Atmos Magazine on Instagram was created with the aim to spark inspiration for people to connect and engage with the natural world and their environment, as well as to create awareness of the climate crisis and the intersectionality of environmental issues with human identity and social justice. We believe that the most affected populations should be centered in conversations around the climate crisis. Our view is that inspiration is a more powerful motivator than fear and that the arts can re-enchant people with the planet so they become moved to act on its behalf. We use cutting-edge design and visuals and incisive journalism, similar to those found in titles like Vogue and Dazed, to elevate our storytelling in order to shift minds and move hearts.
When Willow Defebaugh and Jake Sargent founded Atmos in 2019, their founding principle was clear from the start. If we want to change the story, we have to change the storytelling, and that meant exploring the ecological crisis from a human perspective, as well as expanding who was doing the storytelling—journalists, photographers, creative writers, poets, philosophers, designers, activists, and artists.
In addition to our @atmos Instagram, our content ecosystem includes a biannual print magazine and a website where stories are published Monday to Friday.
For our @atmos Instagram, we have identified a sweet spot—content themes that bring our values to life which also resonate with the audience. Our content strategy on Instagram includes social-first storytelling, highlighting important social and environmental justice issues that are overlooked and under-reported by mainstream media, giving a voice to marginalized peoples, and highlighting the visual artists who have nature and climate at the heart of their work. Our visual identity sets us apart from other media and climate platforms, with a strong focus on creative original photography and graphic design.
We publish one post a day, Monday to Sunday. Our focus is on great storytelling and giving creatives (who share our vision and values) a platform to tell these stories. We work on maintaining a high engagement on all of our posts, through experimenting and innovating our content formats (eg. multi-slide carousel post, video reels, statement post). We keep our fingers on the pulse of world issues, particularly those pertaining to climate, social, and ecological justice to tell the stories that matter. We also use Instagram Stories, Threads and Broadcast to reach and engage our audience.
Some specific examples of successful posts are our Instagram Reels on mental health and the connection to the natural world. We used the latest scientific research to create videos on how walking and listening to birdsong impact our brains.
Our ongoing coverage of the genocide in Gaza was particularly pertinent given the sensitivity of the issue. Rather than simply reporting the news, we looked to the human aspect of the situation, finding and resharing stories that delved into the humanity of Palestine. Our story on saving Palestinian seeds received nearly 20,000 likes, 230 comments, and an 8.6% engagement rate. Our story on the importance of Tartreez received over 16,000 likes and a 7.8% engagement rate. Covering the issue as a team who aren’t expert journalists was a challenge in itself, both emotionally and practically. We wanted to put our feelings and standpoint across while maintaining full integrity as a publisher. We preempted backlash on social media because of the volatility surrounding the situation and ensured we were prepared to respond to commenters in a factual and truthful manner.
We have been focusing on growing our followers in the last few years, while keeping a steady engagement rate with a focus on meaningful interactions including having open conversations on the topics we post about. Typically, a higher follower count would result in lower engagement levels, but we have managed to buck the trend, publishing content that people truly care about. Our organic average engagement per post is 4.6%. Our posts can exceed 100,000 likes and hit over 300 comments. Our audience has grown 47% year-on-year.
