Survey reveals Australians’ lukewarm response to urgent action on global heating

An annual climate action survey has highlighted concern for the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) and a desire for renewables over nuclear power, however, Australians impacted by the cost-of-living crisis seem less enthusiastic on taking climate change actions, despite being strongly supportive of the need to address this global challenge.

Griffith University’s Climate Action Beacon conducted the third of five planned Climate Action Surveys, asking what Australians thought, felt and did about climate change. Most Australians believe in the reality of climate change with some respondents noting local impacts:

The survey found several important and interesting highlights:

• Australians rated clean energy sources more favorable than nuclear or high emissions energy sources.
• The reasons most commonly cited by 2023 new respondents for not engaging in pro-environmental behaviors included insufficient time and/or money, entrenched routines/habits, doubts regarding the efficacy of these behaviors, and lack of knowledge of actions to take. Similar barriers to climate action were noted in 2021 and 2022, suggesting that not enough is being done at individual and institutional levels to motivate action.
• Australians exhibited temporal and spatial distancing of climate changes, underplaying the proximity of impacts to themselves and the time at hand to act.

“We don’t need to convince Australians that climate change is real anymore—that work has been done,” Dr. Karlien Paas said.

“The immediate task at hand is to communicate that climate change requires urgent action now—and critically, that any action individuals—and the governments they vote for—take now, is consequential.

“Australians can make a huge difference to the future.”

The survey gathered data from two Australian populations: 1,184 participants from the 2021 and/or 2022 survey (“repeat” respondents) and 2,874 previously unsurveyed people (“new” respondents)—the total 2023 sample comprised 4,058 Australian adults, a larger sample than used in most other national surveys.

The survey acknowledged that some respondents’ answers may have been influenced by external factors that happened in the previous 12 months, including increased cost of living pressures. Only 1% of Australians indicated they are not at all concerned about cost of living, and a large majority (84%) indicated they are moderately, greatly, or extremely concerned about cost of living.

Importantly, the survey found that most respondents were concerned about both the cost of living and the pace of climate change—it was not as if concerns for the former had replaced concerns over the latter.

The sample of new respondents was recruited to ensure it was demographically representative of the Australian population in terms of age, gender, and geographic state or territory of residence.

In 2023, Griffith University worked with CSIRO to explore Australians’ attitudes to climate change and the much-loved Great Barrier Reef. The survey found that half of Australians strongly agreed that the GBR was part of their Australian identity.

Most Australians (71%) believed climate change posed an immediate threat to the GBR, necessitating prompt action; only 30% of Australians were optimistic about the future of the GBR, and 26% were afraid when hearing about climate-related damage to the GBR.

Associate Professor Graham Bradley said it was no surprise that survey questions around climate change and the Great Barrier Reef were met with responses that favored greater action to care for the Reef, as well as a strong sense of pride and duty for its future.

“A significant majority, almost 8 out of 10, expressed a strong sense of pride in the GBR being a World Heritage area, with 6 out of 10 believing that the GBR should be on the World Heritage Danger list—an interesting result given efforts by governments and industry to keep the GBR off the list,” Associate Professor Graham Bradley said.

“Seven out of 10 Australians see protecting the GBR as a responsibility that all Australians share, fostering a sense of collective duty and unity.”

The survey consistently found that individuals with firsthand experience with natural disasters or adverse climatic events demonstrated a greater understanding of climate change, heightened awareness, concern, and distress regarding its impacts.

They also exhibited more pro-environmental behaviors and greater efficacy in addressing climate change.

While the increase in climate change awareness following disasters was heartening, Associate Professor Sameer Deshpande cautioned that “waiting for widespread disaster events to occur and spur action is not feasible nor responsible.”

“It is reasonable for Australians to perceive climate change as disaster events and miss the significance of everyday actions like recycling and repurposing, reducing consumption, considering diet changes, walking or using public transport, planting trees and so on,” he said.

“There is time between and away from disasters where Australians can act locally—literally in their own backyards. Alongside important government and industry discussions around energy transitions, changes in individual and household behavior matter enormously to climate action and a better future.”