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    Though I think that the piece that you did with the Today Show is a great start.  I think that other readers are correct in making suggestions for giving even the "Today Show audience" more than just the standard top 7 things to do list.

    I have been speaking with mothers groups (probably a big portion of the Today Show audience) for the past 2-3 years about climate change in places in the US as diverse as Houston and Ann Arbor, and have found a few things that are commonly motivating to them on this issue.

    Speak to mothers as the leaders of their families through the "transition of climate change."  In essence, give them the responsibility for helping their families to adapt to climate change and/ or the mitigation strategies that are likely to come about if we are to contain climate change to levels that are less than catastropic.

    In other words, begin to give them adaptation tools for 2 scenarios that are somewhat overlapping...
    -- how their their lives/ families transition (adapt) now that we are already in an era of climate change
    -- and, how can they participate in and encourage global mitigation strategies to prevent the worst effects of climate change.

    I have found that mothers are most responsive to looking at the issue through 3 lenses:

    1. their children's future
    2. financial impacts
    3. how their family may have to "transition" or adapt

    To address #1, I speak with them about climate change that has already occured (inuit people in Alaska, Katrina, fires in CA, drought in southeast US), and that we as mothers must invest in our children's futures to prevent more intense and frequent climate change threats to our kids' health, food supply, water supply, financial prosperity, etc.
    To invest we do the following things:
    most important: be aware of what is going on in your community government, be aware of and write letters to influence the policy decisions of your Senators, Congressmen/women, and State gov't officials.
    Then, make changes at home to invest for your kids' and teach them to live in this new way so they will be prepared for the future: CFL's, less driving, hang laundry, lower thermostat, etc.

    To address #2
    "The price of gasoline/ heating oil/ electricity" will not be going down significantly any time soon unless there is a major recession... So, how will your family change when gas is $10 per gallon, or the price of electricity doubles: how will you begin to prepare for that now?"
    Examples: Start investing in efficiency/ renewables for your home, save for a hybrid car, support public transportation, support public investment in renewables.  Consider what investments you're willing to make and support in your communitiy/ nation and begin to save for them now (again you're investing in your kids' future way of life.)

    To address #3
    Again, emphasize mothers as "leaders" of their families into a new way of life that will either be forced upon us by worsening effects of climate change, or that we can gain some control over by putting gov't and personal policies and investments into place that will minimize the worst effects of climate change for us and our kids, and allow us to cushion the blow to our familiy finances and our kids' future prosperity and health.

    Those are my suggestions.  I'd be happy to talk with you more about this issue so that you can be as effective as possible when talking with mothers of young children on this issue.   Keep up the good work on Today!  And, keep working to make it better!

    For more info about my work check out:
    www.momslivinggreen.com

    Thanks,
    Jessica Drummond
    jessica@momslivinggreen.com

    Jessica Drummond www.momslivinggreen.com

    On 7 easy steps to reduce your carbon emissions posted 2 years ago 13 Responses