The article in the url below reports the results of a survey by the Pew Research Center that asked U.S. adults about their current “top priorities”:
“In the poll, … global warming came in last among 20 voter concerns; it trailed issues like addressing moral decline and decreasing the influence of lobbyists. Only 30 percent of the voters deemed global warming to be ''a top priority,'' compared with 35 percent in 2008.
''Protecting the environment,'' which had surged in the rankings from 2006 to 2008, dropped even more precipitously in the poll: only 41 percent of voters called it a top priority, compared with 56 percent last year.”
Clearly, whatever danger global warming presented 6 months ago, that threat remains the same today.
What has shifted is the situation of the people polled, which is likely to be correlated with their willingness to begin tackling the problem. Whether this shift is transitory (likely) or not, I think it demonstrates the importance of appealing to self-interest in searching for a solution. If people’s priorities can shift so quickly, determined by their perception of their individual economic security, then building the foundation for a solution on this perception of self-interest seems most likely to result in an implementable and sustainable outcome that might survive the highs and lows of the economic cycle.
What has shifted is the situation of the people polled, which is likely to be correlated with their willingness to begin tackling the problem. Whether this shift is transitory (likely) or not, I think it demonstrates the importance of appealing to self-interest in searching for a solution. If people’s priorities can shift so quickly, determined by their perception of their individual economic security, then building the foundation for a solution on this perception of self-interest seems most likely to result in an implementable and sustainable outcome that might survive the highs and lows of the economic cycle.
Happy Earth Day!
Dave
Bill Werther & David Chandler
Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility
© Sage Publications, 2006
Environmental Issues Slide In Poll of Public's Concerns
By ANDREW C. REVKIN
779 words
23 January 2009
The New York Times
Late Edition - Final
13
