Invisible audiences, unlikely educational spaces: The “descarboniza! que non é pouco…” project as education for climate change

Abstract

The current climate emergency situation requires a social agenda which accompanies and promotes the transition to low-carbon societies. In such a transformation, Education and Environmental Communication have proved essential. In this context, the research group in Social Pedagogy and Environmental Education (SEPA-Interea), from the Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, has been developing -for over a decade now- a line of research under the acronym RESCLIMA, focusing on the analysis of how citizens perceive Climate Change (CC) and what kinds of socioeducational initiatives foster the interpretation and implementation of actions which contribute to turning climate change into an essential element in the design of any public agenda. With the goal of transferring this knowledge to society, the academic year 2015-2016 saw the start of a educational experience called “Descarboniza! Que non é pouco” [Decarbonise! It's no small feat]. This initiative was specifically designed and targeted at an adult audience, as this was identified as the most influential age group as far as constructing the social relevance of CC is concerned. As a participatory action research process, the project evolved to adjust to the participants' needs -mostly women- and to the municipal structures where it was put into practice -the Santiago de Compostela and Donostia/San Sebastián city councils- and became an educational action with its own methodology in which notions such as gender, collective memory or emotion management acquired a key role, since the targeted audience was far removed from climate concerns but held a strong influence on their communities. A somewhat paradoxical outcome was that this group, most often described as vulnerable (older people, rural women), proved more resilient and committed to the ecosocial transition. Given their role as true catalysts to address the climate emergency, there is a pressing need to increase their public visibility and to empower them.