Super Bowl ad sees ‘Science Moms’ urging action on climate change

Viewers in Los Angeles watching the Super Bowl this year were shown the first-ever climate advert from a nonprofit group. 

The Super Bowl advert was created by climate change marketing experts at the Potential Energy Coalition for Science Moms, a nonpartisan group of climate scientists who are also parents. 

This group includes Dr Katharine Hayhoe, chief scientist for The Nature Conservancy, Dr Melissa Burt, assistant professor in the Department of Atmospheric Science at Colorado State University (CSU), and D. Emily Fischer, Professor in the Department of Atmospheric Science at CSU. 

The 30-second regional advert was played to Super Bowl viewers in Los Angeles and on some streaming services during the famous American football game. 

It shines a light on the progress of climate change through the timeline of a young girl’s life, from birth to the day she heads off to college. 

“As a scientist, I know by the time she takes her first breath, 9 billion more tonnes of carbon pollution will be in the air,” a voiceover says. 

“When she takes her first steps, wildfires will have burned millions more acres she could have explored. By the time a child born today goes to college, it may be too late to leave them the world we promised.” 

Encouraging climate action through love

A spokesperson told advertising trade publication Adweek that the advert was a “product of extensive research” into what message would have the biggest impact on the greatest number of people. 

“Do you know what science shows is the top reason people care about climate change?” Dr Hayhoe asked in a post about the ad on LinkedIn. “LOVE – especially for the next generation.” 

While several previous ads during the big game have drawn attention to climate change, these have usually come from companies with products to sell. This is the first to be created by a nonprofit group. The New York Times ranked it as one of the best ads shown during this year’s Super Bowl. 

Climate ad raises funds for LA wildfire victims

The advert comes not long after devastating wildfires ripped through Los Angeles. Last month more than 10,000 homes were destroyed in the region after high winds followed a dry period that left the city particularly susceptible to blazes. 

A recent study from researchers around the world found the hot, dry and windy conditions that fuelled the LA fires were about 35 per cent (1.35 times) more likely due to climate change. 

“There’s a very direct link between the fires that we’re seeing now – for example, in Los Angeles, and the fires that we’ve seen in Texas recently and in Colorado – and climate change,” Fischer told Adweek.  

The Super Bowl ad provides a direct link to support the California Community Foundation in LA with its Wildfire Recovery Fund to help those recovering from the disaster.