Climatic Change http://doi.org/hqt (2012)

Philosophers are increasingly interested in climate change as an ethical problem, but little evidence exists about individuals' moral views of the issue. Understanding non-experts' moral perceptions can shed light on public engagement with climate change.

Ezra Markowitz of the University of Oregon, USA, analysed the extent to which non-experts perceive climate change as a moral issue. In two studies surveying a total of 922 US undergraduate students in 2010 and 2011, he found that 45% of students recognize global warming in ethical terms, 25% do not and the rest are unsure. Participants who believe that climate change is either naturally occurring or only partially anthropogenic are much less likely to state that the issue is morally significant. Moreover, those who believe climate change has a moral dimension are more inclined to pro-environmental behaviour than those who do not.

The results suggest that communicating global warming as an issue of personal responsibility could engage those segments of the population that are prone to altruism, even when they do not see climate change as anthropogenic.