Dr. Imke Hoppe                (Hamburg University)

Climate Change Communication – A Short Introduction to the Research Perspectives in Communication Studies

Climate science is an abstract field. Often the results are too complex to be applied to one particular situation. For example, climate scientists do not know whether or not it will be raining in a certain place at a certain time in the future. The reason is that climate, in contrast to the weather forecast, focuses on statistical values. These are monitored for at least 30 years as cannot be felt with one’s own sense.

In addition, the findings about climate are often temporary and uncertain. At the same time, climate change not only has great relevance for society, but is also ever-present in the media.

In the last few years, news coverage of the topic has expanded all over the world. At the point where media and the public converge, the abstract findings of climate science are being simplified and pointed - knowledge about climate change is “socially constructed”.