Over 100 people from business, environmental and advocacy organizations joined a MassINC panel discussion May 18th to discuss strategies to combat climate change, based on new information released by The MassINC Polling Group in April. The new poll, entitled “The 80 Percent Challenge: A survey of climate change opinion and action in Massachusetts,” flagged a disconnect between people’s belief in global warming and their actions, both personally and politically, to address the issues.

Steve Koczela, President of the MassINC Polling Group, started things off by presenting the poll’s findings. Boston Globe columnist Derrick Z. Jackson moderated the panel discussion which focused on a range of issues including: messaging and marketing strategies for behavior change; the role of the government, the private sector and individual citizens; and understanding the motivations behind people’s willingness to act. The four panelists, all experts in their respective fields, come from a variety of backgrounds in both the private and public sector. They included Zamawa Arenas, Principal of ARGUS, a multicultural marketing firm; David Cash, the Undersecretary for Policy in the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs; Mindy Lubber, President of Ceres, a coalition of investors and public interest groups addressing sustainability challenges; and Josh Lynch, activist and co-founder of the Energy Action Coalition.