Understanding how people thought about climate change could overcome the problem of people seeing climate change as too far away to worry about, too difficult to fix, or as someone else’s responsibility, study supervisor Nancy Longnecker said.
Prof Longnecker said the results of the study suggested people were hoping for technological fixes rather than having to change their lifestyles.
Individual action, collective action and policy were all necessary components in a global response to climate change, she said.
The study, produced by Otago’s Centre for Science Communication, examined how the abstract nature of "the future" could lead to procrastination as people waited for more information before making a change.
Adopting low carbon practices could be more widely accepted and happen sooner if picturing a low carbon future was more common, study lead author Jean Fletcher said.
For example, if people expected vehicles would, rather than might, switch from petrol to electric, the uptake of electric cars could increase sooner, she said.
The study, which focuses on the beliefs of Americans, showed while 74% of survey respondents were concerned about climate change, only 29% discussed lower carbon options when asked to describe travel in the year 2050.
Related Stories
Comments
The future is not abstract for the young. To sell their birthright for a mess will condemn the generation that does so.
A huge global study with 1.2 million respondents in 50 different countries has some interesting findings.
64% of people said that climate change was an emergency – presenting a clear and convincing call for decision-makers to step up on ambition.
Of the people that said climate change is a global emergency, 59% said that the world should do everything necessary and urgently in response. Meanwhile 20% said we should act slowly, while 10% percent of people thought the world is already doing enough.
The most popular policy was, Conservation of forests and land (54% public support). The least popular were plant-based diets and affordable insurance. Only 30% of people surveyed supported the promotion of plant-based diets, while public backing for affordable insurance was just 32%.
The most profound socio-demographic driver of belief in the climate emergency and climate action is a person’s educational background. There were consistently very high levels of demand for climate action among people who are well educated.
That's right, the schoolchildren.