A Majority of Germans Want Their Country to Be a Climate Action Pioneer but do not support a CO₂ price on carbon intensive activities
A majority of the German population wants Germany to play a pioneering role in climate action. A total of 55 percent are in favor of this, while 33 percent are against such a role. A further 12 percent do not want to say one way or the other. But support for CO₂ prices on carbon intensive activities is weak. These are findings of a representative survey conducted by the Ludwig Erhard ifo Center for Social Market Economy in Fürth in cooperation with the Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions (NIM).
When asked what should be done to become climate neutral by 2045, 28 percent of respondents are in favor of subsidies for climate-friendly measures, such as the promotion of electric cars. A smaller proportion of respondents are in favor of requirements such as minimum standards for house construction (16 percent) and bans on climate-damaging actions such as gas heating systems (also 16 percent). Only 8 percent are in favor of a higher price for carbon emissions. However, around one-quarter of respondents (25 percent) also stated that they were unable to answer the question about suitable climate action.
“Our results show that the opinion of the population in Germany differs considerably from economists’ recommendations. The majority of the latter are in favor of carbon pricing, for example in emissions trading,” says Sarah Necker, Director of the Ludwig Erhard ifo Center in Fürth. Michael Zürn, Senior Researcher at NIM, adds: “Our figures also reflect the disagreement that seems to prevail within society with regard to specific environmental policy measures. The strong contrasts could be one reason for the current reform backlog.”
The results are based on an ifo Institute survey conducted in cooperation with the Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions (NIM), which was carried out by the GfK eBUS in September 2023. A representative sample of people in Germany aged 18–74 was surveyed.
Wollen die Deutschen beim Klimaschutz Vorreiter sein und wenn ja, wie? Maßnahmen aus Bevölkerungsperspektive
ifo Institut, München, 2024
ifo Schnelldienst, 2024, 77, Nr. 01, 39-43
The Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions (NIM) is a non-profit institute for research on consumer and market decisions. At the interface between science and practice, NIM examines how decisions of consumers and company decision-makers change in the face of new technological and social trends – and what the resulting impacts are. From its research, NIM generates new and relevant insights into how people can make better decisions in markets.
