Environmental art has a larger impact on those who do not already have strongly pro-environment attitudes.

Visuals are more likely to create emotional effects and educate viewers about environmental issues.

Measurement should be based on psychological and behavioral theories.

Humans use art to focus their creative imagination to interpret or reflect reality, convey thoughts and emotions, or provoke new ideas and feelings in others. Art can alter environmental norms, which consist of beliefs, attitudes, and behavior that foster a caring and responsible relationship to the environment in four principal ways: (1) by fostering empathy and stimulating moral imagination, (2) by promoting narrative transportation and increasing cognitive engagement, (3) by providing new symbols for identity construction and stimulating processes of value alignment, and (4) by communicating in public spaces and affording experiential learning within the pedagogical milieu of the arts.

How can creative community leaders, policymakers, and artists utilize art to influence environmental norms in targeted ways? To answer this question, I spoke to Bob Turner, an emeritus Professor of Economics and Environmental Studies at Colgate University. His research has focused on the intersection of art and environmental awareness. I asked Bob what I think are important questions that policymakers and community leaders should be asking.

JP: How do we measure the effectiveness of art that is intended to influence environmental norms and behavior?

BT: It’s hard. In fact, I think it’s impossible to answer the question in general. But it’s possible, though difficult, to answer a narrower........

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