A new way to talk about biodiversity

If our current way of talking about biodiversity was effective, we wouldn’t be losing so much of it, says Melissa Harding of Phipps Science Education. Read her review of the CEC video and campaign how to tell a love story.

Make the politicians work

The power of social media.

Communication objectives: action

One of the communication objectives of an award initiative is: to recruit a group of communications students. Reading the project proposal, a colleague suggested that recruiting is more a project objective and not a communication objective and offered the following alternatives:

·         

      Raise awareness among students of how nature can provide solutions for society challenges regarding energy needs and savings

·         Inform young people and the larger public as a whole on how nature can provide solutions for society challenges regarding energy needs and savings

However communication objectives are always about changes in knowledge, attitudes and or practices (behaviour). And they have to be SMART. Raising awareness is a management objective – a communication objective would be more precise in stating the change from current to desired knowledge about nature and energy. Same for information. Recruiting a group of students is a communication objective aimed at action: sign up! 

Communicate better with love not loss

Struggling to talk about biodiversity?
Tried everything to attract attention?
Not sure how to approach your audience?
Struggling to get your voice heard?

Can't make an impact with your message?
Having trouble talking about extinction?
Find talking about conservation tricky?
Struggling to get the right message heard?

Find the answers in How to tell a love story.

Want to spread the Love Not Loss message? Use the campaign package.

Funny Talking Tsessebe from IUCN Love Not Loss Campaign

Funny Talking Hippos from IUCN Love Not Loss Campaign

How to Tell a Love Story

Funny Talking Elephants from IUCN Love Not Loss Campaign

Funny Talking Bears from IUCN Love Not Loss Campaign

E-learning & demand articulation

Need for new knowledge is often the result of a gap analysis between current and desired knowledge. Once we – as experts - see a need for new knowledge among a professional group, this does not mean that the users in this group automatically feel that they need to update their knowledge. They may think that their current knowledge and practices are perfectly adequate. Demand articulation is the process in which we try to clear up the characteristics of new knowledge and knowledge products that are important from the user perspective. The result of demand articulation is a definition of the appropriate content, the packaging into the right tools, accompanied by the right incentives. It prevents that publications stay on the shelf, that nobody shows up for a training or logs into an e-learning course. The way to articulate demand is by listening to users (through focus groups, surveys etc.) or to work with users and develop with them the new knowledge products.