Climate Change

Inspiring Communications

The IVCA Climate Challenge Programme Introduction ‘Climate Change is thought to be the most important threat facing our world and it is necessary for every citizen to understand this and to play an active role in tackling a potential global disaster. Many professional communicators already engage with these issues. They use their creativity and professional expertise, to increase understanding of the threat our planet faces and to explain how we can all work towards a more positive future.
But we need many more to be involved...
Communicators can work both individually and collectively to inform the debate. Each media platform can be used cost effectively to provide information for internal and external business audiences and for public sector communications, on climate change.
The new IVCA Climate Challenge Programme recognises this and aims to coordinate both professional production expertise and encourage the engagement of clients of the industry, in these matters.
The Programme will work to achieve this through special events, awards schemes, best practice seminars, and regular communications.
To help us succeed we need your support.
Please take a look at the ways in which you can be involved with the project. Sign up to our regular e-briefings and contact me personally if you would like to become a partner organisation working with the IVCA to confront the challenge of climate change’

Wayne Drew, IVCA Chief Executive

 

Harnessing the power of communications

The IVCA has existed for 40 years to promote ethical and effective corporate communications. It represents 1000 producers of corporate and public sector communications and 1500 Directors of Communication from multinational corporations and the public sector. Annually the IVCA reaches over 100,000 communicators and our website has in excess of 200,000 unique visitors.

This large and very influential constituency, incrementally, has the power to influence even greater numbers of both the workforce and the population as a whole. As such the Association has the ability to reach in excess of 5,000,000 people at the lowest estimate and potentially more than 10,000,000.

The IVCA Climate Challenge Programme is, however, aimed at the whole of the business communication industry in order to encourage additional media professionals to engage fully in the climate change agenda. These can play a part in the programme regardless of whether they are members of the Association or not - as long as they subscribe to the IVCA’s professional guidelines set down in its Code of Practice.

Activity Programme

Over the next two years there will be a full activity and communication programme aimed at senior communicators. This will include:
  

Regular communications
  • E-Newsletter
  • Paper based Newsletter
  • Dedicated web access 

 


Case Study Publications
  • IVCA Business Media Handbook
  • Individual publications
  • Regular features in Update Newsletter
  • Best practice case study web section

 


Events
  • The Essential Communications Conference
  • Best practice showcase events
  • Quarterly regional seminars

 


Awards
  • IVCA Climate Change Award, BAFTA Autumn 2006
  • Case study publication of Awards winners
  • Case study presentation of Awards winners

 

Key Climate Change Facts

Carbon dioxide and other gases warm the surface of the planet naturally by trapping solar heat in the atmosphere. This is a good thing because it keeps our planet habitable. However, by burning fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil and clearing forests we have dramatically increased the amount of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere and temperatures are rising.
Source: www.climatecrisis.net

 

The Facts

  • The Earth is warming faster than at any time in the past 10,000 years (IPCC).
  • The burning of coal, oil and gas has increased the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere by 30% over natural levels (IPCC).
  • By 2100 the world could be 6ºC warmer (IPCC) - recent research at Oxford University suggests it could even be as much as 10ºC warmer on average.
  • The summer of 2003 was Europe’s hottest for 500 years. The heatwave caused 28,000 premature deaths across the continent.
  • Europe’s capitals have warmed, some by 2°C in the last 30 years. London’s average maximum summer temperature increased the most. This warming trend will increase the likelihood of more frequent and intense heatwaves, droughts and rainstorms (WWF-UK).

 

Impacts

  • 150,000 people already die every year from climate change (World Health Organisation).
  • The area of the world stricken by drought has doubled between 1970 and the early 2000s (Greenpeace).
  • The economic costs of global warming are doubling every decade (UN).
  • Up to a third of land-based species could face extinction by the middle of the century (RSPB).
  • 100 million more people will be flooded by end of century (FoE).
  • Water availability could decline - Over 3 billion people in the Middle East and the Indian sub-continent could be facing acute shortages of water (Oxfam).
  • There has been a 40% drop in the amount of arctic ice since the 1970s. Were this effect to spread, the corresponding rise in sea levels would overwhelm low-lying countries like Bangladesh and also major western cities such as London, Rome and New York (People & Planet).
  • In the next 15 years, displacement, disruption to agriculture and food supplies, and damage and destruction to infrastructure would be likely to lead to economic and political instability, both within countries and across international borders, and even to wars as environmental refugees seek new homes and countries clash over scarce water and food supplies. (Christian Aid).
  • The financial costs of flooding could rise in both the UK and the rest of Europe, increasing the annual flood bill by up to £82 billion across Europe. (Association of British Insurers).

Source: www.stopclimatechaos.org