Using comedy to communicate climate

Dr Matt Winning (UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources) will speak about his new book HOT MESS and his experiences of performing live comedy about climate change. It will include practical tips on communication and discuss why comedy can help reach new audiences that are otherwise unlikely to engage in the topic.

Dr Matt Winning is a Senior Research Fellow at University College London with a PhD in climate change policy from Strathclyde University. He has performed several sell-out shows at the Edinburgh Fringe, had a Radio 4 show 'Mark Watson and Matt Winning: Seriously Though, The Planet', has a TEDx talk with over 30,000 views on using humour to communicate climate, and hosts the comedy podcast OPERATION EARTH.

About HOT MESS (published Nov 11 2021):

We are currently facing a global climate emergency. You’ve probably noticed. But why does the end of the world need to be so depressing? HOT MESS aims to both lighten the mood and enlighten readers on climate change. This is a book for people who care about climate change but aren’t doing much about it, helping readers understand what the main causes of climate change are, what changes are needed, and what they can (and cannot) do about it.

But, most importantly, it is a book that’ll help people find the comedy in climate change, because if we can do that, well, we can do bloody anything.

‘Climate change is no laughing matter – oh yes it is – with Matt Winning’s superb, hilarious, side-splitting book that makes you take a whole new look at the climate crisis, surviving having children and life in general’ – Mark Maslin, author of How to Save Our Planet