Provokeglobal:“Backtracking On Climate Action Isn't An Option”

(MENAFN- PRovoke) WASHINGTON, DC - Companies will suffer if they move away from climate action post US election, even in the case of a trump victory, as research shows customers and stakeholders want to hear the business case for climate action and diversity, rather than polarising moral debate, PRovokeGlobal delegates heard last week.

Presenting findings from research in partnership with Bully Pulpit International, based on more than 11,000 interviews and six studies, Michael Maslansky, CEO of language strategy firm Maslansky + Partners, insisted that“clean is not controversial”.

He explained the challenge for communicators was“to understand where the lines are between what may be perceived as political but really isn't controversial, and what definitely isn't controversial.”

Maslansky described the US as“a highly partisan polarised environment” and said this division was clearly highlighted in the areas of ESG and DEI – the latter more than the former.

“There is greater concern across parties around climate and climate change, than there is around DEI issues,” he said.“We've also seen that consumers today really don't want companies to be political.” Despite this, around 40% of consumers think that climate or environmental actions are political, and nearly 60% think actions around social issues are political.

Bully Pulpit International MD Adam Hodge pointed out that consumers think if Trump wins companies should continue to prioritise climate action, but don't believe they will. He added:“70% of people think there's more money to be made by the clean energy transition. Why do people rob the bank? It's where the money is.”

The challenge for communicators and businesses is to focus on ESG and DEI issues without using language that plays into politicisation and polarisation, Maslansky argued.

“We keep coming back to this idea of being a responsible business,” he said.“There's much less moral connotation with the words 'responsible' and 'responsibility', than with many other terms.”

Maslansky said the data showed progressives think the term responsibility is more progressive, conservatives think it's more conservative, and moderates think it's more moderate.“It's a home run. We want everybody to see in a term what they think of the term – it threads the needle.”

Regardless of future political administrations, Maslansky said backtracking on climate issues was not an option for companies. Instead, communicators should remove politicising language from their messaging, understand the expectations of their consumers and stakeholders and acknowledge the risks of not taking action.

And in terms of DEI, Maslansky advised companies to practice the principles without using the associated terminology:“People focused on DEI have come up with a language only they understand. Use language everybody understands, and people will feel more included.”

Hodge added:“Responsible companies are finding people who are more representative of the company. The responsibility frame is applicable with both ESG and DEI.”

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