Can we achieve some unity without giving up our integrity and core values? That’s a very current conundrum, so this seems the perfect time for us to publish this conversation. We confess we recorded this conversation last May! Apologies to our guests for the long delay. We could not make up a believable excuse that would keep our integrity intact.

When it seems like we can’t agree on even the simplest choices, one has to wonder if humanity will ever find common ground and a way out of the climate crisis. Kevin Wilhelm and Natalie Hoffman of Sustainable Business Consulting help answer these questions in their book, How to Talk to the Other Side: Finding Common Ground in the Time of Coronavirus, Recession and Climate Change. 

CEO and professor, Kevin Wilhelm is a thought leader on how to bring people from different viewpoints and ideologies together to solve big challenges. He is also an instructor at the University of Washington and the author of four books – including the acclaimed “Return on Sustainability – How Business Can Increase Profitability & Address Climate Change in an Uncertain Economy.”   

Natalie Hoffman specializes in research and communication between differing cultures and points of view. Hoffman has taught cross-cultural translation to a range of people from university students to environmental activists.

Kevin and Natalie share pro tips for shifting the climate conversation away from the facts and the science and instead towards personal experiences and values. Erika questions them about this method, and what is proposed to be the first step in overcoming our anxieties about the other side in order to find common ground. Plus, more about win-win solutions and focusing on the “financial bottom line.”

LINKS:

Finding Common Ground and Win-Win Sustainability Solutions in a Crisis https://www.greenbiz.com/article/finding-common-ground-and-win-win-sustainability-solutions-crisis

Talking to the Other Side: Keys for Setting Up Difficult Conversations https://sustainablebrands.com/read/marketing-and-comms/talking-to-the-other-side-keys-for-setting-up-difficult-conversations

Finding Political Common Ground in These Uncertain Times https://www.acc.eco/blog/2020/5/6/finding-political-common-ground-in-these-uncertain-times

How to Talk to the Other Side: Finding Common Ground in the Time of Coronavirus, Recession, and Climate Change  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53415793-how-to-talk-to-the-other-side

Sustainable Business Consulting https://sustainablebizconsulting.com/

On the GrowthBusters podcast, Erika and Dave explore the joy of sustainable living and provide a recovery program for our society’s growth addiction (economic/consumption and population). This podcast is part of the GrowthBusters project to raise awareness of overshoot and end our culture’s obsession with and pursuit of growth.

Dave Gardner directed the documentary GrowthBusters: Hooked on Growth, which Stanford Biologist Paul Ehrlich declared “could be the most important film ever made.” Erika Arias is researching the childfree/environment connection and is about to enter grad school.

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