"There is no Planet B": Why science communication supports society in times of polycrises

The climate crisis is a challenge of planetary proportions that requires a rapid response at all levels. However, the necessary momentum can only be maintained if all parts of society not only understand the science behind it, but also trust scientists. Recent developments in the political and public sphere have led to highly polarized debates on social media, elevated levels of frustration, anxiety about the sum of global crises, and even hate speech and threats against scientists. New strategies in science communication are key to building a society that is resilient to global crises.

Astronomers for Planet Earth (A4E) is an international grassroots movement of astronomy educators, amateurs, and scientists, working to address the climate crisis from an astronomical perspective.

How can astronomers and planetary scientists do so effectively? By stretching the minds and imaginations of the public, we evoke fascination and awe. We can turn the astronomical perspective inwards, back to Earth, and focus the public on the uniqueness, wonder, and fragility of life on our only home — and the critical need to protect it. In this presentation, we will introduce A4E and its outreach activities, which include short professionally produced films and public engagement activities.

Our short films can be seen on both Vimeo and YouTube and are meant to inform and inspire the audience. The intention behind the short film format is to be easily shared via social media, email, and even in classrooms. The films themselves have informative astronomical content with messages of hope and empathy so that the audience walks away with an intrinsic motivation for action.

An example of a public-engagement project is an audio-visual astronomy concert hosted by churches. "There is no Planet B" is the emotional framework within which we take a scientific journey from the beginnings of the universe to the formation of the planets, and ultimately, to the sprawling diversity of life on Earth that is yet unmatched in our cosmological discoveries. Impressive videos, room-filling light design, rousing organ music, and popular science keynote speeches flow into each other to create an immersive environment filled with inspiring “wow” moments.

These outreach projects have the same goal – to move the audience emotionally in a way that only astronomy can do, so that they walk away feeling motivated to care for the delicate web of life unique to our planet. These projects allow people to come together, even those with opposing views. Astronomy offers breathtaking images to marvel at as well as unrivaled success stories of global collaboration, pushing the boundaries of human achievement. We use astronomy to build trust in science and provide guidance when the scale and complexity of climate change is overwhelming. In this talk, we will share ideas on how to engage audiences constructively with critical issues such as climate change.

We also want to discuss the challenges and rewards that we have been facing during this interdisciplinary project, which extends to the larger context of science communication as well. This pursuit takes time, commitment, and skill in public engagement. We are aware that science communication is often seen as something in addition to demanding research activities. We argue that this pursuit is worth the effort because scientists can provide guidance where science literacy is lacking, and that there is an institutional need to support these efforts.

We acknowledge that those with the time to commit to this cause are often in positions of privilege in their careers and have relative financial stability, so that the voices most often heard do not necessarily reflect the communities most affected by the climate crisis already.

At A4E we have evaluated our outreach efforts, and we know we can do better. While the short films are easily shareable, we need a better strategic marketing and public relations campaign to gain larger audiences and have far-reaching digital engagement. Our astronomy concerts have so far mainly reached an academic audience. In the future, we want to center cultural and socioeconomic diversity in all our outreach efforts so that our message better serves the global community. We also want to include early-career scientists in our efforts so that they may gain needed experience in communicating and broaden the representation within our own community.