Last month’s IPCC report made for sombre reading. The scientific study by the world’s leading climate scientists presents the latest on climate change and, crucially, what we must do about global warming.  

It pulled no punches, with scientists delivering a ‘final warning’ on the climate crisis urging for swift and drastic action to avert irrevocable damage to the world. 

The good news? We have the tools to address climate change. The bad news? It’s looking increasingly unlikely that we’ll be able to keep the world from warming more than 1.5C. 

1.5C is the maximum acceptable limit for global warming, a temperature we’re increasingly closer to reaching.  

The UN secretary general, António Guterres, urged: “This report is a clarion call to massively fast-track climate efforts by every country and every sector and on every timeframe. Our world needs climate action on all fronts: everything, everywhere, all at once.” 

These stark words are just some of the increasingly strong rhetoric we now hear from climate experts around the world. Yet – despite all the warnings – the situation isn’t improving.  All this has led the team at Clareville PR to consider… does climate change have a communications problem? 

It can be hard for many organisations to know where to begin in terms of tackling the problem – the issue is so vast. Here’s where PR professionals come in – they can distil the mountains of research, projections and reports into essential, easy to digest and relatable facts.  

Another good PR tactic? Sharing best practice. This moves the conversation on from discussing the magnitude of the problem and drills down into tangible examples of sustainability measures in use. This is where the real value lies: highlighting how some organisations are tackling the issue provides positive examples for others to adopt and adapt as they see fit.  

A compelling PR strategy, driven by best practice and case studies, can help us to learn from others and, in turn, drive collective action. At Clareville, we’ve run PR campaigns for sustainability-focused businesses around the world – check out some of our work here. 

Ultimately, it’s up to global leaders to take decisive action. And how will we get to this point? Pressure. If organisations around the world adopt a clear and targeted PR strategy around sustainability, this will help to drive the issue to the top of world leaders’ agenda.