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Abstract Climate change is currently one of humanity’s greatest threats. To help scholars understand the psychology of climate change, we conducted an online quasi-experimental survey on 59,508 participants from 63 countries (collected between July 2022 and July 2023). In a between-subjects design, we tested 11 interventions designed to promote climate change mitigation across four outcomes: climate change belief, support for climate policies, willingness to share information on social media, and performance on an effortful pro-environmental behavioural task. Participants also reported their demographic information (e.g., age, gender) and several other independent variables (e.g., political orientation, perceptions about the scientific consensus). In the no-intervention control group, we also measured important additional variables, such as environmentalist identity and trust in climate science. We report the collaboration procedure, study design, raw and cleaned data, all survey materials, relevant analysis scripts, and data visualisations. This dataset can be used to further the understanding of psychological, demographic, and national-level factors related to individual-level climate action and how these differ across countries.

IntroductionPlastic pollution in coastal regions poses severe environmental challenges. This research aims to examine the impact of an individual's outdoor lifestyle and their perceptions of responsibility for litter management-specifically the roles of governments, businesses, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), Cornwall council, and volunteers-on their engagement in activities aimed at reducing plastic pollution.MethodsThe study surveyed 972 individuals in Cornwall, UK, to gather data on their perceptions and behaviors related to plastic reduction initiatives. The survey employed binomial logistic regression tests to analyse the relationship between respondents' views on responsibility for litter management and their participation in ten different plastic-reducing activities.ResultsThe analysis revealed that individuals' perceptions of who should be responsible for managing litter significantly influence their likelihood of participating in plastic reduction activities. Notably, respondents who viewed national governments, businesses, and volunteers as responsible were more likely to engage in outdoor plastic reduction efforts, such as beach clean-ups. In contrast, attributing responsibility to the Cornwall council and NGOs was negatively correlated with participation in some plastic-reducing activities.DiscussionThe findings suggest that perceptions of responsibility play a crucial role in motivating individuals to participate in plastic reduction efforts. The positive correlation between viewing certain entities (governments, businesses, and volunteers) as responsible and increased participation highlights the potential for targeted interventions. Recommendations for enhancing plastic reduction participation include governmental policy changes, collaboration with outdoor sports groups, and the implementation of community-focused social marketing strategies to foster a collective sense of responsibility and action.

Plastic pollution is a pressing global issue, necessitating a focus on consumer behavior to curb this problem at its source. To effectively promote sustainable practices, communication strategies that employ future visions have gained attention. This study examines the effects of a narrative video intervention depicting an optimistic future vision concerning single-use plastic bag consumption in South Africa, compared to a representation of the prevailing status quo. Using a preregistered within-subject design, we assess the psychological and emotional responses to two scenarios of which one is illustrating adaptive behaviors toward reduced plastic bag usage, and the other showcasing current consumption patterns. Parametric analyses revealed a shift in emotional states, characterized by a greater experience of positive emotions and a reduced experience of negative emotions following the exposure to the optimistic future scenario video, as compared to the status quo video. Moreover, engagement with the optimistic future scenario was associated with higher levels of perceived behavioral control and behavioral intentions. No significant changes were found regarding sense of responsibility. These findings point to the potential of optimistic future visions to influence individuals at psychological and emotional levels. This renders optimistic future vision communication as an effective tool for sustainable behavior change, particularly in relation to the sustainable use of plastic shopping bags.

IntroductionThis study investigates the effectiveness of using an educational comic book to facilitate the intergenerational transfer of knowledge and intentions concerning dynamite fishing in Borneo, Malaysia. The aim is to explore how children can influence their parents' understanding of the issue and their willingness to address it within the community. Additionally, the research examines unintended reactions within the participant groups.MethodsThe study employed a controlled experimental design with two groups: a treatment group exposed to the educational comic book and a control group without this intervention. Participants were families residing in communities where dynamite fishing is still practiced. Data collection included pre- and post-intervention surveys and follow-up measurements to assess short-term and long-term effects on knowledge and intentions.ResultsThe findings revealed a successful intergenerational transfer of knowledge from children to parents, evident both in the short and long term. Furthermore, the intergenerational transfer of intentions demonstrated a two-fold pattern. The intention to discuss the dynamite fishing problem within the community was transferred from children to their parents at the second measurement point, highlighting the time required for the development of new intentions. A boomerang effect was observed for the intention to cease dynamite fishing among individuals reliant on fishing for their livelihood. This rebound effect was solely observed in the control group but was effectively mitigated in the treatment group, where engagement with the comic book influenced positive outcomes.DiscussionThe study's results underscore the power of intergenerational transfer of knowledge and intentions from younger to older generations, facilitated by educational comic books as a communication tool for addressing environmental issues. Moreover, a boomerang effect seen in the control group highlights the complexity of behavior change in economically motivated practices like dynamite fishing. Engaging interventions, such as educational materials, can play a crucial role in curbing these behaviors. Furthermore, the study emphasizes the necessity of carefully monitoring unintended reactions within participant groups, particularly in research related to sensitive topics.

Single-use plastic bags contribute significantly to the plastic pollution in South Africa posing a serious environmental challenge. Hence, there is a need for comprehensive strategies to reduce plastic bag consumption. We report the results of an online workshop aimed to create a positive, shared future vision. The workshop was attended by 12 invited participants from diverse backgrounds and disciplines and utilized a collaborative approach to propose a framework for reducing plastic bag usage during grocery shopping in South Africa. The findings suggest that a combination of economic, structural and behavioral interventions is necessary to promote lasting behavior change, including financial incentives, a broad introduction of more environmentally friendly alternatives, and promoting bag reuse. Additionally, the vision underscored the importance of using social channels such as education and social norms. The invited stakeholders did not endorse conventional approaches such as increasing an already existing levy or implementing a complete ban on plastic bags. They also questioned the introduction of fully recycled plastic bags. Instead, the proposed vision encourages an integrated approach to reducing plastic bag usage involving individual behavior change and community engagement. The development of a creative product such as a video to showcase a future vision offers a powerful tool for communication with further stakeholders and political authorities, to engage with the community and broader population and for inspiring collective action. Overall, the findings have implications for policymakers, business leaders, environmental educators, and individuals committed to reducing plastic pollution and promoting sustainable practices in South Africa.

Scenarios can be used to communicate potential future changes and engage and connect different audiences in exploring sustainable solutions. Communicating scenarios using creative visualisation, co-creation and a focus on local contexts are especially promising. This research is conducted on the island of Palawan in the Philippines as part of the GCRF Blue Communities project. With a quasi-experimental design, we investigate the psychological and emotional effects of the engagement with future scenarios as a tool for communicating sustainability. Together with local stakeholders and community members, three distinct, locally relevant scenario narratives (Business as Usual, Best Case, and Worst Case) have been co-created. Subsequently, a sample of N = 109 local high school students was asked to creatively engage with these scenario narratives. Intentions to engage in sustainable behaviour, perceived behavioural control, ascription of responsibility, consideration of future consequences, six basic emotions and connectedness to place were assessed before and after the activity via paper-pencil administrated questionnaires. A mixed-model analysis showed significant increases in intentions to engage in sustainable behaviour, however, this increase disappeared when consideration of future consequences was added as a covariate, suggesting a mediating effect. The level of consideration of future consequences also increased significantly after engaging with any of the future scenarios, which questions the common interpretation of consideration of future consequences as a trait variable. Perceived behavioural control significantly increased following the engagement with each of the scenarios whereas ascription of responsibility and connectedness to place did not show any changes. Overall, the two most emotion-evoking scenarios, Best Case Scenario and Worst Case Scenario, turn out as superior over the Business as Usual Scenario, which points to the relevance of emotional framing for effective messaging in our sample. This is the first systematic, quantitative assessment of the effects of future scenarios as a communication tool.

Despite the potentially huge contributions that coastal communities might make in marine resource management and sustainability, their participation in such efforts have only been recognized recently, particularly in Southeast Asia. Involving community perceptions can offer new insights for policy makers and resource managers and can elicit strong commitment and support from the communities themselves. This article aims to understand the perceptions of coastal communities of local environmental issues, specifically how these have developed over time, to understand the expectations and perceptions of trends. Sixteen marine environmental issues were identified during stakeholder meetings in Palawan, Philippines. A co-developed survey was administered to 431 respondents from coastal communities in two municipalities (Taytay and Aborlan) and in the city of Puerto Princesa in Palawan. The results show variation in the perceptions and expectations across issues. We find that communities expect positive trends for mangrove coverage, beach tree cover, and seagrass coverage as well as for seaweed farming and quality of drinking water. The amount of plastic litter, wild fish and shellfish, and the severity of sewage pollution are perceived to get slightly worse. The aquaculture sector is expected to remain unchanged in the future as it had been in the past. We also find significant differences in how people from different areas of residence perceive their marine environment. In the discussion, we mapped these different community perceptions on existing policies and their implementation. We further recommend how community perceptions can be integrated into resource management and policy making in the future.

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused (and continues to cause) severe disruption in global and local economies and has forced countries, societies, and individuals to adapt quickly to the unprecedented and unpredictable situations. Despite the obvious negative consequences of the pandemic, many have called for efforts to identify transformative opportunities for sustainable development throughout this disorderly time. In the present paper, we explore such potential opportunities in the context of an interdisciplinary, international research project, which is focusing on sustainable marine management in biosphere reserves and marine parks in Southeast Asia. During a virtual workshop conducted as part of the GCRF (Government’s Global Challenges Research Fund) Blue Communities Project, future scenarios were developed depicting the potential effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on five case study sites. All of these sites are in areas of internationally recognized outstanding ecological value (Taka Bonerate Kepulauan-Selayar Biosphere Reserve, Indonesia; Tun Mustapha Park, Sabah, Malaysia; Palawan Biosphere Reserve, Philippines; North Devon Biosphere Reserve, United Kingdom; Cu Lao Cham-Hoi An Biosphere Reserve, Vietnam). At the macro-level, economies, governance structures, and societal norms are undergoing big changes. At the micro-level, the livelihoods, lifestyles, and backyards of local residents have to adapt. Collaboratively, we explored how COVID-19 posed challenges in our five case study sites, but we also focused on the potential COVID-19-related windows of opportunity for future sustainable development. Opportunities could be identified in all three pillars of sustainable development: the environment, the society, and the economy. Although remarkable similarities can be found across all five sites, we conclude that there cannot be a “one-size-fits-all” solution to turn the tide toward achieving sustainable development. Just as before the pandemic, sustainable development starts with engaging with and understanding local environments, challenges, and situations; building on local knowledge; and developing tailor-made solutions for the communities in situ.