Communication and the Environment in the Age of the “Small Planet”

Abstract

This article explores the disjuncture between knowledge about environmental degradation and the social practices in which we engage, and analyzes some of the meanings that we produce/reproduce about the natural world as citizens of the so-called global village. The author shows how the dominant tendency of these understandings is to reinforce the complexity of our social practices, thereby further obfuscating the implications of our actions and making it all the more difficult for individuals to assume responsibility for our choices. And she argues that while contemporary technologies offer some "ambivalence" that allows for alternative practices, we must also recognize the ways in which our experiences in a high-tech world present particular challenges to mobilization on environmental issues.Résumé : Cet article examine la contradiction entre ce que nous savons de la dégra-dation environnementale et les pratiques quotidiennes dans lesquelles nous sommes impliqués. Il analyse également quelques unes des compréhensions que nous développons et reproduisons sur la nature en tant que citoyens du « village global ». L'auteur démontre comment ces nouvelles compréhensions se combinent avec des pratiques sociales de plus en plus complexes pour produire une situation face à laquelle il est très difficile pour les humains d'assumer la responsabilité de leurs choix. Elle propose que même si les technologies contemporaines nous offrent des possibilités pour des pratiques progressistes, on doit reconnaître combien nos expériences dans un monde technologique présentent des défis particuliers pour notre mobilisation en ce qui concerne les problèmes environnementaux.

Red, white and green: environmental communication on wine bottle labels from New York's Hudson River Region

“…At wineries in particular, vintners are finding that consumers are becoming more informed regarding sustainable food production and, as a result, tend to support green initiatives and practices (Asimov, 2019a;Benmarl, 2020;Brotherhood, 2019;Bryant, 2007;Camilleri, 2008a;Peterson et al, 2019;Visconti, 2010;Wines Vines Analytics, 2020). "Customers are demanding environmental performance information and the wine industry must meet these demands and present its credentials [as] more consumers now include environmental criteria in product selection" (South Australian Wine and Brandy Industry Association, 2002, p. 5).…”

Environmental Narratives and Media Conventions: Strategic Frames and Value-Based Argument

“…The two television specials represent more than the debate over preservation or conservation of our rivers; their structure reflects a conventionalised pattern of popular media coverage of environmental issues. Recent scholarship reaffirms that media conventions limit attention to, and the public's understanding of, the environmental story (Alexander, 2002;Carvalho, 2005;Bryant, 2007;Matthews, 2007). Reporting the charges and counter-charges of conflicting interest groups and the construction of competing science-and value-based frames more generally characterises popular media coverage of the environmental debate -for example, the discourse surrounding the fate of forests or the causes of global warming.…”