Country Scorecard - Countries at a glance

Economology - Polls

4.1 NetPulseGlobalPoll

25,164 people from 175 countries took part in a poll about the environment, sponsored by the Papandreou Foundation.

By 71-28% respondents are more unhappy than happy with the world’s general condition.

A 53% majority picked “environment” as the first or second most important problem in today’s world.

The quality of global environment was rated negative (55% bad, 15% good, 29% neutral) and getting worse (67%) not better (19%); meanwhile, quality of respondents’ local coun-try’s environment was rated higher than planet’s (34% good, 33% bad, 33% neutral), but still getting worse (53%) not better (28%)

The biggest global environment problem is water pollution. For most issues, respondents perceive a bigger world threat than in their own country. This is especially true for the population growth. Overall, air pollution is the top “local country” problem.

Global and Local Country Environmental Issue Importance
(Mean Score – 1-10 scale)

(Graph not available in online-edition)

Most responsible for solving the world’s environmental problems are local/national governments (74%) – even though they were rated negatively for the work they do today (29% positive, 54% negative) in protecting the environment. Second most responsible are “average citizens” (45%) followed by “international organizations” (34%). Large and international businesses are seen as much more of a negative (67%) than positive force on the global environment.

In rating various ideas to improve the environmental situation, respondents are much more likely to see “people’s behaviour” rather than “taxes” as the best path.

Best Ways to Improve the Environment

(Graph not available in online-edition)

As you can see the top-two ways improving environment would not cost any cent, but are difficult to reach. Although governments are the most responsible for solving environmental problems, they cannot offer the most effective (or popular?) ways for a solution. In my mind also taxation leads to a change how people live and educate “live green” respectively.


By a ratio of about three to one (74-23%), environmental protection was given priority over economic growth. About half of the respondents (46%) said that “environmental policies” are one of the top three issues in deciding how to vote in elections.

Half of the respondents (51%) said current environmental laws are not strict enough, new national and international agreements are needed; one-third (33%) believes current law is sufficient, but enforcement is too lax.

Two thirds (68%) are willing to give up at least 1% of their income for real environmental quality improvement (23% would give even “more than 5%” of their income).

Sixty one per cent (61%) “regularly” do something in their daily lives to improve the environment.

4.2 German polls

(Graph not available in online-edition)

Three quarters (73%) are of the opinion that the government should do more for environmental protection. One quarter (25%) is satisfied with the current policy.

Another survey (“Umweltbewusstsein in Deutschland 2002”) shows that environment remains high on the citizens' agenda, in spite of high unemployment and an ailing economy. 93 per cent of the population consider environmental protection to be important or very important; it thus occupies the fourth rank in the priority list of current political issues.
It is noteworthy that the importance attached to environmental protection as a political task has grown considerably since 1998, with an increase from 38 to 52 per cent of respondents. Government action to protect the environment is expressly favoured by the public, and there is a high level of personal commitment. Thus 9 per cent of respondents have personally become active in their communities, and 47 per cent could imagine that they would.
94 per cent of the respondents support the new Federal Nature Conservation Act, while 73 per cent support the introduction of deposits on cans and 75 per cent refuse or would prefer not to buy genetically modified foodstuffs. 94 per cent of the respondents believe greenhouse gas reduction to be very important or rather important, while 47 are in favour of Germany taking the lead in climate protection. 79 per cent of the respondents support the principle of the eco-tax, although, when specifically asked about their approval of the eco-tax itself, only 29 per cent responded in favour.
While environmental quality in Germany is altogether rated as good by a majority of those surveyed (77 per cent), and as very good in their communities by 17 per cent, 80 per cent of the respondents rate global environmental quality as rather poor or even very poor. The survey showed road traffic and the resulting high levels of noise and air pollution to be the most urgent problems at community level.

More than anything else, CO2 emissions are viewed with a critical eye. The overwhelming majority of the respondents therefore favour the "clean car" which does not pollute the environment and the development of local public transport systems (85 per cent) and bicycle path networks (82 per cent). 83 per cent of those surveyed are in favour of establishing more home zones in residential areas, and 65 per cent would like to see a general speed limit of 30 km/h imposed in urban areas, with the exception of main traffic arteries.

4.3 Conclusion

According to all polls in this chapter environment is a top is-sue and environment protection should be intensified. Nevertheless, there is a huge difference between living environmentally friendly and saying it is important to live so. It seems that environmentalists are “in” at the moment and people follow this trend, more to be “in” rather than doing the right thing. Most say they care about environment, but do nothing. The best examples are two questions in the last survey. 79 per cent support the principle of the eco-tax, although, when specifically asked about their approval of the eco-tax itself, only 29 per cent responded in favour. Therefore 50 per cent are hypocrites.
Improving environment does not need hypocrites, but real environmentalists!

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