http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20181115-why-climate-change-photography-needs-a-new-look
This article by Diego Ortiz, was very eye-opening regarding the psychology behind how people view climate change. Visuals play a huge role in this, and Ortiz emphasizes this notion in his article. Much of a person’s early exposure to climate change has been through stock images showcasing pollution excreted into the air, or sob stories about losing the polar bears or sea levels rising because of melting ice caps. Although these are viable issues and ones with real-world consequences; for many, these are issues they can simply avoid, as they don’t see these issues immediately affecting them, so why take immediate action or care. Why care about those polar bears, animals i’ve never seen before, that are dying, in a place, I’ll never see. Why care about the rising sea levels, when I live in a state in the center of the country, lacking access to the coast. It isn’t until we humanize the visuals, and bring visuals that don’t seem too far from reality, where people react and new-found climate change care is conveyed. This is the sad reality of the climate change situation, where we need to show humans dealing with bleak situations before people notice and are aware of the true dangers, but at least we are aware of this and can start to educate people about climate change in a more empathetic manner.