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HP Labs, Bristol, UK

About Communicate

Communicate is unique. Now in its sixth year, it is the only conference to focus specifically on improving the standards and effectiveness of communication about conservation and the environment.

Communicate delivers an intense and exciting programme, which includes presentations from prestigious international speakers, debates, creative activities and networking, learning and skill development opportunities.

An average of 175 delegates attend Communicate, including natural history filmmakers, representatives from local, national and international environmental and conservation organisations, business, policy makers, media, and national and local government bodies.

The focus is to provide delegates with a solutions-based approach to conservation communication. The conference leads to action by giving environmental communicators the understanding and tools they need to communicate complex messages to a range of audiences.

Valuing the Invaluable

In 2008, the conference theme was "Messages for Change", and high-profile representatives across the sector explored how specific messages and communication outputs have been developed and how effective they are.

This year, our theme is "Valuing the Invaluable".

Biodiversity is so valuable, it's priceless.  But how do we convince people it's not a luxury but a necessity?  Using the different perspectives of three key speakers as our starting point we explore how we can begin to put a value on biodiversity and ask what it really means to value the invaluable. 

At this year's conference we'll be exploring the most effective ways of engaging with the public about the importance of biodiversity to the future of our planet and their future well- being.  We'll be finding out how we might connect better with our audience, how different communication tools might help us reach different audiences and analysing how the way we choose to communicate our message impacts on our audience.  

Our themes this year:

Nature, Health and Happiness - Through a mix of debate, small group discussion and keynote speakers we'll explore how we can use the links between biodiversity, health and happiness to make better connections with our audience.  Research is demonstrating that nature is good for us but how can organizations and campaigns use this to encourage people to engage with the natural world?

Understanding your Audience - It has been increasingly important to gather views in order to help campaigns and policy makers consider environmental options. We'll hear how major organisations are working with new audiences and what the current state of opinion is in the UK, with an opportunity to quiz the experts and help develop new research projects.

Nightmares and Visions - This session is an exploration of the different ways we can choose to communicate our message.  The session will begin with a review of Communicate 2006, where the sector made a move towards a more visionary approach to communication.  Through presentations, case studies and open space talking groups we'll review major marketing, education and behaviour change campaigns, discuss the psychological impact of messages of hope versus messages of despair and discover which way the pendulum now swings.

The Changing Media Landscape - From broadcast to Twitter, we are all presented with a myriad of communication tools. Experts in both the communication and social media fields reveal what tools are proving most effective in communicating environmental messages.  There'll be the opportunity to try out new technologies and discuss their use and effectiveness with trained experts in our media zone.

This year we will again be joined by some fantastic key-note speakers:

• Tony Juniper, one of the UK's best known environmentalists, will be exploring our relationship with the natural world and its value to us.
• Huw Irranca-Davies, Minister for Marine and the Natural Environment, on government priorities for communicating biodiversity
• Andrew Jackson, the new Head of the BBC Natural History Unit, on the changing nature of global communication.
• Michael Dixon, Director, Natural History Museum, on engaging with the public in new and novel ways.
• Jonathon Porritt, Founder Director of Forum for the Future, and a leading writer, broadcaster and commentator on sustainable development, on the key challenges facing environmental communicators in the immediate future.
• Plus MORI and Involve on gathering views from every sector of society, the representatives of OPAL, International Year of Biodiversity, TEEB, The Natural Capital Initiative and other major environmental campaigns.

Registration

Register here.

Thanks to the generous support of our sponsors we are able to keep costs to a minimum and make the conference accessible to all organisations.

Single day rate - All sectors - £125.00 + VAT
Conference package (2 days) - Charity Sector - £175.00 + VAT
Conference package (2 days) - Public Sector - £200.00 + VAT
Conference package (2 days) - Private Sector - £250.00 + VAT

Visit www.communicatenow.org.uk or contact 0117 370 0973 for more information.

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