Source: The Conversation – France (in French)– By Corinne Faure, Professor of Marketing, GEM
An unprecedented study disproves the idea that citizens rely on the efforts made by local authorities regarding climate policies. Conducted in Grenoble, this work instead shows that citizens are all the more ready to get involved in the fight against climate change when they know that local authorities are committed to it.
The more the effects of global warming become visible, the more the fight against climate change becomes local. Thelatest reportthe Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has clearly indicated: local and municipal initiatives such as the renovation of public buildings, the development of public transportation, and the creation of bike lanes are essential to limit the rise in global temperature. Local actions become even more important as, in many countries, notably in the United States, oneobserves a strong climate backlash at the national level.
But when a municipality takes the initiative to become a leader in climate matters, how do its citizens react?
In economics, there is a well-established theory called the “crowding-out effect.” This theory suggests that when the government provides a public good like climate protection, citizens may feel that they no longer need to contribute.
However, ourrecently published researchin the journal Climate Policy suggest a more optimistic reality. When a city actively promotes its pioneering role in climate matters, it does not encourage citizens to rest on their laurels. On the contrary, it encourages them to invest in the fight against climate change.
The Grenoble experiment
To understand how municipal climate initiatives influence individual behaviors, we focused on the Grenoble metropolitan area in France. While the city itself has about 150,000 inhabitants, the surrounding urban zone has approximately 700,000.
Grenoble is a pioneering city in terms of urban sustainability: it was the first French municipality to adopt a climate plan as early as 2005, was one of the first cities in the world to make its public transport network fully accessible to people with reduced mobility, abandoned the use of chemical products for the maintenance of green spaces as early as 2008, and is today the second metropolitan area in France for bicycle use. In recognition of these successes, Grenoble received in 2022 the award of“European Green Capital”. This award is given each year by the European Commission to reward and encourage a European city that stands out for its actions in favor of the environment and the quality of life of its inhabitants.
Just before Grenoble launched its activities under the “Green Capital” program, we conducted a random experiment with over 600 citizens of the Grenoble metropolitan area.
We divided them into two groups:
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The control group did not receive any specific information about the city’s achievements in terms of climate.
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The intervention team received a brief “boost” informing them that Grenoble had been designated European Green Capital 2022, highlighting that the city had already reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by 49% since 2005.
We then asked a simple question to participants in both groups: what is the maximum amount you would be willing to pay privately to offset the greenhouse gas emissions you produced last year?
The ripple effect works
The results were striking. Simply informing citizens about their city’s pioneering role on climate had a considerable triggering effect on their declared personal willingness to act.
Participants who had been reminded of Grenoble’s ecological achievements declared that they were ready to pay an average of about €128 per year to offset their carbon footprint. Those who had not received this information were only willing to pay about €103 on average. This represents a difference of €25, or a 25% increase in financial commitment, simply thanks to reading a few sentences about their city’s successes in climate policy.
By analyzing the data in more detail, we found that this strong increase in climate engagement occurred in two distinct ways:
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Attracting new people: communicating on Grenoble’s achievements in terms of climate increased the number of people declaring themselves ready to pay something (rather than nothing) from 75% to 81%. This reminder thus succeeded in transforming disengaged citizens into active participants.
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Motivating people already involved to do more: for those who declared themselves ready to pay to offset their emissions, discovering the leading role played by the city motivated them to increase their contribution by an average of €16.
On whom is this ripple effect the strongest?
We also wanted to know if certain demographic categories were more receptive to this type of message. Our analyses revealed that this “boost” proved particularly effective with specific groups.
First of all, the effect was most pronounced among young citizens. Receiving information about the city’s success in combating global warming significantly strengthened the declared willingness to pay to offset their own carbon emissions among participants under 40 years old, who represented about 60% of our sample. Beyond 40 years old, the impact of the city’s climate leadership on personal financial commitment began to fade.
Secondly, the message resonated particularly strongly with middle-income households (those earning between €2,000 and €3,500 net per month). It is interesting to note that we observed no significant difference in how men and women reacted, and that citizens’ pre-existing environmental attitudes did not influence the message’s effectiveness either.
Implications for municipalities and public authorities
For decades, classical economic theory has warned against the risk that selfish citizens “free ride” on public environmental efforts. Our study suggests that, in the context of local climate action, the opposite happens: municipal leadership promotes citizen participation.
For municipalities, the implications are clear: it is not enough to successfully carry out the difficult work of climate protection; it is also necessary to highlight this work.
The recent report ofHigh Council for Climate) highlights the need for more ambitious climate policies that are better implemented at the level of local authorities. For the most active cities, winning awards such as that of European Green Capital, joining networks such as theGlobal Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energywhere reaching emissions targets are impressive achievements in themselves. But their value is multiplied when cities actively communicate these successes to their residents. Whether through social media, real-time dashboards, sustainable development festivals, or progress reports, keeping citizens informed of municipal climate victories seems to establish a powerful social norm.
When a city proves that it takes the climate crisis seriously, it sends its inhabitants the message that their individual actions also matter. In the fight against global warming, leading by example is not just a noble intention: it is an effective political tool.
The authors do not work for, advise, own shares in, or receive funding from any organization that could benefit from this article, and have declared no affiliations other than their research institution.
–ref. When cities lead the way on climate, citizens follow –https://theconversation.com/when-cities-lead-the-way-on-climate-citizens-follow-280873