Shaping social norms – can ‘community’ act as an instrument of change to encourage environmental citizenship?

It's Friday afternoon and I'm having an internal debate with myself (note to self: get out more) about what it is exactly that I'm trying to achieve with my research, and whilst it might not seem like much of an output at the moment, here are a few bullet points briefly summarising my thoughts:

Shaping social norms – can ‘community’ act as an instrument of change to encourage environmental citizenship?

• Individuals exist within multiple instances and elements of ‘community’ across multiple social networks - e.g. work, family, clubs, neighbourhood associations etc...
• bonding and bridging social capital within those communities can act as a means of encouraging change
• power within the community can be utilised (consciously or sub-consciously) as a means of top-down distilling/encouraging of adoption of new social norms (think of Scandinavian countries…)
• can combine to encourage pro-environmental behavioural change across all sectors of society including Defra's ‘honestly disengaged’ through internalising of new social norms as individuals strive to conform...

Will I still think this next week? Will I still be sat at my desk talking to myself?

Cold comfort: the psychology of climate denial

An interesting, small piece on some of the many reasons why climate change denial is apparently on the increase. It boils down to it being easier to have your head in the sand (even if that sand is getting hotter...) rather than face up to the reality of climate change.

In light of the CRU email hacking incident that has been seized upon by sceptics as 'proof' of a climate change conspiracy, combined with the almost inevitable disappointment that COP15 in Copenhagen is likely to be I wonder if 'community' really tackle can climate change, whether it is some localised form of it or the global 'community of nations'? The more I read at present the more I think that stronger Government regulation to encourage/enforce low carbon lifestyles is where we're heading unless there is some dramatic change in how people respond to climate change as an issue; but whether that will happen as a reactive rather than proactive response to climate change remains to be seen.

Perhaps what is needed instead is a complete change in how the issue is framed, and move away almost entirely from focussing on the apocalyptic imagery and scenarios of climate change of the 'we must avoid 2C rise in temperatures or we're doomed' and instead start presenting more positive imaging of how peoples local communities / counties / regions /countries / hemispheres / whatever may look in a low-carbon future...I know I'm getting a bit tired of so much negative imagery...

Cold comfort: the psychology of climate denial