Mapping public support for climate solutions in France

Bibliographic Data

ID15548832
AuthorsNicolas Schmid (0009-0009-5461-3754, ETH Zurich, corresponding author), Benjamin Guinaudeau (0000-0001-7206-6875, University of Konstanz, corresponding author)
Year2022
Volume17
Issue4
Pages044035-044035
Publication date2022-02-24
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueEnvironmental Research Letters (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1748-9326 • E-ISSN: 1748-9326
PublisherIOP Publishing (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1088/1748-9326/ac583d
OpenAlexW4214572549
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited61

Although successful sustainability transitions depend on public support, we still know little about citizens’ opinions on climate solutions. Existing research often focuses on the problem perception of climate change rather than analyzing attitudes toward specific climate solutions. Studies also largely use closed questions to assess public opinion, posing a problem of ecological validity. Here, we address these gaps by leveraging data from a large-scale public consultation process, the “Grand Débat National”, launched by the French government in response to the Yellow Vest movement in 2019. Combining structural topic modelling, dictionary-based text analysis and qualitative coding, we map the salience and directionality of public opinion on climate solutions. We find that consultation participants perceive climate change as the most salient environmental problem. Transforming the transport and energy sectors is the most supported solution for addressing climate change. For these two sectors, substitution-based climate solutions - as opposed to sufficiency- or efficiency-based measures - are most salient. For instance, participants stress the need to expand public transport infrastructure and switch to renewable energy technologies for power generation. Our findings demonstrate a strong public consensus on most substitution-based climate solutions, except for the role of cars and nuclear energy. While most participants do not link climate solutions to specific policy instruments, we find preferences for authority-based instruments in the context of phasing out polluting technologies, and treasury-based instruments for supporting innovation and phasing in low carbon technologies

Business · Climate change · Climate change mitigation · Context (archaeology · Economics · Environmental economics · Environmental resource management · Geography · Government (linguistics · Political science · Public engagement · Public opinion · Public relations · Salience (neuroscience · Sustainability · Climate Change Communication and Perception · Computational and Text Analysis Methods · Computer Science · Social Acceptance of Renewable Energy · Ecology

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