Points of Concern in a Public Voice

After finishing Our Final Warning write the "Points of Concern in a Public Voice" paper.

At the top of the paper list the points you wrote notes on from earlier chapters. Then, select at least three points that, after finishing the book, most concern you and that you want to share with others. These can include or develop points you have already written about, or they can be broader or more specific concerns you have developed after finishing the book and participating in our class discussions.

The object of the assignment is to write in a public voice that would allow you to share your concerns with a broader audience.

This "public voice" could be the way you would write if you were speaking at a climate rally, to a group or organization that you are a member of, to other WMU students, writing a public blog post, or even making extended comments to your family after a Thanksgiving dinner.

The choice of context and audience is up to you, though you need to make clear who your audience is at the beginning of each concern. Include concerns addressing at least two different audiences.

A public voice wants to be heard, considered and, hopefully, prove convincing. A public voice on the climate crisis is thoughtful, informed by science, and demonstrates knowledge of the issue. Public voices may employ a range of tones depending on purpose and audience: passionate, considered, open, angry, encouraging, inquiring, strident, formal, informal, etc.

Your public voice is likely more effective if you explain in your own words why each point of concern is important to you, to the group or audience you are addressing, to others, and/or to the planet. Feel free to write in the first person, make personal connections, even tell a personal story to illustrate your concerns. More on writing in a public voice.

As you describe each concern you may want refer to specifics from the book, as appropriate. You don't need footnotes - in this written assignment version of your concerns you can simply put references to page numbers in parenthesis.

Lots can be said about climate communication, a whole subject in itself. Here is one starting point.

The paper should be at least 5 pages, double-spaced.