People in major industrialised nations support compensating low-income countries affected by climate change

Here are some of the most important results of the EIB Climate Survey’s sixth edition, conducted in August and September 2023. Running since 2018, the EIB Climate Survey offers insights into the climate change-related views of people in major economies around the world, with more than 30 000 respondents in the European Union, the United States, China, India, Japan, the United Kingdom, UAE, Canada and South Korea.

Climate change impacts and environmental degradation top the list of perceived challenges in India and China, while they are a close second to the cost of living in the European Union, the United States and Japan. 

A clear majority of all respondents except those in Japan believe that measures to combat climate change will improve people’s daily lives, including the quality of food and health (European Union: 61%; United States: 66%; China: 69%; India: 65%; and Japan: 47%).

European and Japanese respondents are split on whether the green transition will create or eliminate jobs (51% and 49%, respectively) while their American, Chinese and Indian counterparts are more optimistic (57%, 70% and 63%, respectively) and believe net additional jobs will be created.

Demand for a just transition at home and in developing countries

Survey respondents recognise that the financial cost of the green transition is likely to affect personal budgets — especially those of lower-income households — and endorse policies that take social and economic inequalities into account to address the climate emergency. Most say that to succeed, the transition to a climate-neutral economy must also address inequalities (European Union: 68%; United States: 56%; China: 59%; India: 59%; and Japan: 62%).

However, some respondents lack confidence in the government’s ability to carry out such a fair transition.  Most respondents in the European Union (62%) and Japan (60%) say they are not confident that their governments can address both challenges at the same time, whereas respondents in the United States, China and India are more optimistic, with 57%, 93% and 88% of respondents, respectively, trusting their government with this dual task.

Helping developing countries to deal with the impact of climate change

On the question of compensation to developing countries to help them deal with the impacts of climate change — expected to be a central topic at the 2023 UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai (COP28) — the survey shows that the global demand for fairness extends beyond national borders.

Conscious of a historical responsibility, most respondents from the European Union (60%), the United States (63%), China (74%) and Japan (72%) agree that their countries should financially compensate affected countries to help them fight climate change.

Taxes to support a just transition

Survey results show that most respondents would be willing to pay higher income taxes to help lower-income households cope with the costs of the green transition (European Union: 59%; United States: 67%; China: 90%; India: 89%; and Japan: 58%).

More specifically, 46% of EU respondents said they would agree to pay 1-2% more (United States: 40%; China: 59%; India: 45%; and Japan: 45%), and 13% of EU respondents would agree to pay as much as 5-10% more (United States: 27%; China: 31%; India: 44%; and Japan: 13%).

The vast majority of respondents also said they would be in favour of other kinds of environment-related taxes. For example, 74% of EU respondents said they would favour a fossil fuel tax reform (United States: 78%; China: 94%; India: 92%; and Japan: 71%) to eliminate subsidies and tax breaks for the aviation sector and other industries that rely heavily on fossil fuels.