This. How do you expect scientists to effectively communicate climate change when half the American political system and the multi-trillion dollar industry supporting it are hell-bent on pushing denial? If you think scientists are the issue, you do not understand power. https://twitter.com/andrewdessler/status/1324086043184869384

I’m all for scientists working harder on their communication skills, but “facts and science are important” is not enough. The focus must be on communicating how profit-driven disinformation is undermining facts/science/truth.

Doing this means scientists have to talk frankly about the fossil fuel industry’s disinformation campaign, which many scientists are uncomfortable doing. More importantly, it means refusing to accept fossil fuel industry money to support their research.

The fossil fuel industry funds scientific research in part because it buys them protection from criticism from the very profession they’ve been working to undermine politically for the last 50 years

This isn’t scientists’ fault. If the public robustly funded scientific research, scientists wouldn’t have to depend on the fossil fuel industry to do their very necessary jobs. This is a hostage situation of government creation.