Presentation 4: Communicating with Interface Residents and Leaders Overview

Outline Why bother How to communicate effectively Consider the sender Engage the audience Consider the message Deal with misconceptions Know the audience Reduce conflict Market ideas Plan programs Put it all together

Why bother? Public agencies need public support Resource management is more successful with public support Public support is based on understanding resource goals and techniques Understanding is based on communication

Challenges in the interface Audiences are more varied Issues may be contentious Audiences may not have experience or background knowledge Issues involve many aspects All this makes communication challenging!

How to communicate effectively

What is communication? Communication is the successful transmission of thoughts or ideas, without significant distortion, so that understanding is achieved. This requires  effective transmission  reception  input into mental structures

Common barriers to effectiveness Transmission  Sender not credible or trustworthy Reception  Message lacks clarity (language or speed)  Receiver has experience, prior knowledge  Receiver beliefs and attitudes conflict Input to mental structures  Message is irrelevant  Receiver is not listening

Easy strategies to improve communication Choose an appropriate, well respected authority on topic as “sender” Create a message that is easy to understand; use appropriate language Make the receiver comfortable

Consider the sender

If we don’t communicate … Bernhard Fernow, founding figure in American forestry and Dean of Cornell’s Forestry School Started clearing and burning to create a demonstration forest in Adirondacks, 1899 Neighbors complained Governor vetoed authorization; Cornell’s College of Forestry ceased to exist

But when we do… USFWS biologists joined Mississippi barge captains to better understand when and why they tie up to islands, damaging nesting habitat. Working together, they designed and erected concrete pilings for emergency stops.

Good communicators Trustworthy Engaging Care about what the audience cares about Accessible Elementary students watch their computer screen to learn about this turtle

Earning trust Agency materials should  make a point of acknowledging and addressing questions and complaints  demonstrate how prior activity supports a partnership  offer to continue the conversation Consider using a partner that is trusted

Engage the Audience

Important techniques, but harder to accomplish Avoid saying what audience already knows Relate to what audience cares about and is interested in Deliver message through medium that audience uses And so we need to understand the audience!

By understanding the audience, we can make sure… Sender is appropriate, well respectedMessage is clear, not garbledMessage is meaningful and relevantInformation builds on what is knowMisunderstandings are correctedThe right audience is targeted

Using values For people to do the hard work of building a mental model out of your information, they need to know the information will be relevant, meaningful, useful. Connect your message to things they care about!

Why engagement? Some people want straight, undiluted information Others need to be entertained Most do not want to be told what to do, even though you want to tell them! Try to engage audiences in learning

Engaging youth Youth audiences can be engaged by an exercise or worksheet. Discovering, matching, naming, counting, and competing with other groups can be effective.

Engaging adults Adult audiences may respond well to questions that get them to think and share their ideas. The right series of questions can lead the audience to realizing new ideas, without you telling them!

Stories and examples  Provide concrete imagery  Explain how to do a task  Explain how to overcome problems  Demonstrate that real people can do it Extremely helpful elements of effective communication

Don’t preach People don’t like being told what to do  “You should …” People respond to threats by retreating or defending themselves  “If you don’t do … bad things will happen” Guilt is not a motivator for most They need to figure out the right answer They need to figure out the right answer

Consider the message

Language differences Technical jargon may be a barrier to your audience Ask them what they understand Translate materials to their language

The language of conservation Public opinion research suggests that some phrases resonate better than others and are better at communicating a conservation message Not “endangered species”But “wildlife protection” But “natural areas” But “agreement” Not “open space” Not “easement”

Threat and fear can backfire Make sure the message includes how to prevent the problem with reasonable easy steps. Don’t paralyze people with guilt or fear.

Deal with Misconceptions When a deeply held notion prevents someone from understanding your message

A communication gap? Keep your cats indoors ● My cats don’t kill birds Create defensible space ● I like my trees nearby Test your home for radon ● Natural things can’t hurt Clearcuts give seedlings ● Clearcuts destroy forests more sunshine

People may not understand They don’t share your background They have made sense out of experiences That shapes how they accept new information Their understanding is different from yours! It depends on what they know and how they think

Underlying the assumptions may be misconceptions That my cat deserves to go outside That the goal of a defensible space is keeping fire away from a home Natural is good; synthetic is badspace

A strategy 1. Listen to questions and explore how people perceive the issue 2. When you understand the misconception, acknowledge it 3. Explain why it is insufficient 4. Explain your information and message 5. Show how it is more sufficient at explaining the issue

“I know you take good care of your cat – does it like to pounce on toys? Might it pounce on anything that moves?” “Fires jump large distances – and they move quickly across the forest. By removing nearby fuels you can shorten the time the fire is close to your home and reduce the chance that the house will ignite from the heat.” “A variety of natural things are dangerous to humans, from poison ivy to arsenic. Radon is found in this part of the country. It emits radiation.”

Know the Audience

What do you know? Who is your audience? What do they care about? What do they already know about interface issues? What values are important? Where do they go for information? Who do they trust?

What do they care about? 1. Ask them 2. Check the literature 3. Some things are universal:  Children, health, quality family time 4. Some things are cultural:  Privacy, community, convenience, future, frugality 5. Community leaders may have concerns:  Fiscal responsibility, election, media coverage

A blooper SAF Chapter wanted to distribute new video on forestry careers to teachers Invited 100 teachers to dinner and program 4 came Letters went to 4 th grade teachers, when 5 th grade curriculum addresses local resources and economics Initial conversation with “audience” could have ensured invitations went to the right teachers

Techniques to gather data ConservationExerciseInterviewsFocus groupsObservationsSurveys

Reduce conflict

What causes conflict?

Sources of conflicts People don’t understand  Misconceptions  Language barriers People aren’t listening People have different opinions People have different interests People are afraid

If people don’t understand Engage them in conversation  Discover the source of the misunderstanding  Use a common language  Allow them to express fears and concerns  Listen  Take on an attitude of solving this problem together

If people aren’t listening Explore their existing understandings Ask about constraints and barriers Explore their attitudes and opinions Win their trust Use their interests to win their attention

If opinions are different Identify the underlying causes of the disagreement Identify the common ground Use that common vision to promote continued discussions Search for new solutions that accommodate multiple perspectives

If interests are different Develop a strategy to collect more data they will all trust= Joint Fact Finding Identify where people agree information is conflicting Identify where people agree that information is lacking Identify what all parties agree on

Strategies for natural resource professionals Understand the conflict  Work hard to understand all perspectives  Explore the underlying interests Identify common ground  On what things do all parties agree. Start there.

Your role What is the best role for you and your agency?  Can you become helpful to all sides?  Can you conduct a fact-finding activity to provide information that all parties trust? Do you need help?  An outside negotiator may be needed.

What can you do? Keep communication going  Talk to leaders of each party to make sure everyone knows what is going on  Be a good listener Learn where compromise is possible  Know where your agency can bend and where a rule is firm

Conflict in the Florida Keys Community wanted a new school; the agency opposed the site New leader wrote editorials in the paper, joined and spoke to the Chamber of Commerce, established a Friends group – built relationships

The advantages Conflict is an opportunity to change the system to better meet the needs allows new concerns to be heard brings new ideas to the table builds partnerships clarifies goals and missions addresses inequalities

Market Ideas

The challenge Interface issues require citizen action to resolve  wildfire, water and energy conservation, exotic plants, waste management, climate change, etc. Citizens may be concerned but not knowledgeable about what to do Action is non-existent, not coordinated, or not effective

What can help? Education can help lay a foundation of greater awareness and knowledge Persuasive communication campaigns can prompt action Social marketing strategies can reduce barriers, change perceptions, build a new social norm

When and wherefore When agencies work within their mandate – protect endangered species, provide clean water, and When the solution is not controversial, or When the community agrees to the solution Social marketing strategies may be useful!

Social marketing Using product-marketing strategies to promote ideas like health and conservation Influencing a target audience to voluntarily accept, reject, or modify an action For the benefit of individuals, groups, or society as a whole

Common Examples Drunk driving Drug usage Smoking HIV/AIDS Child immunization

Engine Idling Idling cars at bus stops and schools create air pollution Face-to-face conversations on-site provided information cards and asked people to participate  Put a sticker on your window  Turn your engine off

Be Bear Aware Increasing knowledge and awareness Changing behavior  Storing and putting out trash for pickup Better garbage cans  Storing pet food  Fencing

What helps you change a behavior? If others do it too? If you have enough information? If someone asks you to? If you know your effort will be effective? If you care about it? Which factors are more important and does that change with the behavior?

So what matters? What people know about behavior & consequences How they feel about behavior & consequences What “important others” think about the behavior and how much they matter Perceptions of whether I can do it, and do it well enough Information Opinion Leaders Stories Models Prompts Interaction with Others

The process Select behavior and audience Understand barriers and attitudes Develop messages and reduce barriers Pilot test messages Implement and monitor With community participation

Understand the barriers Work to overcome them Provide presentation, fact sheet or news article to change misconceptions. Provide tool exchange to provide resources Find out what barriers prevent the behavior Misconception?Resources?

Use all the good reasons One reason to change a behavior is not better than others Different people care about different reasons Plant native plants: Good for hummingbirds, good for water quality, good for ecosystem, good for family, pretty to look at …

Modeling is effective Models help people  Know that others are doing the behavior  See how the behavior could be done  Realize the results Use demonstration areas, testimonials, case studies, and examples to model new ideas

Provide a prompt If people understand the issue and want to make a change, but just forget Provide a short phrase at the point where they need the reminder  Stickers  Signs  Magnets

Ask for commitment People who make a commitment to take an action are more likely to do so. They need to understand why and agree that it is worth doing. Provide information and then ask for their participation!

Plan programs

Programs Could be individual presentations or meetings Could be a regional campaign of presentations, brochures, billboards, exhibits, or demonstrations that all lead to a goal Both take planning

A program is… An effort to disseminate information to the public during a specific time Provides people with informational and motivational messages about an issue Can stimulate people to take action

Components of a Program AssessmentAudienceGoal and objectivesMessage and toolsPlanImplementMonitor and improve

Festivals Riverlink uses a downtown fountain in Asheville NC to give raft rides for children while parents pick up information about river health and quality.

Media event TNC invited local TV and newspaper journalists to a prescribed fire, gave them suits, and provided information.

Roadside signs Drivers are reminded of land managed with prescribed fire, even after the area was burned.

Put it all together

Practice good communication Build understanding Reduce conflict Engage community members Convey trust and relevant expertise Use appropriate language Use relevant examples Listen and respond to misconceptions

Summary Start by thinking about your situation, the audience, and the purpose of the program Build effective partnerships and identify ways for each to have a role in the program Pilot test to make your program effective

Credits Slide 2: USDA APHIS PPQ Archives, Slide 3: Slide 4, 5, 14: Shruti Agrawal Slides 6, 8, 9, 20, 21, 38: Larry Korhnak Slide 10: Library of Congress Slide 11: J. Madden Slide 12: M. Haddon

Credits, con’t Slide 13: Washington State University Slide 19: Greg Traymar Slide 23: Slide 27: US Army Corps of Engineers Slide 30: Eagle Vision Communication Slide 55: Kotler, Roberto, and Lee Social marketing: Improving the quality of life. Thousand Oaks CA: Sage Publications.

Credits, con’t Slide 38, 39, 42, 43, 50: Larry Korhnak Slide 41: Solutions Coaching and Consulting website Slide 44: University of Peace website Slide 49: Slide 51: Worldways social marketing Slide 52: Stan Kirkland, FWCC Slide 56: AIDS Project Los Angeles

Credits, con’t Slide 57: Environment Canada Slide 58: Be Bear Aware Campaigns (Nat’l and FL) Slide 61, 63, 64, 72, 73: Martha Monroe Slide 65: Prince Edwards Island Campaign Slide 71: Riverlink