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Summary
The challenge of communicating climate science is now being compounded by changes in the macroeconomy and in finance. If economic and financial challenges continue to undermine social programs in the West, it follows that it will become increasingly difficult to convey the potential impacts of climate change, as the stresses of dealing with daily life may increasingly overwhelm citizens’ ability to not only hear what may occur, but also to proactively adapt to coming socioeconomic, environmental and climatic shifts. If this is the case, what might climate communicators do to be as effective as possible?
Biography
Sanjay Khanna is a writer, journalist, futurist, director and founder of Resilient People, which helps civic organizations, governments, and companies address the psychological, social, and cultural impacts of economic and climate shifts. Nominated as a Transformational Canadian in 2010 in The Globe and Mail and as a TED Fellow in 2009, Sanjay co-founded the world’s first conference exploring how climate change and ecological degradation threaten people’s mental health and well-being – and how social well being can be encouraged as the pressures on humanity multiply. In 2011, Corporate Knights, the magazine for clean capitalism, profiled Sanjay, highlighting his message that social well being is essential to urban sustainability.
Sanjay has synthesized environmental, social, technology, and mental-health trends for the likes of Hewlett-Packard, Nokia Corp., and Yamaha Motor Corp., USA. His perspective on global affairs has been informed by scenario-planning training with senior strategists from oil majors, financial institutions, manufacturers, and the U.S. government.
Sanjay’s articles and op-eds on arts, culture, politics, technology, the economy, the environment, and community resilience have been published by YES!, Nature, Grist, Reuters, Worldchanging, The Tyee, Sun-Times News Group, and Communication Arts. He blogs at Realistic Sanctuary, where he explores the implications of economic instability and climate change. Sanjay holds an MFA in creative nonfiction from the University of British Columbia and a bachelor’s degree in education. He is a member of the International Federation of Journalists and the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada.