>@ Cristian Negroni /Getty Images
© Cristian Negroni / Getty Images

The first part of the 2021-2022 EIB Climate Survey explores people’s views on climate change in a rapidly changing world. The results from this release focus on citizens’ perceptions of climate change and the actions they expect their country to take to combat it. 

  • 76% of people in Luxembourg think that climate change and its consequences are the biggest challenge for humanity in the 21st century
  • 77% feel that climate change has an impact on their everyday lives
  • 66% think the country will fail in drastically reducing its carbon emissions by 2050, as pledged in the Paris Agreement
  • 63% are in favour of stricter government measures that impose changes on people’s behaviour (two points higher than last year)
  • 87% say they want to replace short-distance flights by fast, low-polluting trains in collaboration with neighbouring countries

76% of people in Luxembourg think that climate change and its consequences are the biggest challenge for humanity in the 21st century. This figure slightly differs across different demographic categories: from 73% for men to 80% for women, from 80% for 15-29 year-old respondents to 73% for respondents older than 65. There is a marked difference among people with different political views: 86% of those with left-leaning political views say that climate change is the biggest challenge for humanity in the 21st century, compared to 67% of those with right-leaning political views.

Meanwhile, the vast majority of people in Luxembourg (77%) feel that climate change has an impact on their everyday lives (four points higher than last year).

These are some of the results from the first release of the 2021-2022 Climate Survey published on October 27 by the European Investment Bank (EIB). The EIB is the lending arm of the European Union and the world’s largest multilateral lender for climate action projects. 

Perception of the climate crisis: The country’s fight against climate change

The vast majority of people in Luxembourg (77%) feel that climate change has an impact on their everyday lives. While this perception is particularly marked among 15-29 year-olds (85%), the figure drops 14 points (71%) for people older than 64. 82% of people who have left-leaning political views say they feel this impact in their everyday lives, which is 15 points higher than for those who have right-leaning political views (67%).

66% believe that they are more concerned about the climate emergency than their government. As a consequence, they are fairly sceptical regarding their country’s capability to undergo an ambitious green transition. Only 34% think that Luxembourg will succeed in drastically reducing its carbon emissions by 2050, as pledged in the Paris Agreement. The majority (66%) think that Luxembourg will fail to meet its reduced carbon emission targets. 68% of people with left-leaning political views share this pessimism, which is seven points higher than the figure for people with right-leaning political views (61%).

As a consequence, the majority (63%) of people in Luxembourg are in favour of stricter government measures — similar to the ones implemented to combat the COVID-19 crisis — that would impose changes on people’s behaviour (six points higher than last year, 57%).

Meanwhile, only 8% of people in Luxembourg believe that global warming is not due to human activities. Only 6% of people in the country with left-leaning political views believe that global warming is not due to human activities, which is six points below the figure for people with right-leaning political views (12%).

The energy debate

When asked about the source of energy that Luxembourg should rely on to fight global warming, the majority of respondents favour renewable energies (58%, five points below the EU average of 63%) to address the climate emergency. Support for renewables in Luxembourg is seen strongly among people younger than 30 (67% in favour). This figure drops 17 points for people over 64 (50%). People with left-leaning political views support renewables more strongly than those with right-leaning political views in Luxembourg (59% compared to 50%, a difference of nine points).

People in Luxembourg overall are less supportive of nuclear energy than other Europeans (6% vs. 12%).

Finally, they are more likely to think that their country should rely on energy savings than other Europeans (29% vs. 17%). Respondents over 64 are particularly in favour of this option (38%). This is 20 points more than for respondents younger than 29 (only 18% in favour of saving energy as a priority). Saving energy is ranked far above an increased role for natural gas (3%).

Most popular solutions to fight climate change among people in Luxembourg

The majority of people in Luxembourg (70%) would support — similar to other Europeans (69%) — the introduction of a tax on products and services that contribute most to global warming. Even among respondents with lower incomes, 71% would be in favour of such a tax in Luxembourg. People in Luxembourg are also in favour of a 5-year minimum warranty on any electric or electronic product (94%) and replacing short-distance flights with fast, low-emission trains (92%). They also favour softer measures like strengthening education and increasing youth awareness of sustainable consumption (95%).

Kris Peeters, Vice-President of the EIB said: “An increasing majority of people in Luxembourg are asking for stricter measures and instruments to help them fight climate change. In the course of the ongoing COP26 climate summit, it is important to step up our efforts and accelerate the green transition. Also in Luxembourg, the EIB stands ready and is willing to support further ambitious new climate projects that offer innovative solutions for tackling climate change, and provide high beneficial impact for citizens.”

Download the Excel spreadsheet with the raw data for all 30 countries surveyed here. Please click here to access the EIB website that presents key findings of the EIB Climate Survey IV.

About the EIB Climate Survey

The European Investment Bank has launched the fourth edition of the EIB Climate Survey, a thorough assessment of how people feel about climate change. Conducted in partnership with market research firm BVA, the fourth edition of the EIB Climate Survey aims to inform the broader debate on attitudes and expectations in terms of climate action. More than 30 000 respondents participated in the survey between 26 August and 22 September 2021, with a representative panel for each of the 30 countries polled.

About the European Investment Bank

The European Investment Bank is active in around 160 countries and is one of the world’s largest multilateral lenders for climate action projects. The EIB Group has recently adopted its Climate Bank Roadmap to deliver on its ambitious agenda to support €1 trillion of climate action and environmental sustainability investments in the decade to 2030 and to deliver more than 50% of EIB finance for climate action and environmental sustainability by 2025. As part of the Roadmap, all new EIB Group operations have also been aligned with the goals and principles of the Paris Agreement since the start of 2021.

About BVA

BVA is an opinion research and consulting firm recognised as one of the most innovative market research firms in its sector. Specialised in behavioural marketing, BVA combines data science and social science to make data inspiring and bring it to life. BVA is also a member of the Worldwide Independent Network of Market Research (WIN), a global network of some of the world’s leading market research and survey players, with over 40 members.