Blue Mass Group

Reality-based commentary on politics.

  • Shop
  • Subscribe to BMG
  • Contact
  • Log In
  • Front Page
  • All Posts
  • About
  • Rules
  • Events
  • Register on BMG

Notes on How People Think About Climate Change

October 8, 2015 By gmoke

I attended two climate change lectures recently. One lecture was titled “Clean and Cheap: How Americans Think About Energy in an Age of Global Warming” on 9/17/15 at MIT with David Konisky, Indiana University and the other was “Disruptive Ideas: Public Intellectuals in the Climate Debate” on 9/24/15 at Tufts with Matthew Nisbet, Northeastern.

Konisky and his research partner, Stephen Ansolabehere of Harvard, based their work on more than ten years of polling data on the electrical energy future consumers and voters want. They found that 70-80% want to reduce fossil fuel use and increase renewables and that this is stable over time, that people consider local environmental harm more than economic cost when making energy decisions, and that attitudes are not driven by their consideration of global harm from greenhouse gas pollution.

Nisbet sees the climate change debate as a wicked problem, one we cannot end but merely manage with so many different ways to approach that it serves as a mirror for our own values. He identifies three kinds of public intellectual stances among current climate activists:
ecological activists: a problem of globalization and capitalism with Nature as the ultimate measure; smart growth reformers: climate as market failure, Nature can be stretched; and ecomodernists: climate is an energy and innovation problem, Nature is more resilient than we think.

Nisbet’s slides and related reading list from this lecture are available at
http://climateshiftproject.org/2015/09/24/sept-24-talk-tufts-university-public-intellectuals-in-the-climate-debate-slides-related-reading/

I wonder what the polling information and public intellectual position would be if we prefaced these discussions with the actual USA energy context:
energy generation for everything, including transportation, has plateaued at or below 100 quads btus per year for the last 20 years and we get useful work or exergy out of less than 40% of the energy we count in that 100 quads or less, “rejecting” about 60% of the energy we produce.

Here are my rough notes from both presentations:

Clean and Cheap: How Americans Think About Energy in an Age of Global Warming
9/17/15
MIT
David Konisky, Indiana University

Americans want to reduce fossil fuels increase renewables, a stable opinion over time [since at least the first oil crisis, his research looks at polling data from last decade]
Perception of enviro harm stronger (local not global) than economic cost, true for all energy sources
Attitudes not driven by climate change
Concern about local enviro impact and enviro costs help explain support for EPA regs rather than other measures [cap and trade, carbon tax]

Global warming did not correlate with attitudes for/against nukes
10+ year public opinion project: what future do consumers and voters want? (Electricity only)
70-80% want renewables and this is stable over time
Very few want all of the above or less energy used overall

People consider costs and harms not the energy source itself – economic costs and social costs
In polls people think that renewables are cheaper than fossil fuels from 2002 on and that renewables create little enviro harm
People have relative harm about right but don’t have relative costs of renewables correct.
Once you determine how people feel about their perceptions of harms and costs, you have explained 90% of their attitudes. Energy is not a political party question. Weight of harm (local) is much more important than cost (2-3x), in opinion. Global warming is close to zero although it is beginning to come into play.

People don’t care and won’t pay for climate change so that is not the lever.
People support regulatory cap at 75-80%
Cap and trade 45-55%
Carbon tax 25-55%
Most supportive of least efficient method possibly because it affects them locally and because people do not see the link with cap and trade or carbon tax

Climate change is not enough
To reduce carbon go after co-pollutants such as soot and mercury, privilege local over global because that’s what people care about.

People generally have the harms correct but not costs

———————-

Disruptive Ideas: Public Intellectuals in the Climate Debate
9/24/15
Tufts
Matthew Nisbet, Northeastern

Shift from enviro, economic threat to a public health threat now with a moral framing (the Pope)
Perception is affected by framing or context
About a quarter of the population are stuck in their opinion, 2/3 of that quarter alarmed and 1/3 dismissive.
Dismissives are angered by the national security frame but have a high risk perception that feeds into the energy security frame
Design to Win (2007) Nathan Cummings Foundation – carbon price needed and we have the technology needed
Matthew Nisbet’s 2013 Shorenstein Center (Harvard) paper on McKibben

Nature’s Prophet: Bill McKibben as Journalist, Public Intellectual and Activist


Why We Disagree about Climate Change by Mike Hulme – it’s a wicked problem, one we cannot end but merely manage with many different ways to approach it and serves as a mirror for our own values
Climate justice arises around 2010 – a market problem not solvable through the current market nor through technology
Andrew Revkin argues for energy access, people’s energy, for human development
Politics of the Earth – book on how people look at environmental issues (by John Dryzek)
Nisbet identifies three kinds of climate activists – ecological activists: a problem of globalization and capitalism with Nature as the ultimate measure; smart growth reformers – climate as market failure, Nature can be stretched; ecomodernists – climate is an energy and innovation problem, Nature is more resilient than we think: Ecomodernist Manifesto
Now working on a book about public intellectuals on wider social issues
We need more synthesis and synergy across the disciplines
www.climateshiftproject.org – all his work

————————

I know Matthew and his work is expanding beyond climate change to the role of public intellectuals in society on a wide variety of issues. Should be interesting.

Please share widely!
fb-share-icon
Tweet
0
0

Filed Under: User Tagged With: carbon, carbon tax, climate-change, ecology, emissions trading schemes, energy, environment, Political Science, Public Intellectuals, public-opinion

Recommended Posts

  • No posts liked yet.

Recent User Posts

Predictions Open Thread

December 22, 2022 By jconway

This is why I love Joe Biden

December 21, 2022 By fredrichlariccia

Garland’s Word

December 19, 2022 By terrymcginty

Some Parting Thoughts

December 19, 2022 By jconway

Beware the latest grift

December 16, 2022 By fredrichlariccia

Thank you, Blue Mass Group!

December 15, 2022 By methuenprogressive

Recent Comments

  • blueeyes on Beware the latest griftSo where to, then??
  • Christopher on Some Parting ThoughtsI've enjoyed our discussions as well (but we have yet to…
  • Christopher on Beware the latest griftI can't imagine anyone of our ilk not already on Twitter…
  • blueeyes on Beware the latest griftI will miss this site. Where are people going? Twitter?…
  • chrismatth on This site (will be disabled on) December 31, 2022I joined BMG late - 13 years ago next month and three da…
  • SomervilleTom on Geopolitics of FusionEVERY un-designed, un-built, and un-tested technology is…
  • Charley on the MTA on This site (will be disabled on) December 31, 2022That’s a great idea, and I’ll be there on Sunday. It’s a…

Archive

@bluemassgroup on Twitter

#mapoli

legislataapp Legislata @legislataapp ·
3h

Tweet summary for MA State House for 2023-03-22: 179 tweets from 52 legislators. Top words: ramadan, learn, students, mubarak, celebrate, legislative, i’m, water, boston, morning. #mapoli

Reply on Twitter 1638799575095087109 Retweet on Twitter 1638799575095087109 Like on Twitter 1638799575095087109 Twitter 1638799575095087109
rwwatchma Trump's election fraud hoax undermines democracy @rwwatchma ·
6h

An advisor for Soros, who is a longtime target for Republicans, told CNBC that Soros "has never met or spoken to Alvin Bragg."

Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg's ties to billionaire George Soros are not as close as Republicans claim https://www.cnbc.com/2023/03/22/trump-indictment-alvin-bragg-ties-to-george-soros-examined.html #bospoli #mapoli

Reply on Twitter 1638765673999396864 Retweet on Twitter 1638765673999396864 Like on Twitter 1638765673999396864 Twitter 1638765673999396864
subliminal73 Subliminal7 @subliminal73 ·
6h

#Parents #ParentsMatter #Students #Education #Women #Moms #SingleMoms #Men #Dads #SchoolChoice #CommitmentToAmerica #IA #IApol #IAGOP #NH #NHpolitics #NHsen #NHGOP #MA #MAsen #MApoli #Trump2024 #Agenda47 #FL #FLsen #FLpol #SC #SCpol #SCGOP #SmallBiz

House Republicans @HouseGOP

House Republicans’ Parents Bill of Rights includes:

✔️ Right to know what’s being taught in schools.
✔️ Right to be heard.
✔️ Right to see school budget & spending.
✔️ Right to protect their child’s privacy.
✔️ Right to be updated on any violent activity at school.

Reply on Twitter 1638753430033297409 Retweet on Twitter 1638753430033297409 Like on Twitter 1638753430033297409 Twitter 1638753430033297409
medfordmedia MedfordMedia @medfordmedia ·
7h

What happened to Neil Osborne and his #hateful rhetoric? @NOsbn4medford @MayorLungoKoehn @MedfordPolice @MayorOfMalden No Place in Our Society for a Bigot like Neil Osborne https://medfordinformationcentral.blogspot.com/2023/03/no-place-in-our-society-for-bigot-like.html #MaPoli #DrNo Why did it take so long for Breanna to come to her senses?

Reply on Twitter 1638749458362953729 Retweet on Twitter 1638749458362953729 Like on Twitter 1638749458362953729 Twitter 1638749458362953729
rwwatchma Trump's election fraud hoax undermines democracy @rwwatchma ·
7h

Former top Republican strategist who worked to get Mitt Romney elected president #mapoli #nhpolitics #mepolitics

The Lincoln Project @ProjectLincoln

"The reason there’s a former president being indicted is because the Republican Party nominated and elected a criminal. It’s no more complicated than that.” —@StuartPStevens

Reply on Twitter 1638739687660732419 Retweet on Twitter 1638739687660732419 Like on Twitter 1638739687660732419 1 Twitter 1638739687660732419
reginamrobinson Dr. Regina M. Robinson, Ed.D. @reginamrobinson ·
7h

Wonderful having my @MASchoolsK12 colleagues join @massupt for an inspiring day at the Annual Women’s Leadership Network Conference learning from students, supts, and powerful keynote speakers! #sheleads #maedu #mapoli

4

Reply on Twitter 1638739502666780672 Retweet on Twitter 1638739502666780672 Like on Twitter 1638739502666780672 Twitter 1638739502666780672
Load More

From our sponsors




Google Calendar







Search

Archives

  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter




Copyright © 2023 Owned and operated by BMG Media Empire LLC. Read the terms of use. Some rights reserved.