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Lessons for Communicating from Climate Change to ClimateDogs
August 2012
Graeme Anderson
Climate Specialist
DPI Farm Services Victoria
DPI Climate extension
•4 yr state govt program
•Climate integrated into industry extension teams
(Grains, Dairy, Horticulture, Meat & Wool)
•Market research & Farmer surveys on climate
and carbon issues
•E-newsletters such as The Break, The Fast
Break, Milking the Weather, ClimateReady
Hort, Carbon Toolkits in Ag,
•Climaterisk website, climate webinars, training
events, case studies
Climate Extension
Capture, package & context key information
•“Timely, Relevant, Accessible” for farmers
•854 face to face sessions delivered to over 22,606
people past 4 years – most via request/referral
Via multiple networks (NRM, VFF, grower groups, etc)
•60% to farmers and public
•25% to service providers
•15% to our own DPI staff
Understanding your audience needs
Survey of 1500 Victorian farmers in 2009 and
1300 farmers in 2011
Human induced?
Growing seasons changing?
Understanding of carbon?
Confusion around climate & carbon issues
Insights into language……….
www.widcorp.com
Capability
Graduate Certificate Climate Change for Primary Industries (Melb Uni)
Comparison of all capability responses (C1-C10) across FSV teams between
2007 & 2010
100.00%
90.00%
80.00%
2007
2010
Response rate
70.00%
60.00%
50.00%
40.00%
30.00%
20.00%
10.00%
0.00%
Agribusiness
Dairy
Horticulture &
Forestry
Grains
Meat & Wool
Sustainable
Landscapes
•1) Staff climate change, seasonal risk and emissions capability in the DPI Farm Services teams has increased
since 2007
•2) Team capabilities are strongest in understanding the impacts of CC as well as the impact of CC on local
farming systems.
Key climate influencers
for Victoria’s rainfall:
• ENSO – Pacific Ocean
moisture source
• IOD – Indian Ocean
moisture source
• SAM – the fronts….
• STR – the highs…..
Key drivers of our seasonal
variability in Victoria – always
have been and always will be!
(BOM, CSIRO reports etc)
ENSO
IOD
STR
SAM
Indy
Enso
Ridgy
The
Climatedogs
Sam
Testing
new tools
Upscaling –
providing
local data and
context.
Acknowledge
local history,
observations
and
experience as
a foundation
“The Break” Survey & effect on decision making?
Belief vs Knowledge……
Percentage of Victorian farmers aware of the climate driver AND
agree it affects their local district seasonal rainfall
2009
2011
ENSO
68%
81%
IOD
37%
50%
STR
6%
17%
SAM
4%
16%
Website, climatedogs, e-newsletters, face to face sessions
Approach
1. Capture & understand key science, policy or practice
information (credible sources)
2. Understand the needs of farmers (market research)
3. Build capability of trusted messengers (extension links in
each industry)
4. Package key information into good products
5. Climate – what’s normal, what isn’t, what’s next?
6. Make information & services readily accessible
7. Ensure information is timely & relevant (currency – for
decision making today)
Carbon & Farming………
“The 5 action areas” for farm carbon & emissions:
1. Energy story (efficiency, production, farm & supply chain)
2. Farm forests (vegetation, C-sink, farm planning, landcare)
3. Soil carbon (soil health, C-sink, organic matter, biota, whc)
4. Nitrogen efficiency (production, leakage, water quality etc)
5. Methane (animal productivity, feed, genetics etc)
(Farmers are doing these for business benefits…. )
Learnings
1. Belief vs Knowledge – what’s more important
for actual practice change?
2. Windows of change – opportunities, timing &
resources will come and go
3. Capability & mainstream – leave a legacy
4. Language & framing will open doors
5. Solutions focus (not just problems) engages,
and is more rewarding!
We all change practices/behaviour when:
1.PROVEN TECHNOLOGY (It Works!) The
technology/practice is known & proven to work
(not a risky experiment)
2.ATTITUDE - I want to! (It makes sense to change
for some benefit I value)
3.CAPACITY – I can! (We have capacity to do it (time,
labour finances, services/providers to make it
happen and maintain it)
“Getting 2 out of 3 of these isn’t enough!”
Thank You
www.dpi.vic.gov.au/climaterisk
Site has climate dog animations, seasonal climate newsletters, carbon toolkits, case studies of
farmers taking action , webinars series etc…….
[email protected]