I
think that the most important social issue today is the societal, as
well as the physical, effects of climate change. As the current
Covid-19 crisis is showing, we are able to respond positively at
times, but we also seem to either pretend that the crisis is not
happening, or to ignore information and instructions that would
benefit us and the rest of the human race, as we work through this
frightening situation. This type of response can also apply to
climate change, since, while many people are trying to mitigate the
effects, others seem to want to 'bury their heads in the sand' and
pretend that if they ignore it, the virus will go away in a few
weeks.
As
for how Star Trek might take on the issue of climate change, I guess
it would depend on what world or universe the show is situated in. It
is possible that the use of defamiliarization, which is defined on
Wikipedia as “the artistic technique of presenting to audiences
common things in an unfamiliar or strange way in order to enhance
perception of the familiar” might be a useful technique to use.
Perhaps the 'common thing' could be the resistance to change, or to
improvement, and the Star Trek approach would then be to show the
deniers how they might learn to face the problem, whether it be a
virus, or climate change, with courage and innovation.
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