How best to sell climate policy, according to The Washington Post

It’s not easy being green. Reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to fight global warming means entire economies — and individual citizens — face short-term opportunity costs. Policymakers have a tough time pitching the promise of longer-term benefits in the distant future.

In countries that produce the largest share of global GHG emissions, the public doesn’t seem too concerned about the environment. The United States, for instance, is one of the lowest scorers on the Pew Research Center Global Attitudes survey.

How do we boost the public’s appetite for climate policy? Many policymakers and interest groups want GHG reductions — and the eventual decarbonization of the energy system. The public hears about — and tunes out — the looming risk of environmental degradation if we don’t start fixing the problem now. Scientific research and the unprecedented global scientific collaboration within the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) back up the calls for action.

Read The Washington Post story - “We tested how best to ‘sell’ climate policy. Here’s what we found.”