More than four out of five Irish people across all regions and backgrounds are either “alarmed” or “concerned” about climate change, according to analysis published by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The small percentage in the “doubtful” category – 4 per cent – shows climate scepticism is rare in Ireland, the research conducted with Yale University Programme on Climate Change Communication finds.
The Climate Change’s Four Irelands’ survey identifies four audiences who share similar sets of beliefs, attitudes and behaviours relating to climate change.
The alarmed (34 per cent); concerned (48 per cent), cautious (14 per cent) and doubtful strongly differ on knowledge, levels of worry and willingness to take personal action on climate change. The findings published on Tuesday are an update on an assessment published in 2022.
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Those who describe themselves as alarmed strongly think climate change caused by human activity is a real and immediate threat, while the concerned are convinced it is a serious issue, but are less worried and view it as “a less immediate threat”.
The cautious think climate change is happening but are less sure of causes and are more likely to think it will not affect them personally. The doubtful are not worried and do not perceive it as a threat.
“People from cities, towns, villages and rural areas hold diverse views on climate change, but the study does not show a strong urban-rural divide. In relation to our attitudes to climate change, more unites us than divides us,” said EPA director Dr Eimear Cotter.
The report shows a majority within each climate change audience agrees climate change is happening. While awareness is very high, there are strong differences in what the audiences believe is causing it.
Climate change is mostly caused by human activities, however a significant minority of alarmed and concerned audiences incorrectly believe it is caused equally by human and natural action. The alarmed audience feels most knowledgeable about climate change, followed by the doubtful.
“Successfully addressing the challenge of climate change requires a diversity of messages, messengers and methods that reach each of these four audiences and must be tailored to meet their particular needs,” said EPA programme manager Mary Frances Rochford.
The analysis is a useful framework to help climate communicators identify and understand target audiences to engage the public more effectively about climate change and solutions, she added.
The research is part of the ‘Climate Change in the Irish Mind’ project and is based on a survey of 1,330 adults by Behaviour & Attitudes conducted last October.
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