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Essay Response

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Communication, especially non-verbal communication, is essential in tackling climate

changes. From the notes, the impact of non-verbal communication is evident, as it cannot be

separated from culture and cultural practices. Communication assumes different modes and

mainly takes the form of verbal and no-verbal communication. Non-verbal communication is the

most basic form of communication, and “involves all non-verbal stimuli in a communication

setting generated by the talker and the environment” (Samovar, et al., 2016). Non-verbal

communication has a huge potential to increase the “value of message for the listener and the

talker” (Samovar, et al., 2016). Non-verbal communication conveys messages on culture and

essentially can be used to regulate and inform conversations on climate change. Non-verbal

communication shapes interactions, as it guides “how people navigate conversations”, therefore,

can guide how people navigate climatic change conversations. Non-verbal communication also

takes the form of one’s clothing and demeanor, which can be used to tell one’s culture (Samovar,

et al., 2016). From the textbook, non-verbal communication involves the sending of more than

one message at a time. For instance, one may speak with their friend on a subject matter, but the

moment they start tapping the palm or the back of the listener, more attention is invoked and

generated as it signifies more than what is being said (Samovar, et al., 2016).

According to Lisa Schipper, “culture influences how we see the world, helps us interpret

that is going on around us, and it helps us explain how we understand things, challenges, and

other factors” as a result, culture “plays an important role in how we interpret climatic changes”

(TEDx Talks, 2017). When culture informs environmental changes as a dangerous event, people

are able to take informed actions that guide their response to the environment. However, when

people’s beliefs “lead them not to consider a risk being a risk” such as drought and earthquakes,

they cannot respond appropriately and act in ways that tackle climatic changes (TEDx Talks,
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2017). This happens when cultures result in people interpreting climatic changes as actions of a

deity, which is misguided (TEDx Talks, 2017).

The Paris agreement of 2015 aimed at “strengthening the global response to the threat of climate

change by maintaining healthy temperatures.” The agreement also sought to “strengthen the

ability of nations to deal with impacts of climate changes” (United Nations Sustainable

Development Goals, n.d.). To build capacity for countries, all people must take part in

“confronting climate risks” and cooperate with other nations (United Nations Sustainable

Development Goals, n.d.). communication and Cultures must combine to address the changes in

ways that empower everybody to be on the frontline to query all climate risks, without attributing

the risks to a god, and assuming that “the gods are testing us and if we can persevere, a greater

reward awaits us” (TEDx Talks, 2017).

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Essay Response

Hello, I concur with your argument and support the validity of your points on the

importance of non-verbal communication and the contribution of culture to tackling climate

changes. You stated that culture affects the way we understand and interpret things going on

around us, which is accurate as learnt from the class. From the week’s course, people cannot

separate verbal communication from non-verbal communication, as non-verbal communication

is encapsulated in every form of communication. Again, different cultures use different modes of

non-verbal communication, as different non-verbal cues mean different things from one culture

to the other (Samovar, Porter, McDaniel, and Roy, 2017).

By assessing the United Nation’s Standard Development Goals, the SDG 17 calls for

“Partnership for Goals”, which means that countries should work together as leaders and their

citizens collaborate to build strong global partnerships to ensure and facilitate attainment of

climatic goals (United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, n.d.). Moreover, leaders from

one country to the other should work together and promote synergy to ensure that there is

attainment of the development goals. To promote participation, intercultural communication

needs to be promoted. Intercultural communication “helps leaders and citizens understand the

problems that society faces” (Class Notes, 2022). Identification of climate changes as a problem

then fosters and enables leaders and societies to work together to generate solutions and tackle

challenges associated with climate changes. Moreover, as you stated in your discussion, cultural

attitudes need to be checked in order to rationally attend to proposed solutions. “It is critical for

all people to join hands in building a healthier environment and avert the looming problem of

global warming” (United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, n.d.).. Sources also indicate
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that 2019 was the second warmest year in history, hence nations need to be proactive in tackling

the “climatic change challenge” (United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, n.d.).
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References

Class Notes (2022). Explanation of Intercultural Communication and Partnership for the Goals.

Retrieved onMay 5, 2022.

Samovar, L. A., Porter, R. E., McDaniel, E. R., & Roy, C. S. (2016). Communication between cultures.

Cengage Learning.

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. (n.d.). Climate change. United Nations Sustainable

Development. https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/climate-change/