All projects benefit from good communication – but when it comes to newly emerging sustainable technologies, it is absolutely crucial.
In all areas of life, communication is important. Every day, in every interaction, good communication is the difference between getting what we want and feeling disappointed. It helps ease tensions and repair misunderstandings, while poor communication often leads to undesirable outcomes, often for no reason other than the poor communication itself.
When it comes to emerging sustainable technologies, this is equally true. Good communication is essential – it can make the difference between getting a product to market and wasting a perfect opportunity to help the world with a great idea. Projects and results need to be communicated efficiently and in a way that reaches target markets, including the general public and policymakers.
Let us explain why below.
The General Public Needs to Buy into Science to Create Behavioural Change
Without understanding the benefits associated with any new sustainable technologies, the general public will not have any incentive – or any idea how – to use them. People need to understand complex ideas and technical terminology in easy terms; bridging this gap is not always the top skill of lead researchers. Nor is it always high on the priority list for most lead researchers or, sometimes, anybody in the project.
It should be.
While it is difficult to translate technical results into easily digestible info for the general public, the benefits of doing so could be the difference between uptake of new technologies and months of wasted time and effort. Fortunately, there are people who specialize in taking technical results and disseminating them to the public, including us here at Linq Consulting. We understand not only how to communicate results, but also the importance of communicating them clearly and effectively. It is one of our main areas of focus, and for good reason.
Science Should Be the Foundation for Policy – But Policymakers Need to Understand the Technologies to Make Informed Decisions
Policy always lags science. This will never change, because science is cutting edge and policy must react to the rapid changes that occur in the state of the art. Even politicians that desperately want to find solutions for climate change find it difficult to stay on top of which sustainable technologies work, which ones need regulations, and what other bureaucratic issues need to be cleared. All of that is in addition to the fact that most sustainable technologies are not communicated clearly or effectively, making it significantly more difficult to implement solutions than it should be. Given the inescapable lag of policy trying to keep up with scientific improvements, it is clear that timely and effective communication is incredibly important.
Much like with communicating with the general public, research leads are not always the best at laying out why their technology is best when presenting to policymakers. It could be overtechnical; it could be perceived as ‘overhyped’ given the attachment and depth of knowledge that lead researchers have in regards to their respective technological advancements.
All of this calls for science communication specialists, specifically ones well versed in communicating sustainable technologies because these are sought after by policymakers – you need to know how to communicate in a way that will get your ideas (and their importance) across in the best way possible.
SMEs Cannot Afford to Not Have Good Communication
The landscape is harsh, the opportunities are limited – there is simply no room for SMEs to not have a good communication strategy and execute it properly. It is too important.
Small and medium enterprises are very important for sustainability; a lot of incredible tech comes from them that can grow into very useful and powerful technologies to deal with climate change. However, without a proper communication strategy, this can be wasted – even if the idea is incredible and the applications that the technology can be used for would have a significant impact on society.
With the huge numbers of SMEs all trying to get sustainable technologies to market – and their lack of recognition in most distribution channels – it is imperative that they have good communication so their ideas can reach the people who will help put the best ideas into action: policymakers and the general public.
Good communication also grows collaborations, helps with winning grants, and gets start-up products to market much faster.
How Linq Consulting can help improve your project communications
Linq Consulting specializes in taking technical information and disseminating it in a way that can be understood, by both policymakers and the general public. Our team of expert researchers, writers, and project managers can help with all aspects of your emerging sustainable technologies – from drafting successful proposals to managing communications when your project has proven its value.
For more information on how we can help, get in touch with us at info@linq-consulting.com
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