How Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson inspires people to act on the climate crisis
In a time when climate change is accelerating, oceans are becoming plastic soup, coral reefs are dying and few people seem to be doing anything about it, you would not expect a marine biologist to thrive. And yet Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson repeatedly manages to catch the attention of policymakers, citizens, and fellow scientists, and convince them that action is needed. Dr. Johnson is a pro at leveraging her professional profile to make change happen.
Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson is a marine biologist, policy expert, writer, and Brooklyn native. You’ll find her at the intersection of science, policy, and communication, focused on climate solutions. She is co-founder of the non-profit think tank Urban Ocean Lab, member of the Board Of Advisors of Patagonia, co-founder of the climate initiative The All We Can Save Project, and co-creator of the podcast How to Save a Planet. Her new book, What if we get it right? is out now.
Anne Miltenburg interviewed Dr. Johnson for the book, Brand The Change, back in 2017.
Here is the full story.
Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johson’s new book, What if we get it right? is out now. “Our climate future is not yet written. What if we act as if we love the future?” Illustration by Anje Jager for Brand The Change, all rights reserved.
AM: What do all good leaders have in common? They stand for something. They make sure the right people know about it, and they make a plan to attract their support. Great leaders think a lot like brand strategists. Dr Ayana Elizabeth Johnson is thoughtful and deliberate about building her profile, crafting compelling proposals for action and spreading them far and wide through platforms like National Geographic and The New York Times, all in the service of the ocean and the communities that depend on it.
In her quest to influence government and corporate policy, scientific discussion and consumer behaviour, Dr Johnson’s ammunition is ideas. In a sector where spoof awards are handed out for the most impenetrable academic writing, Dr Johnson stands out for the clarity with which she communicates.
Her clarity is in part the result of her community approach to conservation.
DR J: ‘I spend a lot of time interviewing people in coastal communities, talking to them on the street or on the docks. When you see their eyes glaze over, or if they look confused … that’s all the feedback you need. The basic principles of ocean conservation are simple. If you can’t explain them simply, then you need to work on explaining them better. If we catch fewer fish and we leave more in the ocean to make babies, there will be more fish. There are parts of conservation that are really that simple.’ Unfortunately what resonates with one person doesn’t necessarily resonate with all. ‘It is a process of iterating on word choice until it is perfectly clear, not just to one person but to many people.’
Her writing also contributes to her use of clear language. To date, Dr Johnson has published over 50 essays on her work and thinking on National Geographic.
“There is nothing like writing to help me understand what I think and how I can best express it.”
Pursuing clarity requires a big time investment.
DR J: ‘It takes so much work to distill things to the point where you are really clear, but it is always worth the effort. For example, the phrase “using the ocean without using it up” is something that took me about a year to formulate while working on an ocean zoning project. There are certainly plenty of real reasons why people would disagree with your approach, but I don’t want to have disagreements because of a misunderstanding. I don’t want to get caught up in situations where you are speaking past each other and you can’t get anything done.’
Dr Johnson has learned to look at the human incentives at play too.
‘This low-tech and low-cost fish trap design I created, which reduces bycatch by 80%, would never have gained traction if I hadn’t also proved to the government that using it would not hurt fishermen’s incomes. Because the biggest factor in policy change is political will, and fishermen are voters. To build political will we need to understand where people are coming from.’
“Dr Johnson avoids using words that will alienate people. Sustainability has become a buzzword with a lot of baggage and people aren’t sure what it means, but no one has any trouble getting behind ‘Using the ocean without using it up’.”
Doing what is right for the economy and what is right for the environment are often seen as incompatible.
DR. J: ‘When you talk about conservation, people think you want to go and save dolphins. And dolphins are fine but that is absolutely not why I do ocean conservation. People thought I was the ocean equivalent of a tree hugger, that I cared more about sea creatures than I did about people.’ That misperception can result in not getting your ideas implemented.
Once she made it clear that to her, ocean conservation is about people, not fish, it opened a lot of doors to new conversations.
‘I am not just an environmentalist; I am an advocate for these communities. I am someone who cares about public health and safety and economy and traditions that are all tied to a healthy ocean.’
As a former TED resident, Dr Johnson recognizes the power of stories in pushing for conservation.
“‘It’s not my own story that is terribly useful or unique. Instead, I spend a lot of time listening to and reading about other people’s experiences with the ocean. ”
DR. J: Older fishermen told me about what it used to be like and how they wished it would be like that again. People telling me how hard it is to make a living now. If children have to leave their coastal community to get jobs, that is breaking up families. It’s really dangerous to people’s cultures when you lose the resources that your culture was built on. I feel very lucky that people share their stories with me, so I can show other people why all this stuff matters, why we have to fix overfishing and climate change and pollution: because people’s lives and jobs and cultures are at stake.’
AM: The urgency many conservationists feel, to ‘wake people up’ to the dangerous predicament we are in, often results in negative messaging that can push people away.
DR. J: ‘There is a really fine balance between optimism and doom. I worry about people painting too rosy a picture of the state of our planet. I don’t want to pretend that everything is fine. I am happy to describe in detail just how much of a mess we have made, as humans, living on planet Earth. But at the same time, if you end there, you’ve achieved nothing.’
You’ve made people scared, worried and often they ignore it because what can they do? It’s a delicate balance of saying, yes we have a really big problem on our hands, but here are some real solutions that we should all be implementing ourselves individually and that we should be pushing for as policy changes and changes to corporate practices.’
AM: There is a somewhat loosely coordinated hashtag for solutions in ocean conservation on social media: #oceanoptimism, which Dr Johnson uses often.
DR. J: ‘Not to say everything is fine, but to talk about what is working and do more of those things. We need to build on each other’s successes and amplify those stories across the world, so people are inspired, encouraged, and can see the roadmap to being more and more effective.’
As a marine biologist, conservation strategist, adjunct professor at New York University, one of the leaders of the March for Science and founder of the new consulting firm Ocean Collectiv, Dr Johnson wears many different hats.
Yet across all these roles, she has a singular focus.
“Her mission is to create, implement, and amplify the best ideas in conservation, so we can use the ocean without using it up. Being recognized for this mission is of crucial importance to Dr Johnson’s impact. ”
The decision-makers in her field need to know who she is. When it comes down to who’s leading the conservation organizations, hiring people or funding projects, it’s not a big group of people, so reputation is crucial.
Dr. J: For a lot of opportunities in life there is no application process. People just ask around: who might be able to do this? It helps for people in your field to know who you are. Having a strong profile that is linked to my professional philosophy has been really helpful for me. People know where I stand, what kinds of things I think about, how I prioritize different conservation approaches. I’m really glad that I have the blog with National Geographic because it’s a record of my thoughts, a body of work that presents my views.’ Dr Johnson can refer people to the work, and the work refers people to her.
AM: Of course, we’d all love a blog on a popular website, but how do you get there?
DR. J: ‘There is no real formula to it. A lot of it is serendipity, having a strong network of colleagues and collaborators.’ That’s not to say you don’t have any control over it. ‘You just have to put yourself out there and say: I am interested in doing this, is there a way we can make it happen? And the answer is yes more often than I would have expected.’
Recently, the incoming requests are more in the area of public speaking and events, which have great network benefits.
DR. J: ‘I would encourage people to expand their networks in ways they can’t immediately predict the value of. Most of the events I go to are outside of my field, and the people I collaborate with do not have the same background as me. I find that helps me understand how to reach new audiences and it helps me to be known in different circles –
this is critical because ocean conservation (and most big challenges!) are inherently multi-disciplinary.’
LEARNing FROM Dr Johnson
To get people to implement your proposal for change, your ideas need to be clear and relevant to the audience. Carve them out over time, and test them again and again.
A strong profile positions you at the optimal place to take opportunities as you pursue and create them.
Follow Dr. Johnson’s work
ayanaelizabeth.com
INSTAGRAM @ayanaeliza
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Get the new book, What if we get it right?