The Burden
Over the past two decades, climate change has become one of the most politically polarized issues in American life, and environmentally framed messaging has consistently failed to move conservative policymakers, voters, and communities. Reaching skeptical audiences (particularly veterans, military families, and Republican legislators) requires a way around the framing that triggers reflexive partisan rejection.
The Burden: Fossil Fuel, the Military and National Security is a film designed to reframe energy policy as a question of national security and economic resilience, casting four-star generals, admirals, and Republican legislators as its primary messengers to insulate the narrative against the attacks that had undermined other climate messaging. NGOs, businesses and veterans organizations deployed the film through live screening events with expert panels, targeting legislative audiences in battleground states, supported by campaign briefs, messaging frameworks, and facilitation toolkits tailored to each stakeholder audience.
Key Outcomes:
- The work established a replicable model — film, expert panel, and targeted stakeholder engagement — that became a signature approach and the foundation for subsequent campaigns.
- The film screened in more than 30 states and was used as a strategic advocacy tool by over 50 partner organizations.
- It contributed to the passage of the Clean Energy Freedom Act in South Carolina, through screenings with Citizens’ Climate Lobby’s Conservative Caucus; and SB350 in California, through the Operation Free campaign and Truman National Security Project, among other state-level policy outcomes.
- The New Hampshire State Senate screened the film to its full membership, prompting Republican legislators to engage on energy security legislation for the first time.