Humanizing climate services
Sweden faces growing climate risks, highlighted by events like the 2021 Gävle floods, yet high-quality climate data struggles to drive local action, creating a knowledge-action gap for non-experts. The Humanizing Climate Services project bridges this by using creative, participatory methods—storytelling, co-design, art—to make climate data relevant and emotionally engaging, fostering behavioral change and better community resilience, offering a model for inclusive preparedness.
Project leader:
Luigia Brandimarte
Participating universities/companies/other organisations:
KTH, SMHI
Project period:
2025- 2027
Financing:
Formas
Sweden faces increasing climate-related risks, from floods to extreme heat, with events like the 2021 Gävle flood and heatwaves in Stockholm underscoring urgent adaptation needs. While climate services offer high-quality data and tools, their impact on local decision-making and public behavior remains limited. Technical formats such as risk maps and web dashboards often fail to engage non-experts, leaving a gap between knowledge and action. The Humanizing Climate Services project addresses this by complementing traditional approaches with creative, participatory, and narrative-driven methods. Through storytelling, co-designed tools, and artistic formats, the project reframes climate data to make it locally meaningful, emotionally resonant, and easier to apply across sectors. This fosters greater understanding of climate projections, encourages behavioral change, and strengthens community-based adaptation. The approach aligns with national goals for inclusive climate resilience and offers a scalable model for engaging society in shared climate preparedness.