Ecological Awareness Analysis: A Transitivity Analysis of TED Environmental Talk
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.11113/lspi.v13.26603Keywords:
Ecological Discourse Analysis, Transitivity, Ecosophy, TED TalksAbstract
This study examines how public ecological awareness is constructed in a TED Talk, The Unexpected, Underwater Plant Fighting Climate Change, using transitivity analysis within Systemic Functional Linguistics and ecosophy. Adopting a qualitative approach, the study analyses process types, participant roles, and circumstantial elements to explore how ecological meanings are encoded. The findings show that material processes dominate, positioning seagrass ecosystems as active agents, while relational and mental processes assign ecological value and engage audience cognition. The discourse is predominantly eco-beneficial, reflecting ecosophy principles of diversity and harmony, and interaction and coexistence. The study demonstrates how linguistic choices shape ecological orientation in public science discourse. Importantly, this study contributes to the growing field of ecolinguistics by illustrating how language can promote environmentally responsible perspectives in widely accessible media. It also offers practical insights for science communicators and educators on how discourse strategies can be employed to enhance public engagement with climate change issues.
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