VICTORIANS’PERCEPTIONS OFCLIMATECHANGE
REGIONAL REPORT – OVENS MURRAY
Contents
Introduction3
Key findings ataglance4
Detailedfindings6
Priority ofclimatechange6
Causation ofclimatechange7
Levelofconcern8
Willingnesstoact10
Impacts ofclimatechange14
Leadershipandresponsibility16
Government climatechangetargets18
Support forrenewableenergy19
Everydaybehaviours20
Advancedactions22
HowtheVictorianGovernmentcansupportindividuals23
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Introduction
SustainabilityVictoria(SV)engagedanexternalresearchprovider, WallisMarketandSocialResearch,toconductastatewidesurvey tocollectbaselinequantitativedataonVictorianresidents’attitudes, beliefsandbehavioursinrelationtoclimatechange.Theresultswill beusedbySVandotherrelevantDepartmentstoinformprogram development andpolicy.
Thisreportisoneofaseriesofreportspreparedforeachof nineregionalgroupings,whichweretakenfromtheRegional
DevelopmentVictoriaclassification1.Eachregionalreportprovidesa
descriptiveanalysisofresultsforthatspecificregion,andcompares
Ovens Murray Region
LGAs in the region:
› Alpine Shire
› Benalla Rural City
› Indigo Shire
› Mansfield Shire
› Towong Shire
› Wangaratta Rural City
› Wodonga City
the regional results to overall state results for Victoria.
Methodology
Themainsurveywasadministeredusingatelephoneinterview methodology,withanonlinefollow-upsurveyemailedtothose respondentswhoagreedtotakepartinfurtherresearch.
Atotalof3,333Victoriansaged15yearsandovertookpartinthe telephonesurvey;ofthese,451alsocompletedthefollow-uponline survey.
Telephone interviews were conducted from 17 November to 14 December 2016, following a pilot test among a small sample of Victorians. The online survey was conducted from 19 December 2016to20January2017,duringwhichtworeminderswereemailed tononresponders.
Sample Design
Thesamplingframesusedforthetelephonesurvey–randomly generatedtelephonenumbers(probabilitysample)plusalistof existingphonenumbers(regionalboostersample)–ensuredthe widestpossiblecoverageoftheVictorianpopulation.
Thesurveysamplewascarefullydesignedandcontrolledtoenable regionalanalysiswhileprovidingresultsthatcanbeprojectedtothe broaderpopulationwithconfidence.
Thesamplewasdesignedtodeliveraminimumof200interviews ineachofnineregionalgroupings.Weightingwasappliedtocorrect fortheover-samplingofregionalareas,aswellasdemographic
differencesbetweentheprobabilitysampleandtheregionalbooster sample, to ensure that the total sample is representative of the Victorianpopulation.
1Source:
Thetablebelowshowsthebroaddemographiccharacteristicsof thesurveyrespondentsfortheOvensMurrayregion,showingthe unweightedandweighteddistributions.
FIGURE 1: SAMPLE DISTRIBUTION
Unweighted n=210% / Weighted n=210
%
GENDER
Male
Female / 45
55 / 48
52
AGE
Under 40
40-64
65 and over / 15
46
39 / 34
45
22
EDUCATION
University Degree or higher
TAFE/Technical/ Vocational
Completed high school
Did not complete high school
Still at school / 35
28
17
20
0 / 12
39
26
23
0
COUNTRY OF BIRTH
Australia
Elsewhere / 86
14 / 90
10
KeyfindingsinOvensMurrayataglance
Climatechangeishappeningandrequiresaction
95%
say climate change exists and humans are contributing to it;
74%
agree that climate change is an issue that requires urgent action now
85%
believe their actions can help reduce the impact of climate change
Residentsarewillingtotakeaction
84%
58%
are willing to take action on climate change
prefer to buy from businesses that show they are acting on climate change
Ovens Murray residents have observed the impactsofclimatechangeandareconcerned aboutfutureimpacts
80% concerned Water shortages drought
31% concerned Coastal erosion changes to sea level
85%concerned
Crop failures or declines
in agriculture
71% concerned
Heatwaves
98% concerned
Severe bushfires
53% concerned
Air pollution
77% concerned
Severe storms & floods
OvensMurrayissupportive of renewable energy
66%
would support wind turbines in their local area
92%
75%
would support solar panels in their local area
interested in taking part incommunityrenewable energyprojects
(highest in the state)
Detailed findings
Priority of climate change
Whenprompted,climatechangerankedsixthonalistofissuesofimportanceinVictoria;withthreeintenVictorians (30%) nominating climate change as one of the top three most important issues facing the state today. Overall, youngerpeoplerankedclimatechangehigher;theissueranksfifthamongVictoriansaged18-24(41%mentioned climatechangeasatopthreepriority),andclimbstosecondspotbehindeducationamongVictoriansaged15-17, (56%mentionedclimatechangeasatopthreepriority).
Figure2belowshowstheproportionswhomentionedeachissueasoneofthetopthreeissuesfacingthestate. ResultsareshownforVictoriaoverall,GreaterMelbourne,RegionalVictoriaandtheOvensMurrayregion.
OvensMurrayhadthesameproportion(30%)astheoverallStateaveragerankingclimatechangeinthetopthree areasofimportance,andwashigherthantheregionalaverage(23%).
ForOvensMurraytheissueofmostconcernwashealthcare(69%)followedbyeducation(54%)andtheeconomyand jobs(54%).
FIGURE 2: TOP 3 PRIORITY MENTIONS BY LOCATION
Source: A1a/b/c.
Base: Total sample (VIC: n=3,333 | GM: n=1,424 | Reg VIC n=1,909 | Ovens Murray n=210)
Toavoidinfluencingresponsestothisquestionthesurveytopicwasintroducedas“animportantissuefacing Victorians”anddidnotmentionthatclimatechangewasthefocusofthesurveyuntilafterthisquestion.
Inothernationalandinternationalsurveysonthistopic,climatechangeconsistentlyranksbelowthemoredayto dayand‘hippocket’issuessuchashealthcareandthecostofliving.However,despitelowrelativerankingofpriority, resultsthroughoutthisreportshowthatclimatechangeisrecognisedbythemajorityofVictoriansasaseriousissue thatrequiresactionfromallsectorsincludinggovernment,businessandindividuals.
Causation of climate change
The clear majority of Victorians (91%) accept some level of human causality for climate change:
› 3% think climate change is ‘entirely caused by natural processes’, and
› 4% of Victorians hold the opinion that ‘there is no such thing as climate change’.
Figure3belowcomparestheresultsforOvensMurraywithVictoriaoverall,GreaterMelbourneandRegionalVictoria. Therewerenostatisticallysignificantdifferencesinacceptanceofhumancausationorscepticismbylocation.
FIGURE 3: OPINIONS ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE CAUSALITY
NET:Scepticism / NET: Some human
causation
Victoria
Greater Melbourne
Regional VIC / 7% / 91%
12 / 34 / 38 / 7 / 3 / 4 / 2
6% / 92%
13 / 36 / 36 / 7 / 3 / 4 / 2
8% / 90%
9 / 29 / 43 / 9 / 4 / 4 / 2
Ovens Murray / 5% / 95%
8 / 26 / 51 / 11 / 2 / 20
020406080100%
Entirely caused by hum an activity Mainly caused by human activity
Partly natural and partly caused by human activity
Mainly caused by natural processes Entirely caused by natural processes
Not happening, there is no such thing as climate change Don't know
Source: A2
Base: Total sample (VIC: n=3,333 | GM: n=1,424 | Reg VIC n=1,909 | Ovens Murray n=210)
Level of concern
AlmostfourinfiveVictorians(78%)statedsomelevelofconcernaboutclimatechange.Therewereseveralvariations amongthedemographicsubgroups,withlevelsofconcernbeinghigheramong:
› younger age groups (82% among those aged under 40)
› females (81%)
› residents of Greater Melbourne (81%)
› those with a university degree (39% are ‘very concerned’ compared to 27% average).
Figure4belowcomparestheresultsforOvensMurraywithVictoriaoverall,GreaterMelbourneandRegionalVictoria. ConcernaboutclimatechangeinOvensMurrayissimilartothestateaverage.
FIGURE 4: CONCERN ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE
Source: B2
Base: Total sample
Reasons for concern
Whenaskedtoexplainwhattheywereconcernedaboutinrelationtoclimatechange,themostcommonlystated responsesincluded:
› The impact on future generations
Victoria, 76%; Ovens Murray, 77%,
› The state of the planet
Victoria, 48%; Ovens Murray, 48%,
› The impact on health / quality of life
Victoria, 38%; Ovens Murray, 31%.
Need for action now
FouroutoffiveVictorians(78%)agreethat‘climatechangeisanissuethatrequiresurgentactionnow’.Asmightbe expected,thelevelofagreementwiththisstatementwashigheramongthosewhostatedahighlevelofconcernabout climatechange(96%agreementamongthose‘very’or‘quite’concerned).
AsseeninFigure5agreementwiththisstatementwashigherinGreaterMelbourne(80%)thaninRegionalVictoria(72% average).ThelevelofagreementinOvensMurray(74%)wasonparwiththeRegionalaverage(72%).
FIGURE 5: AGREEMENT THAT CLIMATE CHANGE IS AN ISSUE THAT REQUIRES URGENT ACTION NOW
78807274
44 / 46
39 / 43
34 / 35 / 34
30
Source: D4e | Base: All who believe in some human causation of climate change
Willingness to act
ThemajorityofVictorians(80%)areatleastsomewhatwillingtotakeactiontotackleclimatechangewithathird (33%)statingtheyare“verywilling”.
Willingnesstoactonclimatechangeshowedaverysimilarpatterntoconcernaboutclimatechangeintermsof demographicvariations;itishigheramongtheyoungeragegroups(88%amongthoseagedunder25,and83% amongthoseaged25-49),andslightlyhigheramongfemales(83%comparedto77%ofmales).
Figure6belowcomparestheresultsforOvensMurraywithVictoriaoverall,GreaterMelbourneandRegionalVictoria. ThewillingnesstoactonclimatechangeinOvensMurrayisslightlyhigherthanboththestateandregionalaverage, howeverthedifferencewasnotstatisticallysignificant.
FIGURE 6: WILLINGNESS TO ACT ON CLIMATE CHANGE
8081778434
33 / 35 / 29
46 / 46 / 48 / 50
Source: A3 | Base: All who believe in some human causation of climate change
Motivators for action
Reasonsforwillingnesstoactincludedthedesiretoprotecttheenvironmentforfuturegenerations,and/ortodo theirparttoensurethehealthoftheplanet.
Barriers to action
Reasonsfornotbeingwillingtoactweremostlyrelatedtodenialthathumansarecausingclimatechange,orthe attitudethatthereisnothingtheycandoaboutitpersonally,orlackofknowledgeaboutwhattheycando.
Engagement
EngagementwiththetopicofclimatechangeisreasonablyhighacrossVictoria,withthree-quartersofrespondents (74%)statingsomelevelofinterestinnewsitems,documentariesorothertypesofinformationaboutclimatechange.
TheFigurebelowcomparestheresultsforOvensMurraywithVictoriaoverall,GreaterMelbourne,andRegional Victoria;engagementinOvensMurrayissimilartotheregionalaverage.
FIGURE 7: INTEREST IN INFORMATION ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE
74766970
29
29 / 26 / 28
46 / 47
42 / 42
Source: B1 | Base: Total sample
Willingness to act - other measures
Willingnesstoactisstronglyrelatedtoself-efficacy,thatis,thebeliefthattherearemeaningfulthingsonecandoto reducetheimpactofclimatechange.Analysisrevealedthatthemoreconcernedsomeoneisaboutclimatechange, and the more they believe they can make an impact, the more likely they are to state a willingness to take action on climatechange.
The Figures below show the results from two measures; self-efficacy and feeling positive about being part of a community-widemovementtohelptackleclimatechange.TheresultsareshownforOvensMurrayalongwithVictoria overall,GreaterMelbourne,andtheaverageforRegionalVictoria.
Self-efficacyisconsistentlyhighacrossVictoria,whereasfeelingpositiveaboutbeingpartofcommunity-wideaction onclimatechangevariesinasimilarpatterntoconcernaboutclimatechange;higherinGreaterMelbourne(74%)and lowerinRegionalVictoria(63%).Interestingly,OvensMurrayhadamongthelowestproportionwhowouldfeelpositive aboutbeingpartofcommunityaction(59%).
FIGURE 8: SELF-EFFICACYAgree / FIGURE 9: FEELING POSITIVE ABOUT BEING PART OF COMMUNITY ACTION
Pledge to TAKE2
AlthoughawarenessoftheTAKE2programwasrelativelylow,theresultsregardinglikelihoodofmakingapledge indicate potential for a good level of support for the program, with 67% of Victorians saying they are very or somewhatlikelytopledgetoTAKE2.
This proportion appears higher for the Ovens Murray region, but the difference is not statistically significant.
FIGURE 10: LIKELIHOOD OF MAKING A PLEDGE TO TAKE2
77676867
23
27 / 29 / 21
54
45
41 / 39
VictoriaGreaterRegional
MelbourneVIC / Ovens Murray
Source: C10a | Base: Module 3
Victoriaisjoiningotherleadingstatesandregionsaroundtheworldincommittingtodoourparttoreduceemissions inlinewithinternationalcommunity’s2015agreementinParis.TAKE2isVictoria’scollectiveclimatechangepledge initiativetoreachnetzeroemissionsby2050,andkeeptheglobaltemperaturerisetounder2degrees.Businesses, community groups, local governments, schools and individuals can participate. Sustainability Victoria is the lead agencyforvoluntarypledgestotakeactiononclimatechange.FormoreinformationontheTAKE2programand
how to get involved, please visit the website.
Impacts of climate change
Allsurveyrespondentswereaskedtostateiftheyhavenoticedanychangeintheoccurrenceofextremeweather and/orenvironmentaleventsinVictoriaoverthepast10years,andifso,whetherornottheythinkthatclimate change is influencing thesechanges.
For the most part, the majority perceive that there has been an increase in each event. Among those who have noticedanincreaseintheseextremeweatherand/orenvironmentalevents,thevastmajoritylinkedtheseeventsto climatechange.
Figure11belowshowstheresultsfortheOvensMurrayregionandthestateaverage.Theweathereventsmost peopleinOvensMurraynoticedincludedincreasesinbushfires(68%)andincreasesinseverestorms(58%).Around half(53%)alsonoticedmorecropfailuresanddeclinesinagriculture.
Figure12showsthatVictoriansclearlyunderstandthatclimatechangeisinfluencingtheincreasingoccurrence ofextremeweatherandenvironmentalevents.Thelinkingofextremeweatherandclimatechangeishighestfor heatwaves,withnineoutoftenpeoplestatingthatclimatechangeisinfluencingthefrequencyofthese.
FIGURE 11: OBSERVATIONS OF THE IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE
Noticed any changes in the occurrence of… / MORE / LESS / NO CHANGE / DON'T KNOWVIC
% / OvMry
% / VIC
% / OvMry
% / VIC
% / OvMry
% / VIC
% / OvMry
%
Severebushfires / 61 / 68 / 4 / 1 / 29 / 30 / 6 / 1
Severe storms andfloods / 58 / 58 / 4 / 6 / 30 / 33 / 8 / 3
Airpollution / 55 / 47 / 6 / 7 / 31 / 40 / 9 / 7
Coastal erosion and changes to sea levels / 52 / 50 / 4 / 1 / 21 / 21 / 22 / 28
Crop failures or decliningagriculture / 50 / 53 / 8 / 6 / 20 / 28 / 22 / 13
Heatwaves / 49 / 50 / 11 / 4 / 32 / 40 / 7 / 6
Water shortage anddrought / 47 / 48 / 15 / 12 / 29 / 35 / 9 / 6
FIGURE 12: IS CLIMATE CHANGE INFLUENCING?
Climate change is influencing the observed increase in this? / YESVIC
% / OvMry
%
Heatwaves / 90 / 90
Coastal erosion and changes to sea levels / 89 / 88
Water shortage anddrought / 84 / 84
Severe storms andfloods / 83 / 83
Crop failures or decliningagriculture / 82 / 77
Severebushfires / 71 / 66
Source: B5/B6 | Base: Total sample
Concern about the impacts
Foreachoftheextremeweatherand/orenvironmentalevents,allrespondentswereaskedtostatehowconcerned theyareabouteachonedirectlyaffectingtheirlocalareaintheforeseeablefuture.AsshownintheTablebelow, levelsofconcernarequitehighacrosstheboard,withwatershortageanddecliningagriculturetoppingthelist.
Figure13belowcomparestheresultsfortheGreatSouthCoastwithVictoriaoverall,GreaterMelbourneand RegionalVictoria.
ResultsindicatethatpeopleinRegionalVictoriaaremorelikelythanthoseinGreaterMelbournetobeconcerned abouttheimpactsof:
› severe bushfires, 84% compared to 62%;
› crop failures/declining agriculture, 79% compared to 68%; and,
› water shortage /drought, 79% compared to 70%.
When compared to other regional areas, people in Ovens Murray are more likely to be concerned about:
› severe bushfires (98% compared to 84% average in regional average);
› crop failures (85% compared to 79% average in regional average); and
› severe storms and flood (77% compared to 68% regional average).
TheirconcernaboutairpollutioninOvensMurray(53%)waslowerthanconcerninGreaterMelbourne(72%)andthe regionalaverage(57%).
FIGURE 13: PROPORTION WHO ARE CONCERNED ABOUT EACH ENVIRONMENTAL EVENT
Victoria / GreaterMelbourne / Regional
VIC / Ovens Murray
%
% / % / %
/ Water shortage and drought / 72 / 70 / 79 / 80
/ Crop failures or declining agriculture / 71 / 68 / 79 / 85
/ Severe bushfires / 68 / 62 / 84 / 98
/ Air pollution / 68 / 72 / 57 / 53
/ Heatwaves / 67 / 67 / 66 / 71
/ Severe storms and floods / 65 / 64 / 68 / 77
/ Coastal erosion and changes to sea levels / 51 / 53 / 45 / 31
Source: B5/B6 | Base: Total sample
Leadership and responsibility
TheVictoriancommunitybelievesthatgovernment,individuals,andbusinessandindustryshouldallbetakingaction onclimatechange.Figure13shows,foreachentity,theproportionofpeoplewhobelieveitshould“leadaction”or “contributetoaction”onclimatechange,andcomparesresultsforOvensMurraytothestateaverage.
›93%ofVictoriansbelievetheStateGovernmentshouldbeactingonclimatechange–eitherinaleadershiprole orasacontributor.
›Figure15(opposite)showsthat22%thinktheVictorianGovernmentisdoing"therightamount"butthemajority (61%)thinktheStateGovernmentshouldbedoingmore;theresultsforOvensMurraydidnotdiffersignificantly totheStateaverage.
FIGURE 14: LEADERSHIP ON CLIMATE CHANGE
Source: C1 | Base: Module 3 (VIC: n=1,000 | Ovens Murray n=64) | results exclude DK/REF
State Government action
FIGURE 15: SHOULD THE STATE GOVERNMENT BE DOING MORE?
Source: C3 | Base: Module2
Government climate change targets
SupportfortheVictoria'semissionsandrenewableenergytargetsishigh–bothtargetsarestronglysupported.The ChartbelowcomparestheresultsforOvensMurraywiththestateaverage;awarenessandsupportinOvensMurray issimilartothestateaverage.
FIGURE 16: AWARENESS OF AND SUPPORT FOR VICTORIAN GOVERNMENT TARGETS
› 78% of Victorians support this target.
› Support for the target is stronger among younger Victorians; 88% of those aged 25-39 years.
› The results for Ovens Murray were similar to the state average. / › Approximately one-quarter, 24% of Victorians were awareoftherenewableenergytargets,andafurther 19%werevaguelyawarethattargetswereset.
› 84% of Victorians support these targets
› Support for the targets was stronger among 25-39 year age group, 93%.
› The results for Ovens Murray were similar to the state average.
Source: C4a/C4b/C5a/C6a | Base: Module 2
Reasons for supporting the targets:
›"Ithinkrenewableenergyistheonesure-firewayofreducingourgreenhousegasemissions.Alotofthe emissionscomefromcoalpowerstations,whicharegettingshutdown,whichIthinkisreallygreat."
›"Ithinkitsagreatthingifitcanbedoneatareasonablecost.Fossilfuelsareafiniteresource,soifwecanget morerenewablesourcesofenergy,thenwewillbebetteroff."
›"BecauseIthinkthatweshouldbeclosingdownallthecoalbasedgenerationofelectricityforastartbecauseall ofthatisgoingintotheatmosphere."
›"Ithinkanydecreaseingreenhousegaseshasgottobegoodfortheclimateandforthefutureandthenext generation."
Support for renewable energy
AsshowninFigure17below,levelsofsupportfortherenewableenergytargetsisconsistentlyhighacrossthestate. Thegraphalsoshowseachregion'slevelsofconcernaboutclimateandindicatesthathighlevelsofsupportfor renewableenergyisnotnecessarilydependentonhighlevelsofconcern.
ForOvensMurray,bothmeasures(supportforthetargetsandconcernaboutclimatechange)aresimilartothestate average.
FIGURE 17: CONCERN ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE AND SUPPORT FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY TARGETS
Source: B2/C6a | Base: Total sample (B2) / Module 2 (C6a)
Aswellassupportingthetargets,themajorityofVictoriansaresupportiveofrenewableenergyinfrastructurein theirlocalareawith75%sayingtheywouldsupportwindturbinesintheirlocalarea,and89%sayingtheywould supportsolarpanelsintheirlocalarea,providingaccesstorenewableenergy.
Figure18showsthelevelsofsupportforbothsourcesofrenewableenergy,forVictoriaoverall,GreaterMelbourne, regionalVictoria,andeachregionalgrouping;resultsinOvensMurrayshowveryhighsupportforsolarpanels(92%) andlowersupportforwindturbines(66%).
FIGURE 18: SUPPORT FOR WIND TURBINES AND SOLAR PANELS
Source: D4d | Base: Module 1 (wind turbines) Module 2 (solar panels)
Everyday behaviours
ThemajorityofVictoriansarealreadytakingpositiveactiontoreduceenergyuse.TheChartsbelowshowthe everydayactionsthatpeoplecandonowbutmayneedsomeencouragementtodo.Actionsthatmostpeoplesaid theyalwaysdoincludedbuyingenergyefficientappliances,51%,andlimittheamountoffoodthrownout,50%.
TheChartscompareresultsforOvensMurraywiththeStateandotherregions.Nostatisticallysignificantdifferences werefound.
FIGURE 19: TAKE-UP OF EVERYDAY BEHAVIOURS
Actively reducecaruseActively limit energy used toheatandcool thehome
%
VictoriaRegional VIC OvensMurray
VictoriaRegional VIC OvensMurray
Choose to buy energy efficient household appliances
Limit the amount of food thrown out
%5323
%55
VictoriaRegional VIC OvensMurrayVictoriaRegional VIC OvensMurray
Encourage others to adopt pro climate change behaviours
%
VictoriaRegional VIC OvensMurray
Buy any household energy from a green supplier
%
VictoriaRegional VIC Ovens Murray
Source: D1a/b/c/d/e/f | Base: Total sample
Motivations and barriers for everyday behaviours
Themostcommonlystatedmotivationsforundertakingeverydaybasicincludedcost,convenience,andcomfort. Concernfortheenvironmentwasareasonablystrongmotivator,butnotthehighest.
A selection of comments from those in the Ovens Murray region is shown below.
Motivations / BarriersActively reduce car use
"Exercisekeepsmefit,notusingmycar.Idon'tliketotakemycar ifIdon'thaveto.Therearetoomanycarsontheroad.We'veonly gotthebushereforpublictransport." / "WeliveinWangarattaandit's5kilometerstotheshopping centre;IcanwalkbutI'mnotthatfit,Idon'thaveabike,andI couldtakethebusbutIdon't,becauseIhaveacar."
Actively limit energy to heat and cool the home
"Tworeasons;toreducegreenhousegasemissionsandalsoto savemoney,whichisabigmotivator." / "Becauseifit'shotoutside,I'mgoingtocooltheinside.Ifit'scold outside,I'mgoingtobewarm.Imakesurelightsareswitchedoff, butifitstemperature,Idon'tcare."
Choose to buy energy efficient household appliances
"Wellbecauseitischeaperifitismoreenergyefficientintermsof running theappliance." / "Thelastoneblewup.Idon'tcheckthestarsontheenergyrating."
Limit the amount of food thrown out
"Ihaveadogthatjustabouteatsanything.Wecookwhatweneed sogenerallyallleftoversareeitherforlunchthenextdayorgoes to thepuppies." / "JustbecauseitfestersinthefridgeandIdon'teatitsoIendup throwingitout,I'mover-buyingIsuppose."
Encourage others to adopt pro climate change behaviours
"It's not about climate change as such; I do believe in saving resourcesandrecyclingthoughandIencourageotherstodothat." / "Idon'tknow,it'sjustnotsomethingwetalkabout.Whenwetalk aboutit,Ido,butthereareusuallyotherthingsgoingon."
Buy any household energy from green supplier
“Ithinkit'sgoingtohelptheenvironment,tomakesuretheplanet iskeptinthebestorderaspossible.” / "Becausewe'vejustmoved,andIwantedtoexpeditetheprocess ofgettingthepowerconnected."
Advanced actions
TobetterunderstandtheactionsthatSustainabilityVictoriamightsupportinthefuture,itisimportanttogauge thelevelofinterest(framedwithinafiveyearperiod)inaselectionof'advanced'behaviours.Theyareconsidered ‘advanced’becausetheyhavehighupfrontcostsandrequirealevelofplanningbythosewhowishtoadoptthem.
Respondents were presented with the five advanced behaviours shown below, and asked to state their level of interestineachone;asseeninFigure20,thelevelofinterestintakinguptheseactionswithinthenext5yearswas high. The Figure below shows the proportion who are 'very' or 'somewhat' interested in each action, for Victoria overall, Greater Melbourne, regional average and the Ovens Murray Region. While there were no statistically significantdifferencesinthelevelofinterestbylocation,itisimportanttonotethefollowing:
›OvensMurrayrespondentshadthehighestlevelofinterestinparticipatingincommunity-basedrenewable energyprojects,75%comparedto58%stateaverage;
› Ovens Murray also had higher levels of interest in buying 100% green power (78%) than the regional average (68%).
FIGURE 20: INTEREST IN ADVANCED BEHAVIOURS
Source: D3a/b/c/d/e.Base: Module 1 and accept some human causation | Results exclude “already doing this”
How the Victorian Government can support individuals
SurveyrespondentswereaskedtocommentonwhattheythinktheStateGovernmentcoulddotosupportindividual actiononclimatechange,with62%beingabletothinkofsuggestions.Thecommentswerecodedintothemesas shownintheTablebelow.AcrossVictoria,themajorityofcommentsrelatedtoeducation(providinginformationon whatpeoplecandototackleclimatechange),providingincentivesand/orsubsidisingsolarandotherrenewable energysources,andprovidingfundingforcommunityprograms.
FIGURE 21: SUGGESTIONS FOR HOW THE VICTORIAN GOVERNMENT CAN SUPPORT INDIVIDUAL ACTION
Suggestions for how to support individualaction / ALL VIC(n=523)
%
Education / promotion of climate change issues / 30
Support / promote / subsidise solar power / 23
Support / promote renewable energy / 18
Reduce waste and pollution / 16
Provide funding / financial incentives / 13
Improved public transport / cycle tracks / 9
Increase legislation / regulation of business and industry / 4
Better recycling / waste reduction / 3
More schemes such as the Green Energy Lighting scheme / 3
Support / promote green cars / 3
Reduce / ban plastic bags / 2
Plant more trees / re-vegetation / 1
Other / 10
Source: F4 | Base: Module 3
Further information
For more information contact Sustainability Victoria
Sustainability Victoria Level 28, Urban Workshop,
50 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
Phone (03) 8626 8700
sustainability.vic.gov.au
Published by Sustainability Victoria.
Summaryofkeyfindings–ClimateChangeSocialResearch
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