Uncovering the Truth: How Climate Change Stories Can Engage and Attract Readers

The Climate Explorers program, developed by the Constructive Institute in partnership with the Novo Nordisk Foundation CO2 Research Center, has been instrumental in finding new ways to cover climate change with a constructive lens. Over the course of five months, the Climate Explorers worked closely with scientists and changemakers to explore innovative approaches to climate change reporting.

During a session on Rethinking Climate Coverage, prominent journalists from around the world shared their insights and key takeaways from the Climate Explorers Guidelines. Kristian Elster from NRK TV in Norway emphasized the importance of prioritizing climate change journalism, citing NRK’s significant increase in readership after implementing dedicated climate change reporting teams. Elster highlighted that three out of NRK’s all-time most read stories are now climate change-related.

Furthermore, Elster presented data showing that articles on climate change now attract, on average, 10% more readers than all articles in general. Constructive articles were found to have over 50% more readers than non-constructive articles, demonstrating the effectiveness of a constructive journalism approach to climate reporting.

Mahima Jain, an independent journalist from India, discussed the principles of constructive journalism, which include focusing on solutions, covering nuances, and promoting democratic conversation. Tais Gadea Lara, an independent climate journalist from Argentina, emphasized the importance of promoting democratic conversation, particularly in the context of covering events like COP, the UN Climate Change Convention.

Mactilda Mbenywe, a science journalist from Kenya, highlighted the importance of focusing on the human aspect of climate change, making the issue relatable by showcasing personal impacts and individual resilience. Liam Mannix, an Australian science journalist, provided insights on avoiding polarization in climate reporting, emphasizing the importance of focusing on science and facts rather than politics.

Overall, the Climate Explorer’s Guidelines offer five key takeaways for effective climate journalism: focusing on solutions, connecting individual behavior to systematic changes, highlighting the human aspect of climate change, covering international politics and policy, and avoiding polarization by engaging with science and facts. By following these guidelines, newsrooms can effectively engage audiences and attract readers to climate change stories, making it one of the most important and compelling stories of our time.