The power social media has in raising climate change awareness

Photo courtesy of Matt Palmer, Unsplash.

There are way too many people around the world who do not believe in climate change or take it seriously. Lots of people brush it off as a hoax or something that will not impact them in their lifetime, but that is simply not true. Climate change is very real, and is an imminent threat to wildlife in certain areas.

In the age of technology and social media, it is significantly easier to spread information and knowledge in a quick and efficient way. It is a great resource to take advantage of. When discussing climate change, the use of technology, like photography, is an important tool that can be used to grab the attention of the public.

Photography is an art form, and art is a language of its own. Communicating through art breaks the barriers and connects people with a common understanding of what the artwork is trying to convey.

With wildlife photography as the focal point of climate change, people across the globe can all understand one thing: the world and all of its creatures need help and support.

People empathize more with a polar bear where they can clearly see its suffering than they would from just hearing someone say “climate change is a problem.”  It is not just in the arctic, it is also right in this country, and it’s deeply changing the lives of so many people. Seeing images of forest fires in California makes people more aware of just how “close to home” this issue is. Some have lost their lives, homes, loved ones — potentially everything — due to the fires.

Seeing how gravely global warming and climate change can impact the lives of people and animals alike from a first-hand account makes it a lot easier to grasp the concept.

Even though photo-sharing has been such a crucial tool in educating people on the severity of climate change, there are still people who will not listen or take it seriously. Nevertheless, it is important to still keep spreading the word and demonstrating environmental awareness in light of this. Mother Nature needs help, and something as simple as sharing or reposting a photo on social media can be the catalyst to convince more people to save this planet we call home.

Although reposting a picture of something tragic like a wildfire on Instagram does not seem like it is a lot, it can absolutely bring awareness and show to others just how serious these issues are. Not everyone has the means to do more than spreading awareness, so it is important to do what you can.

 

mfazio@ramapo.edu