Tag: Issue Attention Cycle

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Australia

September 14, 1991 – the Green Wave has receded….

Thirty four years ago, on this day, September 14th, 1991,

“In an article in the Good Weekend of September 14, Deirdre Macken produced much evidence from market research that public concern about the environment, and the public’s willingness to buy eco-friendly products, had subsided markedly since their surge in 1989.”

Ross Gittins

The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was 356ppm. As of 2025, when this post was published, it is 430ppm. This matters because the more carbon dioxide in the air, the more heat gets trapped. The more heat, the more extreme weather events. You can make it more complicated than that if you want, but really, it’s not. Fwiw, I have a tattoo of the Keeling Curve on my left forearm.

The broader context was that the first wave of global eco-concern (1969 to 1972 or so) had given us UNEP and also the “issue-attention cycle”.

The specific context was that we were near/at the end of the public interest in/concern about the greenhouse effect etc. The media was covering it less – no new angles to be had.  These things then enter a kind of death-spiral.   

What I think we can learn from this – creating organisations that can cope with this death-spiral, this “abeyance” is really tough. They become bureaucratic, soulless grant-grubbers, or they wink out of existence. There oughta be a third way…

What happened next

“The climate” did not burst back onto the scene in a big way until the end of 2006.  And then followed the pattern – by 2010 everyone was exhausted. But the 2010 election, and Prime Minister Gillard’s reliance on Independents and Greens, kept the policy window open…

What do you think? Does this pass the ‘so what?’ threshold? Have I got facts wrong? Interpretation wrong? Please do comment on this post, unless you are a denialist, obvs.

Also on this day: 

September 14, 1993 – scientists suffer backlash (not outa thin air though)

September 14, 1994 – Business told to brace for climate regulation/tax (which it then handily defeats) – All Our Yesterdays

September 14, 2004 – Blair “shocked” by scientists warnings – “time is running out for tackling climate change”

Categories
Activism

January 2, 2008 – tiresome (but sound) “Green Fatigue” warning is made.

Fifteen years ago, on this day, January 8 2008, an article appeared on the IEMA website (the article now seems to be missing) under the headline Green Fatigue and Ambivalence in an Overloaded World?

“Analysts say few people are taking action to deal with the threat of climate change, although over the past 12 months the vast majority have come to accept that it poses a real threat to the world. Opinion polls reveal much confusion among the public about what Britain should do to combat the problem. A backlash is now a real threat, said Phil Downing, head of environmental research for Ipsos Mori. ‘There’s cynicism because on the one hand we’re being told [the problem] is very serious and on the other hand we’re building runways, mining Alaskan oil; there’s a lot going on that appears to be heading in the opposite direction.’

http://oldsite.iema.net/news?search_api_views_fulltext=&page=128

The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was roughly 385.7ppm. As of 2023 it is 417ppm. .

The context was that for the previous year and a half, basically since “An Inconvenient Truth” and Climate Camp and so on, the Western media had been having one of its periodic ‘gosh, let’s pretend to care about climate change’, periods, without actually naming any of the root causes because that would be awkward for our owners and advertisers’ waves.  And, sure as night follows day, about 12 to 15 months in the “fatigue” pieces start to be written…

What I think we can learn from this

The fatigue is ‘real’, but nobody (to my knowledge) ever says

“gee, it might be that if you present scary information to people and tell  them it is their fault, but don’t make it easier for them to find other like-minded people so they can form into sustained and sustainable social movement organisations, that help them make sense of the world and channel that anger, grief and fear into political action, then, you know, after a while, people who are busy, depressed, defeated will in fact stop paying attention to bulletins from the real world. Go figure.”

What happened next

The wave peaked and crashed, as it has done so before (Downs, 1972). By early 2010, the numbers of articles about – and protest activity about – climate change had dropped right off. It would come back in 2018. And then be reduced again by 2022…

See also

AOY post June 26, 1991 “environment is not flavor of the month any more”

What do you think? Does this pass the ‘so what?’ threshold? Have I got facts wrong? Interpretation wrong?  Do comment on this post.

References

Downs, A. (1972) Up and Down with Ecology: The “Issue Attention Cycle The National Interest.

Categories
Australia

“Greenhouse Effect worries?” That’s sooo 1989… Sept 14, 1991. #auspol

On this day, September 14, 1991 according to a later article by Ross Gittins (Australian economics journalist) published in the Australian “Good Weekend” supplement.

“Deirdre Macken produced much evidence from market research that public concern about the environment, and the public’s willingness to buy eco-friendly products, had subsided markedly since their surge in 1989.”

Turns out it was all a fad.

And the fad came and went, until finally, in about 2021, reality came a knocking so loud she could no longer be ignored, and the issue attention cycle was – sort of – overcome…

On this day the PPM was

Now it is 420ish- but see here for the latest.

Why this matters. 

People care, but unless that care is harnessed, protected, nurtured, then the buying of stuff (and giving of speeches) decays quickly. And it is very very rare for care to be harnessed, protected, nurtured.

What happened next?

We kept on buying stuff, including the fine words of politicians, and never trying to see the truth.