‘What Happens Next?’: Can Good Stories Help Save the Planet?

When it comes to climate change, facts and figures often fall on deaf ears – we think we’ve heard it all before. But across the Indo-Pacific region, a different approach to climate communication is taking root – one that centres human stories, traditional knowledge and community-driven solutions.

As communities share their firsthand experiences with rising seas and natural disasters, their unmediated narratives are proving more powerful than any weather report.

This shift from statistics to storytelling isn’t just about making climate change more relatable – it’s about understanding the true resilience of communities at the front line of our changing climate. While headlines often focus on vulnerability, the reality across the Indo-Pacific reveals a far more nuanced and empowering narrative of innovation and adaptation.

Join Dr Susan Carland for part two of Monash University’s What Happens Next? podcast’s investigation into climate change and the Indo-Pacific, where she explores how communities across the region are rewriting the narrative of climate vulnerability through innovative solutions and age-old wisdom.

Rewriting the narrative of vulnerability

Traditional assumptions about climate vulnerability often focus on factors such as a country’s size and wealth.

However, Dr Elissa Waters, a human geographer in Monash University’s Faculty of Arts, specialising in climate change adaptation, challenges these oversimplified views. She points out that different communities across the region have unique advantages in mobilising resources and responding to climate challenges, whether in densely-populated urban areas or small island nations.

Listen: Will Climate Change Wipe Out the Indo-Pacific?

From Indonesia’s informal settlements to Fiji’s coastal communities, local innovations are reshaping our understanding of climate resilience.

Dr Lagipoiva Cherelle Jackson, a Samoan journalist and scholar with more than two decades of experience reporting on climate issues, highlights how Indigenous knowledge throughout the region offers sophisticated climate adaptation strategies. These range from innovative crop cultivation methods in salt-affected areas to traditional architectural practices that withstand extreme weather.

Climate modelling itself is a powerful form of storytelling – one that helps us imagine possible futures for our planet.

Professor Christian Jakob, Director of the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for the Weather of the 21st Century, has a particular talent for making these complex scientific narratives accessible.

Rather than getting lost in technical details, he connects climate science to everyday experiences: “When was the last time you planned a barbecue based on global mean temperature?” As he explains, this is part of why climate change can feel so abstract – we relate to our local weather, not global averages.

Christian’s work helps bridge this gap, showing how sophisticated computer models running on the world’s largest supercomputers can translate the laws of physics into stories about changing weather patterns that matter to local communities.

This approach to communication – grounding global climate science in relatable local experiences – resonates strongly across the Indo-Pacific, where communities are finding innovative ways to share their own climate stories through the lens of daily life and cultural practices.

Read: Did the BOM get it wrong on the hot, dry summer? No – predicting chaotic systems is probability, not certainty

Learning from local innovation

Professor Tony Capon, Director of the Monash Sustainable Development Institute, emphasises the importance of co-creation in climate solutions. Through projects such as RISE (Revitalising Informal Settlements and their Environments), communities in Makassar, Indonesia and Suva, Fiji, are implementing nature-based solutions that combine traditional knowledge with modern engineering.

These initiatives include reed bed systems for water quality improvement, culturally-appropriate housing modifications, traditional environmental management practices, community-based disaster response networks, and local water management solutions.

Read: RISE Indonesia: Revitalising informal settlements in Makassar

The power of unmediated stories

Monash’s Global Immersion Guarantee (GIG) program represents a groundbreaking approach to climate education. The program, which will send nearly 2200 students abroad in 2024, focuses on direct, unmediated learning experiences across the Indo-Pacific region, from Mumbai to Pacific Island communities.

“We don't illustrate our stories in GIG with PowerPoint presentations,” explains Dr Gabriel García Ochoa, director of the GIG program. “We have reality. What better way to illustrate a story than through reality?”

Students witness firsthand how rising seas threaten both ancient cultural sites in the Pacific and historic landmarks such as Venice’s St Mark’s Square, drawing powerful parallels between climate impacts across the globe.

“The most compelling scientists are the ones who are able to tell a story, are the ones who are able to communicate the importance of those facts.” – Dr Gabriel García Ochoa

Regional solidarity as a model

One of the most powerful lessons emerging from the Indo-Pacific is the importance of regional cooperation. Communities and nations throughout the region demonstrate how collective action enhances resilience, from village-level responses to international cooperation on climate initiatives.

This spirit of solidarity extends across the region’s diverse landscapes and cultures. Whether it’s sharing successful adaptation strategies between Indonesian cities and Pacific Island communities, or supporting neighbouring areas during extreme weather events, the Indo-Pacific demonstrates how cross-cultural collaboration can enhance climate resilience.

Looking ahead

While the challenges facing the region remain significant, the emerging narrative is one of innovation, resilience, and hope. From urban informal settlements to remote islands, communities are developing solutions that combine traditional wisdom with modern science.

As Dr Waters emphasises: “We need to shift into thinking about what enables climate change adaptation. How do we move forward in that space?”

The Indo-Pacific's diverse approaches to climate change offer valuable lessons for the world, demonstrating how local knowledge, community leadership and regional cooperation can create more effective climate solutions.

By prioritising community-led initiatives and fostering cross-regional collaboration, the Indo-Pacific is writing a new chapter in the story of climate adaptation – one that could help us on the way towards a more resilient future for us all.

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