Enhancing Weather Communication: The Power of Live Streaming and Collaboration

In today's digital landscape, video communication has emerged as a powerful tool for bridging the gap between scientific expertise and public understanding. Social media platforms like YouTube, with their vast popularity, offer unique reach and engagement opportunities. However, traditional weather-related videos often fall short in explaining the nuances of forecasts and the inherent uncertainty associated with them. 

LaMMA, the public meteorological service of the Tuscany Region in Italy, has recognized this gap and taken a proactive approach to addressing it. Since 2020, LaMMA has increased video production (long and short videos) and have been hosting live streaming sessions directly from its weather room, known as LaMMA-Live. Inspired by the Met Office's popular weather briefings, LaMMA-Live goes beyond simply presenting forecasts. LaMMA-Live dedicates each Friday at 3:30 PM to delve into the intricacies of weather forecasting, particularly the concept of forecast uncertainty. Experts explain probabilistic forecasts and ensemble models to illustrate the complexity and inherent variability of weather predictions. This emphasis on uncertainty is especially crucial during severe weather events when clear communication of potential impacts is paramount. The sessions also serve as a platform to present climatological data and trends, fostering understanding of climate change at both global and local scales. LaMMA-Live not only informs but also fosters a connection with the audience. The live format featuring a communicator and a forecaster, with its immediacy and interactive nature, allows for a more engaging and personalized experience. Viewers can pose questions in real-time, encouraging dialogue and building trust between LaMMA's experts and the public. In addition, LaMMA Live streams on YouTube are very often picked up by online national newspapers and embedded in the body of a weather-related news article. In this way, the number of users reached is also significantly expanded.   In the last three years LaMMA weather forecasters have seen a significant uptick in interview requests from Italian national TV channels (Rai and Mediaset) likely due in part to the increased visibility gained through video streaming.

The growth of video communication has also transformed the way LaMMA's forecasting and communication teams collaborate. By leveraging online collaborative tools like Canva for Teams, the team has streamlined content production, significantly increasing the quantity and quality of weather and climate information products.

LaMMA's experience with video making and collaborative content production tools demonstrates the effectiveness of video communication in enhancing weather communication, particularly in conveying forecast uncertainty. By embracing the power of live streaming, interactive engagement, and collaborative workflows, evens a regional service like LaMMA is not only disseminating critical weather information but also fostering trust, transparency, and a deeper public appreciation for the science behind weather forecasting.