Procedure:
The two of us (Gabriel Commisaris and Shawn Bolker) set out to collect data to survey people’s varying opinions on climate change in the Portland area. We planned to compare Portland’s results to levels of national and international concern. In order to avoid the heavy rain we decided to go to Fred Myers to collect our data. Fred Meyer turned out to be an optimal place for data collection as it was bustling with a variety of people.
We walked through the store and took turns asking people about how they would rank the importance of climate change compared to other pressing issues on a 1 – 10 scale. We also asked for people’s thoughts on the issue. A few people turned us away because it was super bowl day and they were in a hurry to watch, but we were able to get 10 total responses. Almost everyone that was willing to respond did so with enthusiasm. People tended to recognize climate change as an issue, but many didn’t see it as something that bares the most importance. For example, one person said “I currently feel that issues of race and police brutality are more important, but climate change is still relevant.”
There were, however a few individuals who saw climate change as a prominent issue that needs immediate attention. One response from a young woman that really stuck with us was “the earth is our home and our lives depend on her and her resources. Protecting the environment is the most important priority.” Our conversation then turned to Donald Trump and all the damage he is doing to the country and the environment. Another lady we surveyed brought up how Donald Trump had made her more aware of climate change in America. Her perspective reminded us that the times we live in could be having a huge impact on people’s overall opinions on climate change. We went back to campus feeling like we had learned a lot about people’s opinions on the subject. We were ready compare our local data to national and international data.
Data Analysis:
This graph shows us that a most of the PDX community does recognize climate change as an important issue as the graph is skewed to the left with the majority in the 7-10 range. The average value for the entire Portland Metro Area is 7.7. This indicates that Portland knows climate change is a real threat, however not everyone considers it an issue of utmost importance.
Climate change seems to be of slightly more concern for males (+.02) than females in the Portland area. However, results are fairly homogeneous. There were far less people of other genders represented which may have skewed the results for the “other” category.
Climate change seems to be most important to Hispanics/Latinos who lead by .75 on average. However, there seems to be agreement between all races that climate change is an important issue. There were significantly less African Americans and Hispanics or Latinos interviewed than Asians and Whites which could’ve skewed the results.
It seems that the young (below 30) and older (over 60) place a higher value on the urgency of climate change. Middle aged people (30-60) seem to see its importance as well, but not as much as the other demographics. This could be a generational thing.
People of the PDX Periphery lead by .19 for their average response with regards to concern about climate change. This could be due to fewer periphery surveys.
Data Observations
Through a combination of overall data collected and the responses we received, it is clear that although most agree that climate change is a pressing issue, there is still a range of views. This could be for various reasons such as:
- Other immediate daily concerns taking priority over long term concerns like climate change.
- Economic or financial standing – those with less wealth typically have less opportunities to learn about climate change or have current, pressing issues that take priority.
- The Trump administration actually seemed to increase people’s awareness and concern about climate change. This is most likely due to his dismantling of the EPA.
Location and age seems to play a role as well because different people have been raised with different generational mindsets. Older generations could care more about climate change because they’ve seen the true scale of change as they’ve experienced life on our planet the longest. Also, younger generations tend to be more liberal which could explain concern among young people.
National Data
A recent 2017 survey ran by the Pew Research Center conducted 1,502 telephone interviews about the priority climate change should take with regards to the Trump Administration. 72% either ranked climate change as a top priority or as important but of lower priority. 28% either don’t care or don’t believe in the severity of climate change. According to our own survey experience, as well as compared to data from Pew Research Center, it seems like the Trump administration is actually increasing climate change awareness by so blatantly acting against it.
Pew Research Center
International Data
Although the majority of people surveyed in Portland list climate change as a pressing issue, the United States falls behind the curve as far as global public opinion on climate change. According to a survey done by the Pew Research Center, only 45% of Americans view climate change as a serious problem. Among the most concerned are Brazil (86%), Chile (77%) and India (76%). The U.S. falls almost 10 percentage points behind the international mean of 54%.
Spring 2015 Global Attitudes Survey
Conclusion
The majority of people in Portland do see climate change as a genuine issue that needs to be dealt with. Climate change agreement is unanimous among all races, genders and most age groups in Portland. Although PDX is mainly in agreement, there are still many, locally and nationally that place other issues at higher importance. People who do see climate change as the most important issue are well educated on the subject. With that being said, we also concluded that the more you know about an issue the more likely you are to advocate its importance beyond other issues. We also deduced from the international data that countries who are facing more issues regarding the environment are more likely to see it as a serious matter. The more you know or the more you’ve experienced, the more likely you are to see it as a genuine problem.