NICK PIDGEON OPINION Changing perceptions


Altering public beliefs and attitudes is critical to our efforts to prevent dangerous climate change, argues Professor Nick Pidgeon


undergo major transformations to avoid the worst of its potential impacts. In the UK the legally binding Climate Change Act sets an ambitious target of an 80 per cent reduction in emissions of greenhouse gases by 2050 compared to a 1990 baseline. Achieving such tough emissions reduction goals


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will mean significant changes to the ways we both produce and use energy: in particular a transition to lower carbon energy sources, the reconfiguration of supply networks, and extensive changes to our daily behaviour and practices to decrease individual and community energy consumption. Public perceptions and attitudes are critically


important to these challenges. On the supply side, acceptance of new, innovative energy facilities such as power stations and grid infrastructure will play a key role. We know from past case studies that community opposition can lead to delays or even cancellation of plans and construction. Uncertainty associated with the processes to decide where facilities are sited can also bring negative psychosocial and health impacts in affected communities. On the demand side, perceptions of the need to take mitigating action against climate change, and of the ability to act on this, will be key precursors to changes in personal behaviour and practices, and for the acceptability of wider government policies aimed at motivating such changes. Because of this, gaining an in-depth profile of public attitudes to climate change is critical to understanding whether, and in what ways, public attitudes might be changing or not. Research on public perceptions indicates that


awareness of and concern about climate change is high. Over three quarters of the sample in a major British survey conducted for Cardiff University by Ipsos-MORI in early 2010 stated they believed that the world’s climate is changing. However, perhaps paradoxically given the strengthening scientific evidence, many people in both Europe and the US have become slightly more sceptical about the issue over the past five years. One possible reason for this is that other global/ societal or personal issues can have a higher importance for people, and polling has shown that environmental problems including climate change have indeed assumed a lesser importance since the onset of the global financial crisis. The media controversy generated during the winter of 2009- 2010 concerning emails from climate scientists at the University of East Anglia, and over errors in glacial


VOIDING DANGEROUS CLIMATE change is one of the most urgent environmental policy issues, and it appears increasingly likely that societies must


melting forecasts made by the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change, might also have served to reinforce uncertainty and scepticism among sections of the public. Here the evidence shows that the impact of these high-profile media controversies on public attitudes may have been relatively limited, and certainly less marked than had initially been feared. A further interesting finding from our 2010


ESRC survey is that people tend to ascribe primary responsibility for dealing with climate change to external actors such as the international community and national governments. Only 10 per cent said that individuals and their families had the primary responsibility. Some people clearly wish to displace responsibility for major action onto others, avoiding what are perceived to be costly or difficult changes to behaviour and lifestyles.


“ The evidence shows that


the impact of high-profile media controversies on public attitudes may have been relatively limited


For many, however, climate change is seen as too


big a problem for individuals to tackle themselves, with inter-governmental agreement also necessary to avoid other countries free-riding. Asked whether they are personally prepared to do something about climate change most people also respond that they are willing, but that it is difficult to take appropriate action without the right guidance, help or incentives from government. All of this implies that there is probably a stronger political mandate for strong government intervention on climate change than is sometimes assumed by politicians and policymakers. Climate change remains one of the most pressing


and complex environmental and political issues of our day. The question of shifting public attitudes, and how these might facilitate or hinder the acceptability of future climate policies, financial instruments, or new low-carbon technologies, is only just beginning to be addressed. It is an issue that is set to become even more important as the debate about climate and energy policy in Britain begins to hot up. n


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Professor Nick Pidgeon is an ESRC Climate Leader Fellow and Human Dimensions Theme Leader for the Climate Change Consortium for Wales (C3W) initiative


Tel 02920 874 567 Email pidgeonn@cardiff.ac.uk


For details of the 2010 Climate Change Survey see: www.understanding-risk.org


AUTUMN 2010 SOCIETY NOW 17 ”


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