Will Hackman: Why the Climate Fight Is Failing — and How to Turn It Around

In a recent interview at the Royal Examiner studio, author Will Hackman did not ease into his message.

“I’m a millennial, and I am pissed,” he said, describing the anger and anxiety many young Americans feel about the future.

Hackman’s new book, Radically Reframing Climate Change: A Guide to Saving Ourselves, takes a different approach to one of the most debated issues in the country. Instead of focusing on melting glaciers or polar bears, he wants people to see climate change as a human issue — one that affects their health, homes, and communities right now.

Hackman grew up in the Midwest and spent much of his youth outdoors. Later, he worked as a commercial fisherman in Alaska, including on the dangerous Bering Sea crab boats. That experience, he said, gave him a deep connection to the ocean and the natural world.

After Alaska, he moved to Washington, D.C., and began working on political campaigns. Over time, he found his calling in environmental and conservation work. For more than a decade, he has worked in the nonprofit sector, focusing on land, marine ecosystems, and climate policy.

But his book is not a list of scientific facts or a catalog of green solutions.

“There are enough plans out there,” Hackman said, pointing to major climate reports and policy proposals already written. “The problem isn’t that we don’t know what to do. The problem is polarization.”

He argues that climate change has become one of the most partisan issues in America. Many people accept that the planet is warming, he said, but they worry about cost, lifestyle changes, and government overreach. Others feel overwhelmed and shut down.

Hackman believes the environmental movement must rethink its messaging. Slogans like “Save the Planet,” he said, do not connect with many Americans.

“The planet will be fine,” he explained. “We’re trying to save ourselves.”

Instead of distant images of melting ice caps, Hackman wants people to think about local flooding, stronger hurricanes, rising pollen counts, and air quality. He shared how volunteering in Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina helped him connect extreme weather to climate change in a personal way.

“When I hear the words climate change, I don’t see polar bears,” he said. “I see people.”

In Virginia, for example, allergy season has grown longer as temperatures rise. Flood risks threaten communities across Appalachia. These are the kinds of real-life impacts he believes can bring people together.

Hackman also points to voting patterns as a warning sign. In the 2024 election, exit polls showed that only a small percentage of voters listed climate change as their top issue. Even among young voters, turnout was lower than many expected.

“We can’t assume young people are going to save us,” he said. “If we don’t stay engaged, history will repeat itself.”

The book includes interviews with people from across the political spectrum, including conservative voices who care about conservation but prefer different language and solutions. Hackman says building a broader coalition is essential.

“We need everyone,” he said. “Democrats, Republicans, independents. If this stays partisan, we won’t pass anything.”

He also stresses that progress has been made. The United States has reduced pollution in many areas over the decades. Cleaner air laws, better fuel efficiency, and changes in energy production have made a difference. But transportation is now the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions, which is why electric vehicles and other innovations are part of the conversation.

Hackman does not call for everyone to move off the grid or give up modern life. Instead, he encourages people to think about resilience — safer infrastructure, smarter planning, and healthier communities.

His message is rooted in self-interest.

“Appeal to people’s self-interest,” he said. “What’s in it for me? How does this affect my family?”

In the end, Radically Reframing Climate Change is less about science and more about storytelling. Hackman believes that if Americans can see climate change as a shared human challenge — not a political weapon — they can rebuild the broad support needed to act.

“It’s not all or nothing,” he said. “We have to give people an optimistic vision of the future.”

For Hackman, the goal is simple: protect the places we live, the air we breathe, and the health of the people we love — not just for the planet’s sake, but for our own.