Resources

Search below for resources covering the intersection of climate engagement, social science and data analytics.

RESULTS

A large majority of Californians support existing net metering policy, and broadly oppose a proposal that reduces credits for people who contribute solar power to the electric grid.

  • 71% believe the state of California should be doing more to encourage the use of solar power vs. just 14% who say it should be doing less.
  • 80% of California voters support net metering (after hearing a neutral description of the policy), vs just 11% who oppose it.
  • 64% of voters oppose a proposal to “reduce the credit that people who have rooftop solar receive from their local utility for any extra electricity that their rooftop solar generates and feeds back to the grid.” 
  • Keeping energy bills low is a priority for California voters – and they are far more likely to blame rising electricity bills on "utility companies seeking to boost or maintain their profits" (56%) and "managing wildfire risks" (38%) than anything related to solar. 

 

Research & Articles
02-14-2021

A recent survey to better understand American attitudes towards fuel economy, particularly among prospective vehicle buyers (those who intend to purchase or lease a vehicle within the next two years) found: 

  • Room for improvement: Prospective buyers who currently have a vehicle most commonly selected fuel economy as one of the attributes of their vehicle that has the most room for improvement (42%); the next-highest selections were purchase price (25%) and maintenance costs (25%).
  • Importance of fuel economy to vehicle selection: 64% of Americans who are planning to buy or lease a vehicle within the next two years say that fuel economy is ‘extremely important’ or ‘very important’ to them when considering what vehicle to get next. Only 6% say it is ‘not very important’ or ‘not important at all.’
  • Key expectations for automakers: More than 7 in 10 Americans ‘agree’ or ‘strongly agree’ that:
    • automakers should continue to improve fuel economy for all vehicle types;
    • automakers have a responsibility to consumers to improve gas mileage; and
    • each new generation of vehicles available on the market is expected to be more fuel-efficient than the last.

Poll: Most NC Voters Support Wind Energy

Climate Nexus, George Mason, and Yale for the Southeastern Wind Coalition
Research & Articles
01-13-2021

77%  of North Carolinians think the primary goal of the state’s energy policy should be achieving 100% clean energy and a majority (33% strongly; 38% somewhat) support the development of offshore wind farms. 70% of voters polled also believe the buildout of offshore wind along North Carolina’s coast would have a positive impact on jobs, the state’s economy, air quality and climate change.

Poll: Black Detroiters See High Potential for Job Growth in Clean Energy

Morning Consult for WE ACT for Environmental Justice & Environmental Defense Fund
Research & Articles
10-27-2020

Survey of Detroit adults sought to measure concern for and perception of the impacts of climate change and other environmental threats like pollution, flooding, and storms, how these threats impact different racial/ethnic groups, and how adults’ views on these issues vary by race and ethnicity. 

Poll: Differences in Adults’ Concern and Perceptions of Climate Threats, Environmental Injustice

Morning Consult for WE ACT for Environmental Justice & Environmental Defense Fund
Research & Articles
10-22-2020

Survey of Black, Hispanic, and white adults sought to measure concern for and perception of the impacts of climate change and other environmental threats like pollution, flooding, and storms, how these threats impact different racial/ethnic groups, and how adults’ views on these issues vary by race and ethnicity. Key findings include:

  • Black adults (60%) are nearly twice as likely as white adults (32%) to say they are very concerned about air pollution in their local community.
  • A majority of Americans (70%) are concerned about climate change, but Hispanic adults (68%) and Black adults (66%) are more likely than white adults (53%) to say climate change is a major problem.
  • Hispanic (50%) and Black (41%) adults are more likely than white adults (36%) to say they’re very or somewhat familiar with the term “environmental injustice.” While 51% of Black adults and 48% of Hispanic adults view environmental injustice as a major problem in the U.S., only 33% of white adults hold the same view, a significantly lower percentage.
  • Black adults (60%) and Hispanic adults (61%) are significantly more likely than white adults (53%) to say they experience a lot + some exposure to pollution in their daily lives.
  • While majorities of white (51%), Black 63% and Hispanic (55%) adults all say that predominantly Black neighborhoods still experience the long-term effects of redlining (definitely + probably), there are still differences between these groups in the extent to which they believe Black neighborhoods experience these impacts. Black adults (46%) are significantly more likely than both white adults (20%) and Hispanic adults (24%) to say that predominantly Black neighborhoods definitely still experience the long-term effects of redlining.

Poll: Washington Voters Support Full Transition to Electric Cars by 2030

Climate Nexus, Yale University, George Mason University for Coltura
Research & Articles
09-29-2020

  • 76% of Washington voters have a "very" or "somewhat positive" opinion of electric vehicles
  • 59% support a policy requiring new cars in Washington state to be electric starting in 2030.
  • By a margin of more than 12-to-1, voters believe ending the sale of new gas-powered vehicles in 2030 would have a positive effect on climate change (75% to 6%) and would benefit the health of people in the state (73% to 5%).              

Poll: Pennsylvania voters support participation in climate pact

Climate Nexus, the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, and the George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication
Research & Articles
09-18-2020

A statewide poll of Pennsylvania voters found that...

  • 72% support the state participating in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initative (RGGI) and 56% said they were more likely to vote for state elected officials who support joining RGGI
  • 56% said the initiative would boost the state’s economy, while 21% said it would hurt. Forty percent believed it would have a positive impact on their electricity bill
  • 70% said they would be more likely to support RGGI if proceeds were invested in training workers for clean energy jobs, expanding energy efficiency programs for homes and businesses to lower consumer bills and boosting economic development in farming communities that produce renewable energy
  • 78% percent want the state to provide job training, guaranteed wages or other assistance to coal and natural gas workers who lose their jobs as a result of the market transition to renewable energy sources
  • 76% of respondents considered climate change to be a serious problem, with nearly half of voters saying it is “very serious”
  • More than 70% also supported the state updating and strengthening regulations to restrict the release of methane from natural gas wells, pipelines and storage facilities

Research & Articles
09-17-2020

Nationally representative polling from Sept. 14-16 shows that 39% of US adults say that climate change has contributed “a lot” to recent natural disasters like hurricanes and wildfires, with a further 34% saying climate change was responsible for “some.” Black and Hispanic adults were the most likely to say “a lot” (49% each), with White respondents at 36%.

Other highlights:

  • Roughly half (48 percent) of U.S. adults are “very concerned” about the impact of climate change on the U.S. environment.
  • 4% of adults say they are considering moving now due to natural disaster concerns, and 16% say they would consider a move in the future.
  • 39% if adults say they are “very concerned” about the impact of climate change on the U.S. economy.
  • The percentage of adults who say they are “not concerned at all” about climate change fell to 8% in this survey.

  • Voters see a role for natural gas on climate—but with conditions. Almost half of U.S. registered voters believe the industry must do more to reduce emissions in order for natural gas to play a role in climate change.
  • Most U.S. voters support giving states more power to block new oil and gas pipelines, but don’t think it will help in the climate fight. Despite supporting states’ and local government’s power to block pipelines, 59% believe that halting pipelines won’t have a significant impact on climate change.
  • Environmental/safety commitments on pipelines are more important to voters than economic ones. When asked what actions companies could take that would make them more supportive of pipelines, voters in both parties were more likely to pick actions involving the environment’s safety than those involving jobs.
  • Voters are less likely to see climate change as a crisis now than before the pandemic. Concerns about COVID-19 and the recent call to action on racial justice issues have eclipsed concerns over climate change when compared to 2019.

Solar United Neighbors designed and implemented a low- and moderate-income solar program that empowers D.C. residents to benefit from rooftop and commmunity solar. Lessons learned from the work necessary to build and run an effective program include: Start small, then scale up; Build trust in the community; Leverage key partnerships; Expand customer base through referrals; Work to simplify the process; and Be flexible and creative in the communications process.