The role of local narratives in emerging climate governance

Abstract

Abstract Local climate narratives are influential, shaping climate responses at all scales. They can be unpredictable, however, reflecting local histories, power dynamics, needs, and priorities as much as expert knowledge of climate disruption and possible responses. As new modes of climate governance emerge in response to increasing climate impacts and risks, local climate narratives influence understandings of climate change and what should be done about it, as well as the prospects for implementing fair, effective climate responses. In this study, we examine the case of Miami-Dade County, Florida, USA, an early adopter of climate policies that faces deep inequity and worsening climate impacts. Using historical research, interviews, and policy document analysis, we (a) identify two long-term historic environmental narratives—one dominant narrative focused on economic growth and the other on environmental justice—that shape the local climate debate; (b) create a typology of contemporary climate narratives about emissions, sea level rise, climate gentrification, and resilience; and (c) analyze historic and contemporary narratives’ prevalence in emergent local climate policies. While most people in Miami agree that climate change is an immediate problem, various groups talk about and experience climate change very differently. These climate narratives are divided along the geographical and social lines of segregation, leading to conflicting understandings of climate risk and action stemming from socioeconomic and environmental inequities. Histories of growth and the environmental injustices that accompany it have strongly shaped contemporary climate narratives, at times contradicting scientific understandings of climate change and, until recently, leading to climate policies that prioritize economic growth. Community organizations have drawn on histories of environmental injustice to demand greater attention to equity in narratives informing climate discussions, such as debates about climate gentrification, but we find that policy documents still cite equity-related topics and narratives much less frequently. Paying attention to these histories offers an important and often neglected basis for understanding local climate debates, the potential for climate governance to either compound or alleviate existing inequities, and new directions for more equitable climate communication and policy.