Colloquium Overview
Climate challenges today demand not only scientific solutions and policy responses, but also effective communication that can inspire understanding, participation and action. Traditional modes of climate communication often fail to resonate with young audiences who are key drivers of behavioural and social change.
The Colloquium on ‘Reimagining Climate Communication: Inspiring Action Through Innovation’ was organised as a student-centred learning platform to explore how climate messages can be transformed through technology, storytelling, art, culture, and design thinking. The event recognised young people as active communicators capable of shaping new climate narratives rooted in lived experience, creativity and civic responsibility.
Aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 13 (Climate Action), SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption) and SDG 16 (Civic Engagement and Governance), the colloquium aimed to build the skills and confidence of students to become informed climate communicators and leaders.
Inaugural Session
Welcome and Opening Remarks
Dr R. Durai Pandian, Principal, Saveetha School of Management
The Principal of Saveetha School of Management welcomed the speakers, students and organisers, emphasising the importance of interdisciplinary learning and socially relevant education. Highlighting the role of management students in addressing contemporary challenges, the address underscored that climate change is not only an environmental issue but also a question of leadership, ethics, governance and responsible decision-making. The principal appreciated the collaboration with CAG and encouraged students to engage actively with the discussions and activities planned for the day.
Introduction to the Theme
Why Climate Communication Matters Today
Ms. S. Saroja
Executive Director, CAG
Ms Saroja set the context for the colloquium by highlighting that climate change is no longer a distant or abstract concern, but a lived reality affecting health, livelihoods, education and social equity. She emphasised that the gap between scientific knowledge and climate action is largely a communication gap. Effective climate communication must therefore be human-centred, culturally grounded and action-oriented.
She emphasised that young people are not merely passive recipients of information, but rather creators and influencers who can shape public narratives. Addressing misinformation, climate fatigue and the need for localised storytelling, she underscored CAG’s experience in using communication to influence behaviour, build environmental awareness and strengthen democratic participation.
Session 1
Youth, Indigenous Knowledge and Local Climate Messaging
Speaker: Ms. Kavitha Muralitharan
Senior bilingual journalist, author, and translator
This session explored how climate change communication can be made accessible, personal and grounded in lived realities, rather than relying on technical jargon or abstract terminology.
Drawing from over two decades of journalistic experience, Ms. Kavitha emphasised that climate change is not a distant or theoretical concept, but an everyday reality already affecting people’s lives through floods, droughts, water scarcity, health impacts and livelihood loss. She highlighted that communities often experience the consequences of climate change long before they encounter the term itself.
Through real-life examples from fisher communities in Ramanathapuram, instances of urban flooding in Chennai and drought-affected regions, the session demonstrated how indigenous knowledge and community memory serve as powerful tools for climate communication. These lived observations, passed down through generations, provide deep insights into environmental change that are often missing from formal reports.
The session further stressed that climate change is not only an environmental issue, but also a gender, social, economic and justice issue. Marginalised groups, particularly women, children and low-income communities, were identified as the first and most severely affected. Women’s unpaid labour, access to water, health, education and personal safety were highlighted as areas deeply impacted by climate stress.
Concluding the session, Ms. Kavitha urged young people to communicate climate change through personal experiences, storytelling and everyday observations, and to engage decision-makers with honesty and responsibility. The session encouraged students to move beyond jargon and adopt clear, relatable narratives that can build awareness, foster empathy and demand accountability.
Session 2
Tech and Digital Storytelling for Climate Awareness
Speaker: Ms. Aparna Ganesan
Journalist, Deutsche Welle (DW)
This session explored how climate stories can be effectively communicated through digital and visual media platforms, with an emphasis on storytelling that prioritises clarity, relevance and ethical representation.
Ms. Aparna highlighted that regardless of the medium, such as articles, videos, podcasts, photo essays or documentaries, the story must always come first. Climate communication, she noted, is defined not by format but by the depth of research, clarity of purpose and relevance to the intended audience.
Using examples from documentary filmmaking, the session demonstrated the value of character-driven and community-driven narratives. Climate change becomes more relatable when conveyed through the lived experiences of individuals such as fishermen, farmers or community volunteers, rather than through data alone.
The session also addressed ethical storytelling, emphasising the importance of maintaining the dignity and integrity of subjects and avoiding sensationalism. Visual framing was highlighted as a key element in building empathy while ensuring responsible representation.
Concluding the session, Ms. Aparna encouraged students to combine lived experiences, visual evidence and expert data with ethical storytelling practices. The session reinforced that digital climate storytelling is not only about technology, but also about empathy, accountability and credibility.
Session 3
Art, Culture and Performance for Climate Action
Speaker: Ms. Subhashini
Independent Consultant - Sustainability consultant and design educator
This session explored the role of art and creative industries in communicating climate change and inspiring climate action through visual, emotional and participatory approaches.
Ms. Subhashini highlighted that climate change is already being experienced in everyday life through extreme weather events, flooding, rising temperatures and changing humidity. Art, she explained, can translate complex climate information into visual and emotional experiences that are easier to understand and engage with.
Drawing from global and Indian examples, the session showcased how climate-related data can be transformed into visual art, installations, murals, soundscapes and performance-based works. These creative forms were shown to be effective in raising awareness, building emotional connection and encouraging behavioural change and policy advocacy.
The session introduced the head, heart, and hand framework, explaining how climate action must progress from awareness to emotional engagement and ultimately to meaningful action. Examples from sustainable product design, waste management initiatives, public installations and traditional art forms illustrate how creativity can influence consumer behaviour, corporate practices and policy decisions.
Concluding the session, Ms. Subhashini encouraged students to recognise the role of creativity in climate action and to use art as a medium for awareness, advocacy and sustainable thinking across sectors.
Session 4
Climate Communication Through Everyday Behaviour and Campus Design
Speaker: Ms. Poornima Jayaraj
Senior Researcher- Environment and Climate Action, CAG
This session explored how individual behaviour and everyday choices play a critical role in responding to climate change, particularly within campus environments and urban settings.
Ms. Poornima noted that climate change is often treated as a buzzword, even though its impacts, such as extreme heat, floods, droughts and water scarcity, are already part of daily life. While climate change has occurred naturally in the past, the current pace of change is largely driven by human activities such as urbanisation, energy-intensive lifestyles and unsustainable development.
Using relatable examples from cities like Chennai and Bengaluru, the session explained how air conditioning use, loss of green cover, real estate expansion and transport choices contribute to rising emissions. Buildings were highlighted as major contributors to global energy use and carbon emissions, while large-scale tree loss reduces the planet’s capacity to absorb carbon dioxide.
The session introduced the concepts of top-down mitigation and bottom-up adaptation, emphasising that individuals can contribute meaningfully through behavioural adaptation. Practical actions such as choosing public transport, reducing energy use, managing food waste, avoiding single-use plastics, segregating waste and conserving water were discussed as simple yet impactful responses.
Concluding the session, the speaker stressed that climate action begins with everyday behaviour. When individual choices become collective practices, they can lead to wider social and environmental change. Students were encouraged to rethink daily habits and recognise their role in building a more sustainable and climate-resilient future.
Student Presentations and Activities
Students’ presenting their findings
The colloquium concluded with student-led presentations and interactive activities, providing a platform for participants to apply the ideas and insights gained from the sessions. A total of seven student presentations (which also included a skit) focused on environmental protection.
The presentations covered creative communication tools and innovative approaches to climate action, reflecting themes discussed throughout the colloquium. One of the highlights was a thematic skit on environmental conservation and saving trees, which effectively conveyed the importance of protecting natural resources through storytelling and performance.
These student-led activities demonstrated how climate communication can be translated into engaging and relatable formats that resonate with wider audiences. The session reinforced the central message of the colloquium that students are not merely recipients of climate information but active climate communicators and change-makers capable of inspiring awareness and action within their campuses and communities.
Conclusion
The Colloquium on ‘Reimagining Climate Communication’ demonstrated that effective climate action depends not only on scientific knowledge and policy frameworks, but also on how climate stories are communicated. By integrating technology, art, culture, lived experience and civic responsibility, climate communication can move beyond awareness to inspire meaningful action.
The event highlighted the importance of empowering young people with the skills and confidence to communicate climate issues in an ethical, creative and responsible manner. Through collaboration between academic institutions and civil society organisations such as CAG, such platforms can nurture the next generation of climate leaders and communicators.
Key Recommendations
- Climate communication initiatives should prioritise lived experiences, indigenous knowledge and local contexts over technical jargon to ensure relevance and inclusivity.
- Educational institutions should actively encourage youth-led climate communication through storytelling, digital media, art and campus-based initiatives.
- Ethical principles must guide climate storytelling, ensuring dignity, accuracy and accountability while avoiding sensationalism.
- Art, culture and creative practices should be integrated into climate communication strategies to enhance emotional engagement and behavioural change.
- Campuses should be used as living laboratories for climate action, demonstrating sustainable practices through everyday behaviour and design.
- Stronger partnerships between educational institutions and civil society organisations are essential to sustain long-term climate communication and action.