- The Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge organized yesterday the 17th cycle #Biodirectos, dedicated to reflect on denialism versus climate realism.
- The third vice-president and minister for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, Teresa Ribera, inaugurated this new issue, in which she stressed that “the data confirming climate change is an indisputable reality, it is not something that can be debated or contested”.
- All the participants who took part in the meeting agreed on the importance of communication work to combat negationist, retardist and obstructionist messages and to raise public awareness.
The Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO) organized yesterday, coinciding with the celebration of the International Day for Biological Diversity, the seventeenth installment of the #Biodirectos series, a series of online meetings, broadcast live and simultaneously on the social networks X, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube.
This #Biodirectos has allowed us to share, debate and reflect on the dangers of denialism and its effects on the information provided by the scientific community regarding the consequences of not acting on climate change. In recent years there has been an increase in the intentional use of disinformation and denialist discourses that seek to erode confidence in the data provided by science. This situation poses a threat to furthering the ecological transition, which requires urgent and decisive action.
The meeting was inaugurated by Teresa Ribera, third vice-president and minister for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, who stressed that “in the face of the need to act against climate change, there is a growing response that denies reality, denies data and science or seeks to delay collective action”. However, failure to act comes at a high cost and may lead us to be late in tackling this global challenge, which “will mean more costs, more risks and fewer opportunities to continue building a better future”.
“We must act and identify what are the reasons behind these behaviors that delay climate action, which make it more difficult for administrations to respond,” Ribera said. In this context, he assured that communication is key to raise public awareness and denounced the lack of respect, attacks and attitudes of harassment and violence towards those who communicate about the green agenda.
Ribera concluded by stating that “it is essential to act and we must do so as soon as possible. The viability of our companies and our industry, our comfort and safety are at stake”.
Along these lines, the World Economic Forum warns in its Global Risks Report 2024 that misinformation and disinformation are already some of the greatest near-term risks to global security and sustainable development. Therefore, just as formulas and tools are being sought to fight the climate crisis, in parallel there is the fundamental task of providing citizens with arguments so that they can effectively refute those who deny or play down the importance of the climate crisis.
Experts in the study and fight against climate disinformation, who have offered their vision and advice on how to act against denialism and how to distinguish between data based on real and truthful information, and information without scientific basis, took part in the conference. Specifically, Roberto L. Barbeito, professor of sociology at the Euro-Mediterranean Observatory of Democracy and Public Space of the Rey Juan Carlos University; Astrid Wagner, senior scientist and vice-rector of the Institute of Philosophy of the CSIC; Elena Lázaro, coordinator of the Scientific Culture and Innovation Unit of the University of Cordoba; and María Eugenia González, senior scientist at the Carlos III Institute of Health, participated.
During the meeting, all the participants agreed on the essential work that must be done in the field of communication to combat negationist, retardist and obstructionist messages. They also agreed on the importance of raising public awareness by providing tools to combat climate denialism, conveying truthful information and clear arguments, based on science, simple to replicate and far from catastrophism.
#BIODIRECTOS OF THE BIODIVERSITY FOUNDATION
The #Biodirectos are live meetings broadcast through social networks, organized by the Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge with the aim of reflecting on the need to commit to a more sustainable social and economic model, respectful of nature, resilient and with low carbon emissions and to make visible, in short, the opportunities offered by green recovery and ecological transition. You can rewatch all 17 editions of #Biodirectos at this link.
This #Biodirectos reinforces the arguments collected in the magazine Ambienta, published by the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, which has dedicated one of its latest issues to denialism.
