability prevail!