Talking About Climate Change in Canada: Perceptions of Canadians Regarding Climate Change and Communication

Background: Given the growing urgency and severity of climate change, civic discourse around the issue is becoming increasingly important. Analysis: The authors, using a rhetorical bounded-coding perspective to identify common conversational approaches, qualitatively analyzed open-ended responses from a national survey of Canadians on their perceptions of and communication habits around climate change. Conclusions and implications: Canadians’ climate conversations are rooted in personal understandings and experiences of the issue. Through the lens of rhetorical studies, the authors discuss how this situation might help move conversations from individual to collective action on climate change.