As someone who spends a lot of time crafting messages and stories, I’m perplexed how often well-intended environmental messages go along the lines of, “Don’t destroy the planet.” Often the “don’t destroy” sentiment isn’t stated overtly, it’s assumed. Let’s have a look.
“Good citizens recycle (or you’ll destroy the planet).”
“Don’t waste water (or you’ll destroy the planet).”
“Walk if you can, don’t drive, save the emissions (or you’ll destroy the planet).”
The story, then, has the message that good, respectful people recycle and bad people don’t. You’re being naughty if you don’t put that plastic water bottle in the right bin or leave the lights on at home as you go out driving a big, gas-guzzling truck with an oil leak. At a corporate level, you’re being bad if you make a decision to dump toxic waste in the lake.
But consider what we’re actually dealing with.
Picture the earth: Big, powerful: the land and the sea
Now, picture us: On average 150 pounds using the earth to sustain ourselves
How are we (as in people) going to destroy the earth? Seems to me that it’s the other way around. The earth will destroy us based on the fact that we don’t understand our inherent connectedness to it. We’ve all seen glimpses of this last year. Global warming has the potential to make hurricanes and tropical storms more intense, flooding more severe and who knows what’s next.
I’m a communications expert and not a scientist. But it seems to me that we need to tweak the messaging to be more along the lines of, “If we don’t look after the Earth, it will destroy us.” At bit dramatic, true, but it would put into perspective just who’s boss. Or, what we have to ultimately respect and work with to make our lives productive and possible.
Just one word: Dinosaurs
Happy Earth Day!
