People want to fight climate change more than you think - Earth.com
People want to fight climate change more than you think • Earth.com
Climate change is a major threat, but what do people around the world actually think about taking action?
To understand the global perspectives on the fight against climate change, researchers from the University of Bonn, Leibniz Institute for Financial Research SAFE, and University of Copenhagen carried out an intriguing survey.
The experts interviewed nearly 130,000 people from 125 countries to understand their perception. The results shed surprising light on global attitudes.
The survey revealed a strong global agreement on the need for urgent action to fight climate change.
A vast majority would dedicate 1% of their income to tackling climate change, with most overwhelmingly backing green policies (86%) and demanding bolder leadership (89%).
A surprising yet encouraging finding of the survey is the “perception gap”: people around the world underestimate how much others care about fighting climate change. This misperception, known as pluralistic ignorance, can create a sense of isolation and discouragement among individuals who do care.
The perception gap, quantified at 26 percentage points, reveals a discrepancy: while 69% of people surveyed said they’d give 1% of their income to help fight climate change, they thought on average that only 43% of others would do the same.
Researchers warn that this misjudging the extent to which others are willing to act on an issue can significantly stifle individual motivation to participate. This creates a vicious cycle where inaction breeds more inaction.
Furthermore, citizens in countries more vulnerable to climate change are more likely to fight it. Specifically, the study found that people in richer countries (measured by their average income) are less likely to want to donate money to fight climate change.
Citizens of wealthy nations are less willing to give even 1% of their income compared to people in poorer countries. This might be because they worry about the cost of fixing the problem or changing their present lifestyle.
On the other hand, people in countries with hotter weather, which might already be suffering from global warming, are more likely to want to help. This suggests that when people experience the negative effects of climate change firsthand, they’re more willing to fix and adapt to it.
Overall, most people from the survey agreed we need to tackle climate change, but many worry others won’t act. Researchers propose a straightforward solution to bridge this “knowing-doing gap”: open and honest communication.
Openly sharing the high level of global willingness to contribute to climate action could be a powerful motivator, driving individual and community action forward. This could also help get rid of common myths and misunderstanding related to climate change.
Understanding the shared concern for the planet can unlock a surge of collective action, where cooperative behaviors ripple outwards across communities and society.
The study is published in the journal Nature Climate Change.
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Related Knowledge Center: Climate diplomacy
Talks are well underway in preparation for the next major international meeting on climate change, 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28), scheduled to begin Nov. 30 in the United Arab Emirates.
Much like last year’s COP27, finances — specifically, aid to developing nations — will be at the center of conference deliberations.
The conference faces an even greater sense of urgency brought on by the Sept. 8, 2023, release of the first global stocktake, which calls for accelerated action to meet the goals set in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement (COP21).
Climate diplomacy: COP 27 | Climate diplomacy: COP 28 | Climate diplomacy: COP 29