Remi Gosselin - Climate Change Deniers

     One of the bigger challenges environmentalists face today is climate change denial, especially when those denying global warming are in positions of power, such as the Senate. In order to further understand this dilemma, Kirsti Jylhä at Uppsala University wrote their thesis on the psychology behind this denial. The results indicate that individuals deny climate change to a larger extent when they accept hierarchical power structures. In other words, when someone believes that certain individuals are rightfully in a position of authority over others, they are more likely to believe those who are poor are rightfully so. They essentially believe in what is called the Just-World Hypotheses: everyone gets what they deserve. This makes current arguments of wealthy individuals, companies, and countries, harming the poor (as well as animals and ecosystems) useless against these deniers. In order to better approach these individual Kirsti Jylhä notes “it would perhaps be better to talk in other terms and describe how everyone will benefit from the measures instead of being affected by the consequences and that the measures don’t have to be a threat to the current societal structure.” So next time you have to present to climate change deniers, make sure you focus on the universal benefits, rather than the negative consequences faced by the poor and the ecosystem in general.
 
For more information on this study:
​http://www.uu.se/en/media/press-releases/press-release/?id=3454&area=3,8&typ=pm&lang=en