90% of respondents appeared to be aware of the challenges resulting from climate change, 59% of which believe that the consequences of climate change were underestimated. 76% of respondents believe these consequences were becoming critical/dangerous.
The 2015 BVA, La Recherche and Le Monde climate survey from 29 April to 4 May, focused on a representative sample of 1,053 people in France. The survey aimed to understand French people’s awareness and understanding of climate change. Ninety% of respondents appeared to be aware of the challenges resulting from climate change, 59% of which believe that the consequences of climate change were underestimated. 76% of respondents believe these consequences were becoming critical/dangerous. As for the cause of climate change, 93% of respondents believe that it is due to human activity, namely intensive farming and deforestation.
Another interesting survey to discuss is the September 2015 Odoxa—Puf survey of French youth on climate change. The survey relied on a representative sample of 1,001 people aged 15 to 30. It found that two thirds of respondents have never heard of COP21; only 13% of the remaining one third had a precise idea of what the COP21 was. Another interesting finding is that 71% of respondents were pessimistic as to the usefulness of this conference and its contribution to reducing climate change (cf. the 2°C objective). The survey also shows that young people favor the most radical solutions to climate change. For instance, 39% of respondents would like to force companies to reduce their CO2 emissions and impose sanctions on those that don’t.
Surveying the perception of climate change issues among four European countries
The EPCC 2016-2017 survey conducted in four European countries, including France, offers an interesting insight into the relevance of climate change issues relative to other national issues/questions. The French part of the survey focused on interviewing 1,000 people aged 15 and over from the 9th to the 14th of June 2016. Among the key findings, were that 36% of French respondents ranked unemployment as the top priority/issue facing the country whereas only 6% ranked climate change as the top issue. Nevertheless, 41% of respondents clearly indicated that they were very or extremely worried about climate change, compared to 29% in Norway. The survey also focused on the beliefs, emotions, psychological distance and other/related social aspects.
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