Climate Change Coaching: The Power of Connection to Create Climate Action

Book excerpt: Climate change is not just an environmental problem, it’s a human one. Yet as humans, we are not changing fast enough for ourselves and our planet. Our sense of powerlessness and the belief that our actions won’t make a difference is holding us back from taking action and working on the psychological dimension of change could make the difference to moving us forward. In this transformative book, climate change coaching trailblazers Charly Cox and Sarah Flynn explain why changing for our climate is so hard and why coaching offers a key to affecting behaviour. With practical, easy-to-grasp skills that shift mindsets and motivate action they show how to build connection using a coaching approach, to overcome resistance and empower people to embrace change. If people often tell you “What difference can I really make?” or “How can we possibly succeed?” then Climate Change Coaching will help you: •Understand the psychological barriers to change, and how to address them •Gain practical, connection-building skills to have more impact in every conversation •Build stronger, more trusting relationships to make long-term change more likely •Develop a new perspective on how individual change leads to systems change •Discover how to help organisations succeed at change and what creates social change •Learn to coach and support yourself to manage stress and avoid burnout Whether you are changing an organisation, engaging a community, or coaching individuals, this book will change the way that you connect and how you influence. With example conversations and real-life stories from 40 practitioners from the worlds of sustainability, business, academia and coaching, it will show you how coaching skills are being used individually and organisationally to galvanise climate action. “This practical guide fills many of the gaps, with tools that can help us become better allies to each other in supporting the personal and systemic shifts needed in our time.” Chris Johnstone, co-author of Active Hope and trainer at ActiveHope.Training “Climate Change Coaching is an invaluable resource for anyone working in sustainability today.” Patrick Burgi, Co-Founder of South Pole Charly Cox is an award-winning climate change coach and Founder of Climate Change Coaches. A professional coach for ten years, Charly specialises in developing leaders in environmentally focused businesses. She has a background in the creative sector and worked for seven years in West Africa. Sarah Flynn is a psychologist and coach who supports sustainability professionals to thrive as they create change in the world. With a background in research, she specialises in the psychology of change and resilience, and teaches on the topic of ‘Resilience for Sustainability Professionals’ at Cambridge University. Charly and Sarah are both International Coach Federation Professional Certified Coaches and trained Organisational, Relationship and Systems Coaches.