Working Thesis Title: Communicating complexity in the climate crisis: A practice-led discovery of the relationship between designers, visual framing and climate communication

Supervisors: Associate Professor Geoff Hinchcliffe, Professor Mitchell Whitelaw, Associate Professor Beck Davis, Associate Professor Will Grant

The urgency of communicating climate change causes, solutions and scenarios has never been more critical. However, the complexity of climate science continues to challenge scientists and professional communicators seeking to engage public audiences. While there is a growing body of literature investigating the framing and reception of climate messaging, visual communication practices in this context are largely ignored. Conventional approaches to designing science communication emphasise content and understanding over narrative and aesthetic appeal. In contrast, mainstream design processes consider engagement and persuasion as evidence of a successful outcome. This research proposes that the practices of communication designers and their knowledge of visual narrative and framing techniques could be used to improve the efficacy of climate communication, and through a practice-led process, seeks to investigate that proposition and generate a new understanding of the opportunities, risks and methods of production.