The Method
For those trained in different disciplines, environmental writing for everyday citizens can be a frustrating challenge, but the Water Words That Work message method makes it much easier to succeed. It’s designed to turn those blank stares into nodding heads — to turn passive “environmental awareness” into environmental action.
Conservation community leaders who try the method report that it is “much more effective than our previous approaches” to environmental writing, and they get a “better response… more questions…” in face-to-face encounters, too.
Why It Works
The basic vision is this: people are much more likely to do the right thing if you ask them the right way.
You may be surprised to learn that in countless public opinion polls, everyday citizens tell researchers that the environment is important to them — and that enough clean water is the most important of all environmental issues. So what explains the gap between environmental awareness and the action you want?
Poor environmental communication accounts for a lot of it. In fact, many communications efforts from nature protection and pollution control experts not only fail to connect with and motivate audience — they backfire. By overloading receptive citizens with cryptic professional jargon, we accidentally sap their confidence that they can make a difference.
The Water Words That Work message method is a four-step process that conservation community leaders like you can use to translate scientific studies, government reports, raw data, and other professional materials into communications that are meaningful and compelling for everyday citizens.
Click the links below (or the menu items on the left) to learn more.The steps are:
