Brexit result must not slow European cooperation on climate change

European countries must continue cooperating with each other on global issues like climate change, regardless of the recent referendum result in the UK.

Brexit makes understanding different nations’ perceptions even more important. By understanding how different European countries perceive climate change, progress can be made towards addressing the issue.

How do the culture and politics of a country shape its citizens’ perceptions of climate change? Do different European nations vary in their support for different energy technologies? And how have extreme weather events influenced national views about climate change, as climate impacts start to bite? The European Perceptions of Climate Change (EPCC) project has been designed to answer precisely these kinds of questions.

In the context of a crucial moment for European climate policy, this project addresses a significant knowledge gap with regard to European public engagement with climate change. While attitudes to climate change have been well documented in individual European countries, their designs have never been coordinated.

This two year project is being led by Cardiff University, with an inter-disciplinary project team from Institut Symlog, University of Stuttgart, University of Bergen, and Climate Outreach. It is funded by the Joint Programming Initiative (JPI).

See the Climate Outreach report “European Perceptions of Climate Change – profiles for France, Germany, Norway and the UK.”