[SydPhil] Sydney Health Ethics Conversation - Wendy Xin - 3 April

[Kathryn MacKay]

Wendy Xin | April 3rd
Sydney Health Ethics Conversation Series
On the Difficulty in Fearing Well about Climate Change

Hi everyone,
Our originally scheduled speaker for 3 April, Prof. Catherine Mills, has had to defer her talk until September 18 2025.

Wendy Xin has kindly agreed to step in and speak to us about her research. She will be hosted by Dr Kathryn MacKay.<https://url.au.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/T0JWC91WPRTYGz3KXSofOUqTojU?domain=t.e2ma.net> So please join us on Thursday 3 April 2025 for our next SHE conversation.
Speaker

Wendy Xin - University of Sydney
I have recently completed a PhD in Philosophy at the University of Sydney. My research focuses on whether and how we can appeal to emotions like awe, wonder, and fear to achieve different goals in environmental campaigns. I am currently working as a research assistant looking at environmental ethics and genetic data storage
Abstract
On the Difficulty in Fearing Well about Climate Change

Climate change communication often appeals to one’s fear of the consequences of climate change. One common worry about such a strategy is that it tends to lead to undesirable outcomes like disengagement. Defenders of fear appeals argue that this is an issue we can resolve by improving them. Against this, I argue that it is difficult to improve them because it is difficult to find a recommended response that is sufficiently efficacious. It follows that fear about climate change is often fitting – in the sense that it accurately presents the object as dangerous – but counterproductive. Despite this, we should not jump to the conclusion that fear appeals should never be used in climate change communication. This is because motivating people to act morally should not be the only goal in climate change communication. I conclude by briefly noting that there exists a kind of affective injustice in the context of climate change, as some social groups tend to experience more serious normative conflict between the fittingness considerations and the productivity considerations of fear.
When
3rd April 2025
12:00–1:00 PM
Where
A27, Dean’s Boardroom/Conference Room, Level 2 (Main Entrance from Fisher Road, immediate left after you enter). Joining online? Register here: Zoom registration link <https://url.au.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/0E7hC0YKPvir1koW5SDhgU9AZKe?domain=t.e2ma.net>
If you have any questions or need further information, please don’t hesitate to reach out.
Feel free to share this invitation with colleagues or friends who might be interested.

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Regards,
Dr Siun Gallagher
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