Perception of climate change and the energy transition: results from a European survey

To achieve national and European climate targets, political leaders will need to feel confident that their citizens generally support efforts to drastically reduce CO2 emissions. An in-depth research project, called European Perceptions of Climate Change (funded within the Social-Ecological Research program), provides insights into public support for climate change related policies across four European countries. The project team identified a widespread support for the Paris climate agreement and for renewable energy solutions, which suggests that there might be an opportunity for climate movements to gain momentum

Efeito do peso do ovo e do seu tempo de armazenamento sobre a viabilidade dos pintos do dia

Este trabalho foi desenvolvido com o intuito de estudar o efeito do peso do ovo e do seu tempo de armazenamento sobre a viabilidade dos pintos do dia, resultantes de um bando de galinhas Shaver Redbro cruzadas com galos Starcross x Shaver carecos. Neste sentido, na cidade de Bragança (latitude 410 49'N, longitude 60 40'W e altitude 720 metros), mais precisamente na Quinta de Santa Apolónia, pertencente à Escola Superior Agrária de Bragança, foram efectuadas quatro séries de incubação utilizando no seu conjunto, 333 ovos sujeitos a um período de armazenamento que variou entre 2 e 34 dias (15,6+9,1 dias)

Speak up for Change? Understanding the Social Costs and Benefits of Confronting Environmental Disregard.

In the face of stagnation in efforts to tackle the global increase of greenhouse gas emissions, there is a great need to broaden our understanding of normative processes that maintain and change social norms in relation to environmentally (un)sustainable lifestyles. My research aims to address this gap in the literature by examining the normative processes associated with climate change. More specifically I focused on identifying the interpersonal costs and wider benefits (in terms of social change) associated with the interpersonal confrontation of environmental disregard. Firstly, to establish a meaningful point of comparison for subsequent studies, I compared the normative status of environmental disregard and racial prejudice (Studies 1 & 2). I then moved on to examining perceptions and consequences of interpersonal confrontation of environmental disregard over the course of six studies by placing participants in the position of an observer of an interaction in which the confrontation occurred. The results consistently identified high social costs (reduced feelings of closeness and warmth) associated with confronting environmental disregard (but not racism). The costs of confronting environmental disregard were partly determined by the morality of the issue, the appropriateness of the confrontation, the pre-existing attitude of the observer and the justification used by the confronter for their reaction. My studies also tested different strategies to reduce the social costs for the confronter (such as invoking morality in different ways) and also assessed the consequences of confrontation for changes in perceptions of social norms, climate change attitudes and behavioural tendencies amongst those bearing witness. In relation to the consequences for behavioural tendencies resulting from interpersonal confrontation, the findings suggest that confrontation of environmental disregard encourages pro-environmental action tendencies if a scientific justification for the confrontation is provided. The final chapter of the thesis explores the theoretical and practical implications of these findings in relation to engendering processes of social change.University of Exete

The norms associated with climate change:understanding social norms through acts of interpersonal activism

A growing body of research points to the role social norms may play in both maintaining carbon intensive lifestyles and soliciting changes towards more sustainable ways of living. However, despite highlighting the importance of pro-environmental social norms, such literature has said far less about the processes by which such norms might develop. We present a new approach to conceptualising social norms that focuses on understanding their dynamics within social interaction, by positioning interpersonal confrontation as a potential mechanism of change. We examine the normative dynamics of environmentalism by comparing the costs of interpersonally confronting climate change disregard with those associated with confronting racism. In two experimental studies, we presented participants with scenarios describing a person confronting (versus not confronting) contentious comments in each domain. We identified social costs to interpersonal confrontation of climate change disregard but not racism, as indicated by reduced ratings of perceived warmth of and closeness to the confronter (Study 1), and this effect was mediated by the perceived morality of the issue in question (Study 2). Our findings highlight how wider social constructions of (im)morality around climate change impact upon social interactions in ways that have important implications for processes of social (and ultimately environmental) change

British public perceptions of climate risk, adaptation options and resilience (RESiL RISK): Topline findings of a GB survey conducted in October 2019

This report summarises topline findings from a nationally representative survey conducted in October 2019 with 1,401 British respondents to examine public perceptions of climate change, its associated impacts, and to map public support for climate change adaptation and resilience building strategies. The survey results provide evidence for a shift in perceptions among the British public towards greater concern and a general willingness to support steps to address the issue. By comparing the current survey results to previous studies conducted in 2010, 2013 and 2016, this report illustrates how public beliefs have altered over recent years