This study examines the impact of speaker accent and gender on audiences’ perceptions within the context of climate change communication. The impetus for investigating the role of vocal identity was primarily due to my extensive professional experience in coaching and communication training, where I frequently observe recommendations that go against fundamental human understandings of implicit and explicit biases about the voice and authority. When looking at the communication of climate change, particularly from actors who occupy spaces associated with climate action, understanding how vocal identity influences judgments of credibility, competence, and persuasion is a key area of inquiry. The study employs a mixed-methods research design featuring both experimental evaluations of audio-only TED Talk excerpts and podcasts, as well as a corpus-based investigation of audience engagement and sentiment. The study is grounded in ideas from Processing Fluency and Expectancy Theory to present alternative understandings of the patterns of our implicit biases and, therefore, hopes to contribute to developing inclusive and equitable communication.