The Durban-Ft. Lauderdale/Broward city-to-city exchange was such a rewarding experience that was truly driven by the Durban delegation and members of Fort Lauderdale and Broward County’ s commitment to the CityLinks program. 

As mentioned in a previous CityLinks blog on community champions, on Wednesday March 12, 2014, Program Manager Jessica Cho and I attended a meeting with various stakeholders from the community to learn about their role in the region’s climate change adaptation activities.

My background is in education and community outreach and I thought I knew who would be represented at the meeting- environmental non-profits, perhaps universities, etc. However, the room was full of diverse and unexpected groups of stakeholders such as members of the architecture industry, real estate, and religious institutions.  The meeting introduced fascinating outreach strategies including:   

Religion and Climate Change: As mentioned, the meeting included a representative of the Unitarian Church. Before this meeting, I did not think of religious institutions as major players in climate change advocacy. Fort Lauderdale, though, changed my mind. In Fort Lauderdale, the Unitarian church community is a major driver of climate change adaptation awareness and advocacy. Their activities have included a successful community garden through urban farming, promoting and developing alternate car parks built out of electrical infrastructure, and art projects within schools. The meeting introduced an untapped resource in the climate adaptation.  Additional organizations were also mentioned:  

Catholic Climate Covenant

Interfaith Power and Light

Media and Celebrities- One of the most interesting discussions from the session was on youth outreach and the role of cultural imagery of wealth on youth's lack of support for environmental sustainable activities. 

Often, whether in South Africa or in the U.S., status is associated with financial wealth: having the big cars, living in the large mansions, being able to boast the concept of excess and having waste. In South Africa, Debra Roberts, Deputy Head of eThekwini Municipality Department of Environmental Planning and Climate Protection Department, stated status may not be something so extravagant but as basic as owning a flushable toilet. Consumption has been glamourized, so when a topic such as environmental sustainability, often a topic that requires behavioral change and restrictions, is introduced, it can be met with resistance, especially from the youth. Youth may not be supportive of your cause when your cause promotes walking over their cars.

It's important then to popularize the themes of sustainability through outlets such as popular TV shows, blogs, social media networks, and celebrity champions. This has been done in the U.S. with campaigns such as Rock the Vote that used social media campaigns and celebrities to champion the importance of voting and civic engagement amongst youth and young adults.

 This topic spotlighted the importance of understanding the sociocultural drivers influencing an audience’s attitudes and behavior towards any initiative.

Talk the Talk: The representative from the real estate industry emphasized the importance of knowing your audience. When she first read the Climate Action draft of the Compact documents, she noticed there was a great lack of language that was relevant to the private sector. She noted that in order to invite the business sector into your cause, you must communicate using terms and writing styles that relate tothe specific industry such as phrases like assets, or economic benefits for the business industry.

Dr. Nancy Gassman, Sustainability Manager of Fort Lauderdale, expanded on this idea of relevancy, stating that throughout her years of technical research as well as community work, she has learned that when it comes to climate change outreach, it’s not about describing climate change to your audience, but posing the question - “How does climate change affect you?“

“Community Outreach” may seem like a straightforward concept. It’s become a buzzword all across initiatives in the U.S. and internationally along with “Partnerships”, “Capacity Building”, and “Grassroots”. Yet this exchange has shown that, though simple in concept, successful implementation requires a critical mind as well as the dedication to tackle on such complex issues.