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Kickstarter Spotlight: The Cartoon Introduction to Climate Change

By | April 2nd, 2013
Posted in Columns | % Comments

If you haven’t noticed, we here at Multiversity love non-fiction comics. Hell, we have an entire column dedicated to them! Something about the nature of comics makes it a perfect vehicle for learning, and while many creators have realized the same, the non-fiction field of comics is still the puniest portion of the published pie. As such, when a non-fiction comics project pops up on Kickstarter, such as Yoram Bauman and Grady Klein’s The Cartoon Introduction to Climate Change, I’m usually all ears.

To speak lightly, climate change is a difficult topic. The ongoing debate as to what should be done is based on a mixture of fact and opinion, and, unfortunately, many people on both sides are relying more on their opinions than on carefully analyzing the facts. It wouldn’t be going to far to say that there are plenty of people out there who are weighing in on the discussion without knowing any facts about the subject at all. I know personally that despite my strong opinions on the matter, I should probably learn a bit more before being at all vocal about the matter. Not everyone has to be an expert, but it is hard to assert the validity of your opinion without having done any research on the topic of choice. This is where The Cartoon Introduction to Climate Change comes in. Note the word “introduction” in that title; this may not be a comic that someone learned in environmental science would find essential, but for laymen like you and I (assuming those of you who are reading this don’t have your PhD in the sciences), it seems like just the thing — and as Bauman and Klein’s book approaches the matter from an economic view, it offers a view of the situation in a way that ties into our civilization as a whole.

Comics offer such great potential for learning because of their abstract nature. Even the most realistically illustrated page has the fundamental disconnect that is continuity and closure, which, while instinctive, requires active viewing rather than the more passive viewing that film can sometimes fall into. As such, your brain is already engaged, making it more difficult to just “fade out” of what you’re reading. At the same time, the visual nature of comics can help more abstract, conceptual topics be easier to process than a brick of text, especially if you’re a novice in the field. Of course, I’m not a scientist or expert on education, and this is all purely anecdotal, but that’s besides the point. Bauman and Klein have previously tackled an even more abstract concept, economics, in comic form, and Klein even illustrated comics about statistics, so as abstract of a concept as climate change might be, it’s still a little more firmly on the ground than their previous efforts — efforts which, mind you, received a good deal of critical acclaim.

Klein and Bauman already have a publisher lined up, Island Press, and need to raise $20,000 to have the book printed. As I type this, their “basic” incentive of $20.00, a physical copy of the book, has only 5 slots left, and I wouldn’t be surprised if those are gone by the time this goes live. Kind of weird to have that at a cap, but hey, sometimes publishers have special regulations. The next way to get a copy through the Kickstarter project is to donate $50.00, which nabs you a signed copy and gets your name in the thank you section of the book, so if you are that set on making this book happen, go right ahead. Other incentives include advertising space for $250.00 getting your likeness in the book for $500.00, and one that might be very interesting for the economics department at a college, Bauman’s stand-up economics show, for $5,000. So, if any college kids are reading this, see about talking to your campus activities board. My recommendation if the $20.00 level sells out?
Donate ten bucks and buy it when it comes out (and, of course, tell friends to do the same).

The preview pages provided on the page are from one of Bauman and Klein’s previous economics books, and are a good sign of quality for the book to come. The pair will use the $20,000 for publishing costs, editing, and most importantly, research. Come on — isn’t learning fun?


//TAGS | Kickstarter Spotlight

Walt Richardson

Walt is a former editor for Multiversity Comics and current podcaster/ne'er-do-well. Follow him on Twitter @goodbyetoashoe... if you dare!

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