Research from Framing Climate Justice says that effective climate storytelling should emphasize solidarity with those most affected by climate change, not rely too much on emergency framing, appeal to self-direction while discussing affected groups’ involvement and introduce economic design into frames by using metaphors. 

Their research has established that most people are aware of the severity of climate change. Most people also agree that the current system is not working, that corporations and governments are most responsible for climate change and that the people who are least responsible suffer the most. 

Four common climate narrative frames are emergency, responsibility, hope and solidarity. 

• The emergency frame: An emergency frame emphasizes the urgency of the climate crisis. It is often accompanied by words like “disaster” or “catastrophic.” Be careful with this type of framing– Framing Climate Justice’s research shows that people presented with emergency frames are more likely to say that climate change does not impact existing social injustices. It also makes it more difficult for citizen-led change, as it leads to more support for top-down solutions instead (ex. scientists taking charge of the movement while others stand back).
• The responsibility frame: A responsibility frame assigns accountability. This frame might be applied to an article on an oil company’s environmental impact or a city council’s failure to adopt environmentally progressive policies. It also tells us that we all have a responsibility to the planet and to each other. 
• The hope frame: This frame affirms that taking positive climate action will make a difference, and that it is possible for humanity to mitigate and adapt to climate change. 
• The solidarity frame: According to Framing Climate Justice, solidarity frames inspired the most hope for solutions within the next 20 years and led to most people agreeing that people impacted by climate change should play a bigger role in developing solutions. 

We can use framing to tell positive and solutions-oriented climate stories. Audiences may experience climate fatigue, or burnout from constantly hearing negative climate news on a large scale. This may cause them to tune out, rather than absorb news that seems frightening and hopeless. That’s why choosing the proper frame is so important. 

Consider the story you’re trying to tell and the reaction you hope to invoke. What audiences are you trying to reach? What do segmentation studies tell us about how that group views climate change?