Thirty years of environmental communication: Forwarding pro- environmental action after 30 COPs
In 1995, the first UN Climate Change Conference (COP 1) was held in Berlin. Thirty COPs later, the world is preparing to meet again in Antalya in 2026. Three decades of international climate negotiations have produced landmark agreements, fractured alliances, historic pledges, and persistent gaps between promise and action.
Through it all, communication has been both the medium and the mechanism, shaping what gets said, what gets heard, and what gets done.
This special issue of JEL-KÉP invites contributions that take stock of thirty years of environmental communication and look toward the next phase. We welcome empirical, theoretical, and critical perspectives on questions including:
- How has environmental and climate communication evolved across three decades of international negotiations?
- How has stakeholder language and messaging evolved in environmental communication?
- What roles has communication played in climate diplomacy, and where has it fallen short?
- How do media representations, narrative frames, and rhetorical strategies shape public understanding of environmental impact and planetary health?
- What communication approaches have proven effective in mobilising pro-environmental action at community and societal levels?
- How can strategic environmental communication support the transition from multilateral commitment to verifiable national implementation?
- What does a planetary health communication lens bring to our understanding of three decades of environmental action and inaction?
As COP31 marks both a milestone and a turning point, this issue aims to contribute a communication perspective to one of the defining challenges of our time.
Editors
- Levente Székely (levente.szekely@corvinus.hu)
- Orsolya Kovács-Magosi (orsolya.magosi@stud-uni.corvinus.hu)
- Anilla Till (anilla.till@stud.uni-corvinus.hu)
Deadlines
- Deadline for abstracts: 2026/07/30
- Decision on acceptance: 2026/08/15
- Full-paper submission: 2026/09/30
The studies are going to appear in the fourth issue of JEL-KÉP 2026.