Global Citizenship and the Environment: Engagement and Action

Session Information:

Saturday, January 4, 2025 16:00
Session: Plenary Session
Room: 320 Theatre
Presentation Type: Featured Presentation

All presentation times are UTC-10 (Pacific/Honolulu)

A significant segment of society perceives climate change as a ‘hoax’, a term aligning with the ‘comfortable lie’ many want to believe in. Former United States Vice President Al Gore previously referred to this phenomenon as an ‘inconvenient truth’: the psychological and behavioural resistance to acknowledging realities that necessitate lifestyle changes. This view enables individuals to continue living without addressing threatening issues caused by climate change.

Climate change is, in itself, a controversial subject. Inconvenient and unaffordable climate solutions, especially for the lower strata of society and developing countries, may deter climate action. Emotional reasoning and personal experience taking precedence over scientific evidence, misinformation from the media and political leadership, and vested interests in the energy sector also contribute to this hindrance. Even among individuals who accept the reality of climate change, the perception of its inevitability may compel them to inaction. In a period of great upheaval and uncertainty around political administration, a critical question arises: how can we get people to care about environmental sustainability?

With the backdrop of Hawaii as an example of considerable environmental harm meeting sustainability efforts, both led by the military-industrial complex and its allied institutions, IAFOR invites delegates to this Forum discussion on ‘Global Citizenship and the Environment: Engagement and Action’ to discuss issues related to how we can sensitise and compel people to climate action.

Biographies

Michael Menchaca

Dr Michael Menchaca University of Hawai’i at Manoa, USA
Michael Menchaca is Chair of the Department of Learning Design and Technology at the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa. He specialises in distance education, and has designed, implemented, and coordinated online and hybrid programs for over 20 years. He has extensive experience as an IT specialist in both the public and private sectors. Currently, he teaches and conducts research in the areas of online learning, technology integration, and social justice with technology. Professor Menchaca served as Editor for the IAFOR Journal of Education: Technology in Education Edition.

Melina Neophytou

Melina Neophytou, IAFOR, Japan
Dr Melina Neophytou is the Academic Operations Manager at IAFOR, where she works closely with academics, keynote speakers, and IAFOR partners to shape academic discussions within The Forum, bring conference programmes together, refine scholarship programmes, and build an interdisciplinary and international community. She is leading various projects within IAFOR, notably The Forum discussions and the authoring of Conference Reports and Intelligence Briefings, and she oversees the Global Fellows Programme.

Born in Germany and raised in Cyprus, Dr Neophytou received her PhD in International Development from Nagoya University, Japan, in 2023, specialising in political sociology, the welfare state, and contentious politics. She received an MA in International Development from Nagoya University, with a focus on Governance & Law, and a BA in European Studies from the University of Cyprus, Cyprus.

Her research interests currently focus on the Japanese welfare state, family values within Japanese society, and their relationship to family policies. She is particularly interested in state-society relations by uncovering how informal social ideas influence formal social policy.


About the Presenter(s)
-Michael Menchaca is Chair of the Department of Learning Design and Technology at the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa.
-Dr Melina Neophytou is the Academic Operations Manager at IAFOR.

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Posted by Kid Millie