"Educating the public" - some thoughts

[Franz Schönhofer <franz.schoenhofer@CHELLO.AT>]

Franz Schoenhofer

PhD, MR iR

Habicherg. 31/7

A-1160 Vienna

AUSTRIA

phone (international) -43-699-1168-1319

phone (national) 0699-1168-1319

 

Dear RADSAFErs,

 

Recently the slogan “educate the public” did surface again on RADSAFE,

and Jaro wrote about attempts of the Australian authorities to teach

school-children about nuclear matters. 

 

I noticed in the seventies of last century, when I was a teacher in

chemistry at a high school, that the then very young green,

anti-nuclear, anti-everything movements targeted with their propaganda

and very clever psychologic attacks (“save the world”, “ save the

panda”, “save the whales”….) in the first place both school children and

teachers in Western Europe. The reason is easy: They had time. They

could wait until the school children became grown-ups, became voters,

became politicians and influential members of important companies, banks

etc. The (young) teachers were of course the multiplicators. These

groups did not target people 40+, because those had either got to know

the dreadful times of war or at least the bad times after it, when first

hunger prevailed and then a very low living standard. They targeted of

course the young ones, who never had got to know the bad times and

therefore never appreciated the extremely positive development after

WWII, with all the factories, the (non-nuclear as well as nuclear) power

plants being installed, which made a prosperous life possible – and

increased air and water pollution, loss of forests, biodiversity etc.

etc. They were used to get what they wanted from their parents. Now they

were targeted to “act morally and responsible”, because the world was at

stake (without stakeholders……). Now those young people are in the

positions to influence – and they do! In the eighties and nineties the

multiplication factor has been enhanced of course. 

 

Following this reasoning I would like to say, that one has (not only) to

educate the public, but it would be much more important to care for

information of young people at a very carefully chosen level. This needs

teachers willing to do it – how to win them back????

 

Best regards,

 

Franz