In the summer of 2023, a devastating wildfire swept through Yellowknife, the capital of Canada’s Northwest Territories, forcing over 19,000 people to evacuate. While emergency alerts were issued in French and English, the nine recognized Indigenous languages in the territory were left out, leaving Indigenous families to seek critical information through alternative means such as radio broadcasts and social media.
A new white paper released by Climate Cardinals, a youth-led climate advocacy organization, highlights the broader issue of climate change information being predominantly available in English. The research found that 80 percent of scientific papers are published in English, a language spoken by only 18 percent of the global population. This lack of accessibility excludes a large portion of the world from understanding how climate change is affecting the planet, including those in positions of power.
Jackie Vandermel, research co-director at Climate Cardinals, emphasized the importance of language in shaping climate reality and governance. The report specifically calls for the translation of climate information into Indigenous languages, recognizing the threat these languages face from both colonialism and climate change itself. Indigenous languages hold valuable knowledge of local ecosystems and weather patterns, making them essential for understanding and responding to climate impacts.
Indigenous observations are often the earliest indicators of climate change, yet the information derived from these observations is not always returned to the communities in accessible forms. This lack of two-way communication hinders policy decisions and perpetuates existing gaps in climate information dissemination.
The report urges for the establishment of a global climate language access fund to support the multilingual dissemination of climate information. This fund would enable translations of scientific research, government reports, international negotiations, and extreme weather alerts in various languages. While some U.N. agencies have begun exploring translation options through machine learning, a dedicated fund for climate language access has not been established.
Despite challenges in securing funding, experts believe that investing in language access for climate information is crucial for climate justice. Laura Martin, an associate professor of environmental studies, stresses the importance of embedding translators, multilingual educators, and local reporters in policy and financial structures to ensure equitable access to climate information.
In a time where climate change impacts are becoming increasingly severe, bridging the language gap in climate communication is essential for building resilient communities and fostering global climate action.
