Adaptation cannot happen in a vacuum. People have to understand what climate and extreme weather risks look like and feel like ahead of time in order to respond appropriately.
This is where accessible and informative science communication proves its value. It’s not enough to dump a load of statistics and measurements on an at-risk community. Looming weather events have to be made visual and visceral, and their impacts storified for populations that may not have encountered them before.
It’s a challenge familiar to Rachael Penton Gauthier, a meteorologist with a decade’s experience explaining the weather to local TV audiences across the US. Now she works with the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) creating science-based communications designed to hook the general public on making their homes and communities more resilient.
In this episode, Rachael shares her learnings from countless hours in front of the cameras educating the public on weather risks and explains why it can be so difficult to convey even basic information in a way that makes sense to the average viewer. She then unpacks her role at the IBHS and what messages are cutting through when it comes to promoting extreme weather resilience. On the way, she shares stories of the extreme weather events that shifted her perspective on the severity of climate risk and reflects on the future of the meteorology profession.
🎙️This Podcast Is Free…But Making It Sure Isn’t!
No random ads interrupt these interviews — and that’s not an accident. Climate Proofers runs ad-free, funded entirely by paying members and sponsors.
If you value that, the best thing you can do today is become a paying member.
Join today!
Listen by clicking the link below, or tune in via Spotify or Apple Podcasts.
Thanks for listening!
Louie Woodall
Editor
