Climate change action as a project of identity: Eight meta-analyses

Identity can improve our understanding of personal climate action, particularly when climate action becomes an expression of a person’s self. However, it is unclear which kind of self or identity is most relevant. Building on a comprehensive series of eight meta-analyses (using data from 188 published articles, N = 414,282 participants) this research systematically compares how strongly climate-friendly intentions and behaviors are associated with place identity, personal connectedness to nature, environmental self-identity (i.e., personal self-definition as a pro-environmentally acting person), and social identity (i.e., identification with social groups). Results suggest robust, medium-sized to strong links of both pro-environmental intentions and behaviors to people’s nature connectedness (r = 0.44/0.52), environmental self-identity (r = 0.62/0.56), and identification with groups considered to support climate-friendly behavior (r = 0.48/0.51), but markedly weaker effects for identification with groups which are unrelated to environmental topics (r = 0.30/0.15) and for place identity (r = 0.18/0.32). Implications for policy interventions and psychological theory are discussed.     

The Hogg Eco-Anxiety Scale: Development and validation of a multidimensional scale

Anxiety relating to a multitude of ecological crises, or eco-anxiety, is a subject of growing research significance. We used a multi-study mixed-methods design to explore eco-anxiety in Australia and New Zealand, validating a new eco-anxiety scale. In Study One, we developed and tested a 7-item eco-anxiety scale (n = 334), finding that this captured some, but not all, experiences of eco-anxiety. We found that people were anxious about a range of environmental conditions and their personal negative impact on the planet. Notably, people’s anxiety about different environmental conditions (e.g., climate change, environmental degradation, pollution) were interconnected, lending support for the existence of eco-anxiety (a broader construct that encompasses climate change anxiety). These results informed further scale development in Study Two. Exploratory (n = 365) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (n = 370) supported a final 13-item scale that captured four dimensions of eco-anxiety: affective symptoms, rumination, behavioural symptoms, and anxiety about one’s negative impact on the planet, which were each distinct from stress, anxiety and depression. A further longitudinal sample (n = 189) established the stability of these factors across time. Findings support eco-anxiety as a quantifiable psychological experience, reliably measured using our 13-item eco-anxiety scale, and differentiated from mental health outcomes.     

A cautionary note about messages of hope: Focusing on progress in reducing carbon emissions weakens mitigation motivation

For the first time this millennium, growth in carbon emissions has slowed. Indeed, the year 2014 was the first time in 40 years that the planet saw zero growth in emissions. We examine whether this message of progress can be effective in motivating people to engage in mitigation efforts. This question dovetails with commentary suggesting that gloomy messages about climate change risk fatiguing the population, and that alternative approaches are necessary. It is also informed by work suggesting that hope is a motivating force in terms of engaging in collective action and social change. Study 1 (N = 574) showed that negative emotions were strongly related to mitigation motivation and feelings of efficacy, but hope-related emotions had a much weaker relationship with these constructs. In the main experiment (Study 2: N = 431) participants read an optimistic, pessimistic, or neutral message about the rate of progress in reducing global carbon emissions. Relative to the pessimistic message, the optimistic message reduced participants’ sense that climate change represented a risk to them, and the associated feelings of distress. Consequently, the optimistic message was less successful in increasing mitigation motivation than the pessimistic message. In sum, predictions that the optimistic message would increase efficacy did not transpire; concerns that the optimistic message would increase complacency did transpire. Recent progress in curbing global carbon emissions is welcome, but we found no evidence that messages focusing on this progress constitute an effective communication strategy.     

Social networks and transitions to co-management in Jamaican marine reserves and small-scale fisheries

How social networks support or constrain the transition to co-management of small-scale fisheries and marine reserves is poorly understood. In this paper, we undertake a comparative analysis of the social network structures associated with the transition to co-management in three Jamaican marine reserves. Data from quantitative social relational surveys (n = 380) are integrated with data from semi-structured interviews (n = 63) and focus groups (n = 10) to assess how patterns of relational ties and interactions between and among fishermen and other local level actors (e.g., managers, wardens, NGO staff) support and constrain the transition to co-management. Our research suggests that the transitions to co-management were supported by a combination of three network structure and relational attributes: (i) the presence and position of institutional entrepreneurs; (ii) a dense central core of network actors; and (iii) the prevalence of horizontal ties and vertical linkages held by the community-based organizations formally responsible for the management of the marine reserves. Our findings also show that overall low network cohesion in the three reserves and limited social influence among the wardens may be problematic for sustained collective action that extends beyond the core set of network actors. These findings suggest the importance of strategies to enhance collective action, specifically through attention to the attributes of the corresponding social networks, as a means to contribute to successful transitions to co-management of marine reserves and small-scale fisheries. Our results provide more precise guidance, through social network analysis, on where in the respective networks social capital and leadership may require support or enhancement, and thus on how to target interventions for greatest effect.     

How you talk about climate change matters: A communication network perspective on epistemic skepticism and belief strength

A population’s attitudes toward climate change can strongly influence governmental policies as well as community and individual climate-related behaviors. These attitudes have been explained with a variety of factors, including cultural worldviews, environmental attitudes, political ideology, knowledge of climate change, severe weather exposure, and sociodemographic characteristics. These studies typically assume an individual forms attitudes on the basis of preexisting values or beliefs and do not account for dynamic social interaction as a source of influence. This study introduces a network perspective that accounts for the social embeddedness of individuals, using network variables to predict climate attitudes, including homophily, network strength, attitude diversity, centrality, network size, and network valence. An exploratory factor analysis identified two distinct attitudinal dimensions: climate change epistemic skepticism and belief strength. Using egocentric data from a nationally representative survey collected in 2011, this study found that network variables were significant in predicting both climate attitude dimensions; hierarchical regression analyses accounting for other known predictors found two different predictive models for epistemic skepticism and belief strength. Homophily, network strength, attitude diversity, and network valence predicted epistemic skepticism (R²_change = 4.8%), while centrality and network strength predicted belief strength (R²_change = 8.9%). The analyses also found support for cultural factors as significant predictors of climate attitudes, particularly Christianity and cultural worldviews. The results of this study suggest that interpersonal influence through communication networks is a promising avenue for continued research, and should be included in studies of climate attitude formation and change.     

Collapse and recovery in a remote small island—A tale of adaptive cycles or downward spirals?

Few studies consider how social-ecological systems recover from disturbance. We consider the small semi-autonomous island of Rodrigues (Indian Ocean). Based on semi-structured interviews (n = 70), a fisher survey (n = 73), weather data and official records we build a timeline of key events. We tabulate local perceptions (5+ mentions) of changes (social, economic and natural capital) and look for signs of adaptive cycles in the island's social-ecological past. Rising human pressure and extreme weather event impacts are reported since first settlement. We propose a recent “collapse” phase catalysed in the 1970s by severe drought, based on respondents’ perceptions of still-ongoing changes in farming and fishing, water, external dependence, migration and inter-island political change. Connectivity (flows of people, goods, information, money, power) appear to have strengthed local island recovery, but degradation continued, not least due to water scarcity and a lack of shared political vision as Rodrigues became more tied into the wider world.Overall, our findings suggest social-ecological systems may get stuck in a post-collapse recovery without any new structure emerging, presuming adaptive cycles can even be detected. Data gaps and global change redefining spatial and temporal scales could mean the adaptive cycle's usefulness is limited in development policy-making contexts.     

Climate anxiety: Conceptual considerations,and connections with climate hope and action

Climate anxiety is a phenomenon which raises growing attention. Based on a national survey of climate-related feelings and behaviors (N = 2070) in Finland, we analyzed and discussed the concept of climate anxiety and its relationship with hope and action. We found that all our measures for climate anxiety (including worry and some stronger manifestations of anxiety) and hope (including efficacy beliefs) correlated positively with each other and climate action. Furthermore, climate anxiety and hope explained unique parts of variance in self-reported climate action. We propose that, in line with the Extended Parallel Process model (EPPM) that was used as a framework, the interplay of emotions needs to be considered when studying and explaining their effect on climate action. In conclusion, the results provide support for seeing climate anxiety and hope as intertwined and adaptive feelings, which could be needed to motivate humankind in finding solutions to climate change.     

Effects of seed particle size and composition on heterogeneous nucleation of n-nonane

Heterogeneous nucleation of supersaturated n-nonane vapour on seed particles of different size and composition has been investigated using a fast expansion chamber. Monodisperse seed particle sizes were ranging from about 4 nm up to about 24 nm in diameter. By using different types of particle generators WO_x, Ag and (NH₄)₂SO₄ particles were generated. For direct comparison between different particle compositions overlapping sizes have been generated for WO_x and Ag at about 7 nm particle diameter as well as for Ag and (NH₄)₂SO₄ at about 15 nm. Nucleation temperature was kept constant at about 278 K. Experimental data were compared to Kelvin equation and Fletcher theory including the effect of line tension. It was found that heterogeneous nucleation of n-nonane seems to be independent of seed particle composition and starts well below the Kelvin curve. Good agreement was achieved with Fletcher theory including the effect of line tension.     

Public values for energy system change

In this paper we discuss the importance of framing the question of public acceptance of sustainable energy transitions in terms of values and a ‘whole-system’ lens. This assertion is based on findings arising from a major research project examining public values, attitudes and acceptability with regards to whole energy system change using a mixed-method (six deliberative workshops, n = 68, and a nationally representative survey, n = 2441), interdisciplinary approach. Through the research we identify a set of social values associated with desirable energy futures in the UK, where the values represent identifiable cultural resources people draw on to guide their preference formation about particular aspects of energy system change. As such, we characterise public perspectives as being underpinned by six value clusters relating to efficiency and wastefulness, environment and nature, security and stability, social justice and fairness, autonomy and power, and processes and change. We argue that this ‘value system’ provides a basis for understanding core reasons for public acceptance or rejection of different energy system aspects and processes. We conclude that a focus on values that underpin more specific preferences for energy system change brings insights that could provide a basis for improved dialogue, more robust decision-making, and for anticipating likely points of conflict in energy transitions.     

The prosocial origin of sustainable behavior: A case study in the ecological domain

Prior research has focused on individual difference variables that predict various prosocial behaviors. This work, however, has neglected to consider the underlying commonalities between the different domains behavior can be performed. In line with other authors we propose that individual difference factors can indicate one’s propensity toward acting prosocially across domains, and that prosocial behaviors also include behaviors that support behavior for the common good. We argue that in order for one’s prosocial propensity to be actualized in a particular domain, a motivator in the form of connectedness to the domain is necessary. This paper examines such a model exemplified in the ecological domain by explaining pro-environmental actions. Through two studies (total N = 760) we provide evidence for a mediation model whereby connectedness to nature mediates the positive relation between prosocial propensity and pro-environmental behavior. Prosocial propensity was operationalized as altruism (studies 1 and 2) and honesty-humility (study 2). Further, study 1 also showed a comparison between participants indicating membership in environmental and humanitarian organizations and non-members. This indicated that prosocial propensity was higher in environmentalists and humanitarians compared to non-members, while connectedness to nature and pro-environmental behaviors were higher only in environmental organization members. These studies provide evidence for the premise of a prosocial propensity being actualized in the ecological domain via connectedness to that domain.     

The carbon cost of agricultural production in the global land rush

Increases in the number of large-scale land transactions (LSLTs), commonly known as ‘land grabbing’ or ‘global land rush,’ have occurred throughout the lower- and middle-income world over the past two decades. Despite substantial and continuing concerns about the negative socio-environmental impacts of LSLTs, trade-off analysis on boosting crop yield and minimizing climate-related effects remains limited. Our study makes use of a global dataset on LSLTs for agricultural production to estimate potential carbon emissions based on different scenarios of land cover change and fertilizer use, as well as potential value of agricultural production on transacted land. We show that, if fully implemented on ∼ 38 M ha of transacted land, 2.51 GtC will be emitted during land conversion, with another 24.2 MtC/year emitted from fertilizer use, assuming farming technology of investors’ origin is adopted on transacted land. Comparison of different combinations of forest protection policies and agricultural intensification levels reveals that enforcing strict deforestation regulation while promoting fertilizer use rate improves the carbon efficiency of agricultural production. Additionally, positive spillovers of investors’ farming technology on existing arable lands of host countries can potentially double their crop yield. Our analyses thus suggest that fostering agricultural intensification and technology spillovers under strict regulation on land allocation to investors to protect forests would allow for boosting agricultural yield while minimizing carbon emissions.     

Variability of CO2 fugacity at the western edge of the tropical Atlantic Ocean from the 8°N to 38°W PIRATA buoy

Hourly data of CO₂ fugacity (fCO₂) at 8°N–38°W were analyzed from 2008 to 2011. Analyses of wind, rainfall, temperature and salinity data from the buoy indicated two distinct seasonal periods. The first period (January to July) had a mean fCO₂ of 378.9 μatm (n = 7512). During this period, in which the study area was characterized by small salinity variations, the fCO₂ is mainly controlled by sea surface temperature (SST) variations (fCO₂ = 24.4*SST-281.1, r² = 0.8). During the second period (August–December), the mean fCO₂ was 421.9 μatm (n = 11571). During these months, the region is subjected to the simultaneous action of (a) rainfall induced by the presence of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ); (b) arrival of fresh water from the Amazon River plume that is transported to the east by the North Equatorial Countercurrent (NECC) after the retroflection of the North Brazil Current (NBC); and (c) vertical input of CO₂-rich water due to Ekman pumping. The data indicated the existence of high-frequency fCO₂ variability (periods less than 24 h). This high variability is related to two different mechanisms. In the first mechanism, fCO₂ increases are associated to rapid increases in SST and are attributed to the diurnal cycle of solar radiation. In addition, low wind speed contributes to SST rising by inhibiting vertical mixing. In the second mechanism, fCO₂ decreases are associated to SSS decreases caused by heavy rainfall.     

Attitudes toward hydraulic fracturing: The opposing forces of political conservatism and basic knowledge about fracking

Hydraulic fracturing has become a contentious issue around the globe. In the present study, using a sample of American adults (n = 412), the role of political orientation (conservative vs. liberal) and basic knowledge about fracking on fracking risk perception attitudes, fracking economic attitudes, energy reliance attitudes, trust of energy information sources, and preferred dwelling distance from energy operations was investigated. Basic knowledge about hydraulic fracturing as a possible moderating mechanism was also explored. Correlational and regression results revealed that political ideology and basic fracking knowledge are key predictors of fracking and energy source attitudes, and that the nature of the relation between ideology and fracking risk perceptions, fracking economic attitudes, reliance on natural gas, wind and solar, and distrust of government agencies, are influenced by an individual’s basic knowledge about fracking.     

Climate change adaptation in Australian mining communities: comparing mining company and local government views and activities

Effective climate change adaptation in mining communities is reliant on action by both local authorities and mining operations. This article reports the findings of two surveys conducted in late 2010, with Australian mining companies and local government authorities respectively, investigating their perceptions and activities related to climate change adaptation. The research identified the main types of weather and climate-related impacts experienced in the past and expected under future climate conditions for the two groups. There were significantly differing levels of concern about weather and climate-related impacts between the two types of organisations. Mining company respondents reported lower levels of severity of impact from both past and (expected) future weather events, as well as lower levels of belief in climate change and of adaptation activities to prepare for it. Interestingly, mining companies generally reported less concern about future impacts than those experienced in the past, suggesting discounting of risks due to climate change scepticism. The article reports on a range of factors relevant to adaptation in mining communities, including perceived barriers, collaboration and further information needs. The research findings are discussed in the context of other recent research on climate change adaptation by Australian organisations and studies of mining industry adaptation in other countries.     

Farmer perceptions of climate change: Associations with observed temperature and precipitation trends,irrigation, and climate beliefs

How individuals perceive climate change is linked to whether individuals support climate policies and whether they alter their own climate-related behaviors, yet climate perceptions may be influenced by many factors beyond local shifts in weather. Infrastructure designed to control or regulate natural resources may serve as an important lens through which people experience climate, and thus may influence perceptions. Likewise, perceptions may be influenced by personal beliefs about climate change and whether it is human-induced. Here we examine farmer perceptions of historical climate change, how perceptions are related to observed trends in regional climate, how perceptions are related to the presence of irrigation infrastructure, and how perceptions are related to beliefs and concerns about climate change. We focus on the regions of Marlborough and Hawke’s Bay in New Zealand, where irrigation is utilized on the majority of cropland. Data are obtained through analysis of historical climate records from local weather stations, interviews (n = 20), and a farmer survey (n = 490). Across both regions, no significant historical trends in annual precipitation and summer temperatures since 1980 are observed, but winter warming trends are significant at around 0.2–0.3 °C per decade. A large fraction of farmers perceived increases in annual rainfall despite instrumental records indicating no significant trends, a finding that may be related to greater perceived water availability associated with irrigation growth. A greater fraction of farmers perceived rainfall increases in Marlborough, where irrigation growth has been most substantial. We find those classes of farmers more likely to have irrigation were also significantly more likely to perceive an increase in annual rainfall. Furthermore, we demonstrate that perceptions of changing climate – regardless of their accuracy – are correlated with increased belief in climate change and an increased concern for future climate impacts. Those farmers that believe climate change is occurring and is human induced are more likely to perceive temperature increases than farmers who believe climate change is not occurring and is not human induced. These results suggest that perceptions are influenced by a variety of personal and environmental factors, including infrastructure, which may in turn alter decisions about climate adaptation.     

Empirical testing of the visualizations of climate change mitigation scenarios with citizens: A comparison among Germany,Poland, and France

While scenarios are used extensively for communication about climate change mitigation, little is known about the interpretation of these scenarios by citizens. We conducted a cross-country empirical evaluation of scenario visualizations for global mitigation, using online surveys in Germany (N = 379), Poland (N = 223), and France (N = 225). Each respondent received visualizations of the required changes in global carbon dioxide emissions and composition of electricity supply (fossil fuels, nuclear, and renewable sources) for limiting global warming to 1.5 °C. We evaluated the effects of respondents’ demographics, prior beliefs, numeracy, and graph literacy on the reading accuracy and knowledge gains from the visualizations. We also included an experimental between-groups design on visualization format, where four groups received different graph formats (steep or gradual graphs with depictions of uncertainty ranges or scenario ensembles) and the fifth group received a table. Results showed that higher education level, numeracy, and graph literacy increased reading accuracy in all countries, while age reduced them. Respondents with prior beliefs about climate change mitigation that matched the information in the visualizations had also higher reading accuracy and knowledge gains. While the effects of different visualization formats were comparatively minor, customizing formats according to demographic and country differences was used to reduce adverse effects from these differences. These results emphasize the need to design visualizations that match characteristics of the intended audience and could inform better communication of climate change mitigation scenarios to non-expert audience.     

Considering attitudinal uncertainty in the climate change skepticism continuum

In this paper we present an empirically driven language to discuss climate change skepticism. We conceptualize skeptic/skepticism as an umbrella term that includes those who actively reject climate science and those who are uncertain about climate change. We propose four categories for better empirical analysis of climate skepticism: epistemic deniers, epistemic doubters (borrowing from Capstick and Pidgeon 2014), attribution deniers, and attribution doubters (borrowing from Rahmstorf 2004). Using a unique dataset of surveys (n = 1000) and interviews (n = 33) with residents of the U.S. Pacific Northwest who are skeptical about climate change, we compare those four groups across several predictors and demographic variables (age, race, gender, political ideology, religiosity, income, education, and level of trust in science) and outcome variables (environmental concern, policy support, and conspiracy ideation (adherence to the belief that climate change is a “hoax”). We demonstrate the importance of considering attitudinal uncertainty in the analysis of climate skepticism by providing evidence for the presence of a continuum of thought wherein epistemic deniers and attribution doubters make up the two ends of a continuum with more complicated distinctions between epistemic doubters and attribution deniers.     

Resilience of traditional knowledge systems: The case of agricultural knowledge in home gardens of the Iberian Peninsula

The resilience of a social–ecological system largely depends on its capacity to learn by absorbing new information to cope with change. But, how resilient are traditional knowledge systems? We explore the resilience of the traditional agricultural knowledge system of home gardeners in the Iberian Peninsula (n = 383). We use multivariate analysis to explore the co-existence of agricultural information derived from two different knowledge systems: (i) knowledge and use of landraces (representative of traditional agricultural knowledge) and (ii) knowledge and use of commercial crop varieties (representative of modern agricultural knowledge). Our analyses show a positive association between both types of knowledge: overall gardeners who are more knowledgeable about commercial crop varieties are also more knowledgeable about landraces. Despite this overall tendency, results from hierarchical cluster analysis showed different groups of traditional and modern knowledge holders. Our results suggest that (a) traditional knowledge is not a frozen and static corpus of knowledge and (b) modern and traditional agricultural knowledge are not necessarily mutually exclusive. Both maintenance of some aspects of the traditional knowledge and incorporation of some aspect of the modern knowledge seem to be core elements of home gardeners’ body of agricultural knowledge which is constantly evolving in response to changing environmental and socioeconomic conditions. Changes in traditional knowledge can be seen as a part of the general self-organizing process of this knowledge system.     

Comparison of Monte Carlo simulation methods for the calculation of the nucleation barrier of argon

We compare two molecular Monte Carlo simulation methods, the discrete summation method and the growth/decay method, which calculate the vapor-liquid nucleation free energy barrier by simulating isolated clusters of fixed size without the surrounding vapor. The methods are applied to calculations of nucleation barriers of Lennard–Jones argon at 60 K and 80 K. Both of these methods are computationally efficient, as only isolated clusters without the surrounding vapor are simulated, and the methods can be applied with any given cluster definition. They give equivalent results to other methods where the vapor phase is also included. The discrete summation method is based on the calculation of the difference in free energies between two systems containing an n-cluster and an (n − 1)-cluster plus one non-interacting (free) molecule. We show that the configurational space is not equivalent in the two systems. Hence, there has to be an additional term in the free energy calculation that accounts for several kT in magnitude. In contrast to previous studies we also show that it is not correct to prevent the overlap of the non-interacting molecule and another molecule by a zero or an arbitrarily small repulsive potential, but with a small excluded space around the free molecule.