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A master's thesis from Aalborg University
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Thesis 2020 - Climate Change Communication

Authors

;

Term

4. term

Publication year

2020

Submitted on

Abstract

This thesis examines how the younger generation within the European Union communicates climate change and which discourses dominate their communication. Using Norman Fairclough’s critical discourse analysis, it analyzes selected speeches by Greta Thunberg and Naomi Seibt to explore how messages are constructed and the values and strategies they employ. A descriptive survey of young people in the EU complements the discourse analysis by capturing participants’ thoughts, feelings, and opinions about climate change. The study finds that young people address a global audience with emotional and affective language combined with educational elements. A majority view climate change as a serious problem, forming the main discourse, while skeptical voices constitute a counter-discourse. The dominant discourses identified are the responsibility discourse and the apocalyptic discourse. The findings situate youth climate communication within a broader context in which media and everyday conversations are key channels.

Dette speciale undersøger, hvordan den yngre generation i EU kommunikerer om klimaforandringer, og hvilke diskurser der dominerer deres udsagn. Med udgangspunkt i Norman Faircloughs kritiske diskursanalyse analyseres udvalgte taler af Greta Thunberg og Naomi Seibt for at belyse, hvordan budskaber formidles, og hvilke værdier og strategier de trækker på. Derudover gennemføres en deskriptiv spørgeskemaundersøgelse blandt unge i EU for at indsamle viden om deres tanker, følelser og holdninger til klimaforandringer. Analysen viser, at unge kommunikerer til et globalt publikum med affekt og følelser kombineret med oplysende elementer. Flertallet opfatter klimaforandringer som et alvorligt problem, hvilket udgør en hoveddiskurs, mens skeptiske stemmer danner en moddiskurs. De dominerende diskurser i unges klimakommunikation identificeres som ansvarsdiskursen og den apokalyptiske diskurs. Resultaterne placerer unges klimakommunikation i en bredere kontekst, hvor medier og hverdagsdialoger spiller en central rolle.

[This apstract has been generated with the help of AI directly from the project full text]