Climate and culture

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    Abstract

    Climate is, presently, a heatedly discussed topic. Concerns about the environmental, economic, political and social consequences of climate change are of central interest in academic and popular debates. As such, climate change is a ‘hot’ cultural discourse and media issue. Moreover, there has recently been a ‘cultural turn’ in climate change science and politics, with some scholars arguing that climate change research and action has been hindered because it has not fully accommodated cultural values that give everyday meaning to climate, and consequently urging for greater attention to the cultural dimensions of climate change. As Mike Hulme asserts, “registers of climate can be read in memory, behaviour, text and identity as much as they can be measured through meteorology” (7) and thus “the idea of climate can only be understood when its physical dimensions are allowed to be interpreted by their cultural meanings” (6) (for specifically Australian examples, see Sherratt, Griffiths and Robin; Nicholls). Climate change is both a “physical transformation and cultural object” and requires new examination which “needs to start with contributions from the interpretative humanities and social sciences” (Hulme 5). Advancing these debates, this issue of M/C Journal adds to the critical interface of climate and culture, particularly in the context of climate change.
    Original languageEnglish
    Number of pages3
    JournalM/C Journal
    Volume12
    Issue number4
    Publication statusPublished - 2009

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