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barbie
Joined: Oct 2, 2005
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how to battle apathy
January 8, 2006 - 03:28 AM
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hello,
i'm a high school student running a 'green team' at my school, a club committed to saving the environment in my community. one of the main problems we run into is apathy of the students [and, sadly, many teachers as well]. we've tried fighting it by "green fact of the week" campaign - weekly announcements over the PA system of terrifying statistics and predictions of the end of the world as we know it. i don't feel that it is very effective, but every time we come up with a way to raise the awareness of thr need to conserve the environment, it is always based on fear.
i'm not a psychologist, but i don't feel too good about that. shouldn't people want to do something because they really want to do it, as opposed to being scared into the action?
please share your thoughts, as well as any ideas you might have about how to battle apathy in other ways.
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Robert Margolis
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Must be part of their reality
January 8, 2006 - 08:54 AM
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Often people get involved with their own problems and have trouble getting their arms around bigger issues. If it helps, the US civil rights movement involved folks who were directly being discriminated against (i.e., it was something that they directly benefitted from). The college kids protesting Vietnam were the ones of service age.
You are correct about the use of fear. So many times, environmental groups said the sky would fall and it didn't. Not that there are not serious problems, but people will not pay attention if they think someone is whipping up fear unneccessarily or for another purpose.
If you find issues that directly affect the students and actions that they can directly benefit from, they will listen. Good luck with your project.
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Ed Bone
Joined: Dec 9, 2005
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Re: how to battle apathy
January 9, 2006 - 01:35 AM
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i think very usefull and productive suggestions are already
made.
just some ideas :
I'd like to say that I would even make one more step backwards and get an idea about how the relation of the students towards nature really is .
do they even recognize how much we depend on it ?
or like a kind of reversal of your idea :
In how far do they benefit positivly from their environment ?
etc .
I don't know exactly how your terrifing facts of the week were made up , but probably the reaction of some the students was like :
well , why should it bother me ? what has it got to do with me ?
maybe if you show them how much they are themselves in need of a intact environment and then give an impression how everything is endangered (by ourselves ) they will start to care .I guess you already do that ....
my respect for your engagement and i wish you better success in the near future !
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Rerenga
Joined: Feb 3, 2005
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Re: how to battle apathy
January 9, 2006 - 04:26 AM
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What about doing a survey? I don't mean this as a solution but possibly a start to one.
Questions like:
"What is an enviromental issue that you are aware of that could have an impact on you and your family? On your future?"
"If you were to help in saving our enviroment, what are the things you would do?"
"Do you think there is an enviromental issue?"
"What motivates you?"
"What are you passionate about?"
Okay, I can imagine myself answering those questions in a sarcastic manner...but a survey is a way where you find out what the participants are interested in, what they're passionate about, what motivates them.
Depending on what you put to them, you can ask their opinion on what you can do to help get your message across to them in a way that they can relate to.
And then you can create a more suitable strategy.
You can even ask if what you were doing before (the "green fact of the week" campaign) was working or not, and why? It's always good to get feedback.
- Rerenga
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