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Re: Liam Smith and Nancy Adams request with respect to behaviour change
2006-09-07 19:28:44 UTC
Hello all,
I studied behaviour change as a component of my MES, and have been peeking in on your discussion from time to time. Forgive me if I'm repeating things that have already been suggested. I believe that we cannot overestimate the obstacles to change that lurk within our human-ness. When I think personally about participating in a programme such as the "One Tonne Challenge", there are two things that quickly come to mind that keep me from doing what I know I should to save energy. One is getting past the initial inertia that exists due to unfamiliarity with an action which produces feelings of inadequacy, and the second is fitting something that may not be interesting in with other pressing matters in one's busy life. In order to get involved, I would need a program with personal contact for advice and assistance at times. I would be more likely to participate if someone I respected was also doing it and even suggested it to me. I would want to know the amount of time the commitment would take each week or month, and a start and finish time for the total program. I would want it to be made as convenient as possible. Once I agreed to accomplish the actions and I knew there'd be a follow-up to check or recognize my actions, I'd be sure to do them in order to avoid embarrassment. I wonder if there are several actions to be taken, if it might be effective to present the program to the public with a character (Canadian comedian Rick Mercer for instance) performing the actions himself, one per month. It could be done from a beginners point of view with humour and all the misgivings that people trying something new might feel. A TV show would be the best, but step-by step photos of a person performing the task on a website would also do. Municipalities, corporations or whatever organization communicating this to the public could make up a club or course following the instructions on the website. A condition of membership could be that people join with 3 other families. They could meet with the course organizer at the beginning along with other groups of families. As the course went along, competitions could be introduced between groups, plus the use of perks, energy coupons, something as incentives and ideas that make it fun. Say, in the first month, we'll install energy efficient lightbulbs. Information on where to get them, sales, benefits, etc.could be shown on the website. Pictures of a person going through each step. At the end of the month, they'd all get together to compare notes and receive little awards. Month two: caulking around windows. Show step-by-step how to do it on the website and at the meeting, as well as where to get the supplies, etc. The families in each group may help each other. The different groups compete. Meet again at the end of the month to report back and introduce the new action. Once the message is out there and fairly mainstream, and I accept that I should make these changes, then personal contact with other friends doing the action and with a course leader would definitely be the difference for me between a loosie-goosie interest in the behaviour and in really getting the behaviour off the ground, especially for the more involved or complicated actions. If we can interest persons with a sphere of influence to convince friends and family to try these things, the latter are more likely to join in.
Martha Bell -
Re: Systems thinking and behavior change
2006-02-14 10:56:58 UTC
Hi Deborah,
I'm a nature interpreter at the Kortright Centre for Conservation in the Greater Toronto Area. We are an outdoor centre of the Toronto Region and Conservation Authority (TRCA). We are currently attending workshops in " A Systems Thinking Curriculum" in order to apply it to our outdoor programs. If interested in finding out more, contact the TRCA .
Good luck.
Martha Bell
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