Biodiversity Narratives that work

July 2023

Our lifestyle, culture, health, wellbeing, and economy (including tourism, primary production and creative industries) rely on biodiversity and the ecosystem services it provides. It is essential that we build people’s awareness to enhance their connection with biodiversity and engaging them in protecting, managing and restoring the nature around them.

Why do we need a biodiversity narrative?

In the field of cognitive science, scholars suggest that human brains quite literally process the world through narratives. Narratives shape human understanding and underscore policy, practice, and action.

Narratives offer increased comprehension, interest, and engagement. The public already get most of their science information from mass media content which is itself already biased toward narrative formats. Studies suggest that narrative processing is generally more efficient with increased recall, improved comprehension, and shorter reading times.

Narratives are viewed as a tool to mobilise and inspire action. On a basic and superficial level, narrative is a repackaging of information that resonates with people. Humans’ decision making is emotionally led. Scholars suggest that compelling stories, rather than fact and reason, drive human action. We need to provide narratives that stir emotions and exemplify values rather than simply presenting facts.

Narratives can soften a message that would otherwise provoke negative feelings if communicated too directly. Narratives are also less likely to provoke counterarguments and can help challenge and change perceived norms.

Conservationists and policy makers need to harness the power of storytelling to convey compelling messages that resonate with policy and popular audiences. A biodiversity narrative is employing a behavioural lever of “simplification and framing”. This prevents information overload and presents information in a way that consciously activates certain values and attitudes in individuals.

Existing common narratives in biodiversity

Summary of common narratives in use in conservation:

Eco-centric

Nature should be conserved for nature’s sake. The intrinsic values of nature

“This natural area is beautiful, and it is our duty to protect it”

what counts as nature is culturally mediated
dualistic view of humans and nature (or humans vs nature)
potential for “fortress conservation” which could cause problematic social ripples.
pristine nature is a failed metaphor and doesn’t have enough appeal on its own

Faith, Spirituality and Ethics

Conservation as a spiritual imperative

“Nature was created by God, and we are stewards of his creation”

doesn’t appeal to different beliefs or religions
contrasts with need for “evidence based” scientific knowledge

Anthropocentric

Nature provides things for humans

“Look at all the benefits that this species of tree provides for humans!”

implies a 1-way relationship between humans and nature
undermines the intrinsic value of nature
not all elements of nature benefit humans

Economics

Economic interests and conservation goals are complementary. Corporations are strategic partners and can create mutually beneficial relationships with nature.

“XYZ Business has spent $XX in the past year to protect our planet. With your help, we can continue our good work.”

refocuses concern away from the immediate damage done by businesses and consumption and towards faraway landscapes (greenwashing)
focus on extrinsic motivations (money/power)

Crisis Narrative / 6th Mass Extinction

Humans are destroying the planet and ourselves. We are spiraling towards collapse.

“Our house is on fire!”

“There is no Planet B!”

optimism sparks more action than panic.
crisis narrative implies one, absolute, coherent problem and in turn implies inalienable, scientific solutions,
does not address the complexities on a cultural, social and political level.

Big Data / the 4th Industrial Revolution / Eco modernisation

Technology will save humanity.

“Modern tech systems can save water and energy.”

eliminates need for natural processes and landscapes (e.g., wetlands and mangroves to capture carbon)
implies technology is a “magic wand”
doesn’t consider political or moral obligations.

Anthropocene

Humanity’s collective impact on the environment.

“Look at the impact humans have made to our world. Look at climate change and the hole in the ozone. The future will be more of the same unless radical changes happen.”

acknowledges profound role of humans on Earth but fails to cover social systems, cultural values/norms and power struggles

How to create an engaging narrative

The majority of conservation communications adopt an awareness-raising and education component. Unfortunately, studies show that this approach only prompts about 8% of the population to act. So, they are aware of the problem but don’t actually do anything about it.

To achieve change, we need our target audience to buy in to the goal and believe that they have a part to play in achieving it.

The key elements of a successful narrative:

A consistent message:

A narrative that has a consistent, overarching message about how and why policies are being implemented enables people to understand why changes are occurring and determine how they – and their actions – fit into the broader scheme.

Crafted for the local context:

To be effective, the narrative around policies needs to be recognisable and appeal to a variety of people in the local context.

Aligning talk and action:

The narrative that accompanies policy implementation must accurately explain the policy decision, while the moral elements of the narrative need to be reflected by the purpose and impact of the policy.

The creators of narratives need to:

• Identify: something people either already value or will readily value. This “something” needs to already have emotional resonance with the audience and appeal to their motivations and values. Experts shouldn’t have to provide reasons.

This needs to be personalised to the audience. It could be linked to local pride, flagship species, or local lifestyle traits. There is also the importance of humanising the situation for the audience. Creators need to include human timescales, thinking about the next 5 years rather than the next 25 years is much easier for most audiences.

• Articulate clearly how that “something” is at risk – especially if the audience don’t see the threat on a daily basis. If there is a lack of risk perception the narrative won’t hit its mark.

It is important that narrative creators promote what we’ve got and not what is already lost. This is Loss aversion: Something that could be lost is more valuable than something that could be gained.

We need to remember that the typical modern human experience confirms the view that human spaces are created and maintained by excluding natural processes. We are often clearing spiders or insects from our houses. The idea that human spaces and our lifestyle quality are dependent on natural processes is not part of our everyday experience, people find it hard to get to grips with this and this needs to be repeatedly articulated in our messaging.

• Give the audience a positive role as individuals in protecting or nurturing that “something”. The power of knowing what to do and being the hero in their own story increases response efficacy.

If we constantly frame humans as villains then it prompts defensive reactions or even defeatist actions which will undermine the call to action of our message. The framing of the risk may be strengthened (not weakened) by acknowledging all the good things humans are doing and can do, but still emphasising that we have still not quite got the balance right.

• Create an admirable but achievable model of the kind of person who takes on this positive role. The narrative plays to personal responsibility, so that the audience see the necessary action as an extension of their own identity and fulfillment of social norms. People conform to behaviours which they perceive as the norm in society and they compare their own behaviour to these benchmarks. By reinforcing the “feel-good-factor” of nature positive actions we can turn one-off actions into regular habits.

Things to avoid:

3rd person and passive phrases
jargon
transactional relationships- need more than just people’s money
relying on emphasising threat and loss
appealing to desire for power and money
attempts to motivate people with conflicting values
relying on extrinsic values (competition, status, money) these make people less motivated