CLIMATE OPINION POLL: INDONESIANS DEMAND CLIMATE DEAL, WANT PRESIDENT SBY AND OBAMA TO LEAD
People in Indonesia pin their hopes for a new global climate treaty mainly on one man: President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, while a majority in other developing Asian nations looks to Barack Obama. According to a new poll, 53% of Asians believe an agreement at the Copenhagen Climate Summit in December depends on leadership by the US President, followed by Indonesia’s President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (15%) and India’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (14%) who are seen as crucial leaders especially by their own constituencies. Fifty-eight percent of Indonesians regard their state leader as the one that should lead the global effort to tackle climate change.
The August 2009 poll was conducted by Synovate, one of the world’s leading market researchers, and commissioned by WWF, Greenpeace South East Asia and 350.org to support the Tcktcktck campaign, an alliance of major international NGOs. It shows that people in China, India, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand give their leaders a strong mandate for climate action at the UN General Assembly in New York and at the G20 Summit in Pittsburgh later this month.
The majority of Indonesians say that all parties – rich developed countries and major developing countries including their own – should be leaders in the fight against climate change, which is in line with regional polling result. Most Indonesians (78%) want their own government to lead, and they are the second most likely country among those polled to say that rich developed countries should take the lead (72%). The least number polled (57%) think major developing countries should lead.
“In particular, Indonesia must urge industrialized countries to dramatically cut their emissions further to keep the increase in the global temperature at less than 2 degrees Celsius; at this level, the impacts could still be manageable. As there is limited time from now to Copenhagen, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s active involvement and influence are needed to ensure positive outcomes from important forums, namely MEF (Major Economic Forum), the UN General Assembly, and G20,” said Fitrian Ardiansyah, Climate & Energy Program Director, WWF-Indonesia.
Those polled believe that the potential leaders are also among the most difficult countries to get into any agreement in Copenhagen, surprisingly highlighting China above all others (43%), an advocate of developing country interests as a member of the G77 group. Other countries that are also seen as challenging include the US (38%), India (33%), Japan (25%), Russia (24%), South Africa (20%), Brazil (18%), UK (17%), Germany (16%), Mexico (15%), France (14%) and Canada (10%).Asians express a strong desire for action from all major players and urge both developed and developing nations to unite for a global solution. While 73% agree that rich developed countries must lead the world in the fight against climate change, “because they are historically responsible for most greenhouse gas emissions and at the same time most capable of reducing them”, 68% say that major developing countries must join the effort, “because their rapidly increasing emissions are adding more to the current state of pollution and they must switch from a dirty to a clean development model”.
First and foremost, however, people in the countries polled want their own governments to act, with 79% saying: “Regardless of what other countries do and their historical responsibility, I want my government to take action and show leadership to reduce the risk from climate change for my country.”
""The poll results reflect the collective aspirations and wisdom of urban Asians, sending a strong signal to leaders of the developed world, especially President Obama, to cooperate with the developing countries for fair and appropriate contributions towards global emission reduction targets"", said Shailendra Yashwant, Campaigns Director at Greenpeace South East Asia.
59% want their governments to engage positively in Copenhagen this December, but not offer a blank check. They feel that getting a deal is important, but it must be a fair one, safeguarding their individual country’s right to develop.
29% go even further and urge their governments to be flexible and compromise. They agree with the statement: “Getting a deal is important, so this is not the time to be obstructionist. I really want my country to be a leader and think we can afford to give a bit more”. Only 12% of Asians believe that any deal would be a bad deal, so their governments should not sign up.
With respect to dangerous impacts from climate change as projected by scientists, Asians are most worried about water shortages (32%) and worsening health conditions (31%), followed by plant and animal extinction (20%) and food shortages (17%) – a clear reflection of the impacts hitting vulnerable developing countries in Asia already.
Like most polled in other countries, Indonesians are most worried about health problems and water shortage resulting from climate change. Thirty-two percent say the latter is a top concern, which is exactly in line with the regional average. Forty-one percent are worried about worsening health impacts on the back of climate change, more than anywhere else but Thailand, and 10% above the regional average.
Stopping deforestation is the top priority for Asians, including Indonesia, when it comes to reducing emissions. Forty-five percent of Indonesians, a larger percentage than anywhere but India, say ending deforestation is the first action that should be taken to tackle climate change.
“This polling presents a clear signal to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono that the Indonesian people want their President to act. The huge emissions from deforestation and forest degradation are of great concern to Indonesians and President Yudhoyono should draft an immediate action plan to meet the international commitment in reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation and Indonesia’s dependence on ‘dirty’ energy such as coal, because it is a dominant global source of greenhouse gasses. Indonesia should switch to renewable energy sources that are safe and environmentally clean. We call on President Yudhoyono to use the platform of the Special Session of the UN General Assembly meeting on 23 September in New York to launch his action plan” urged Arif Fiyanto, Greenpeace Southeast Asia Climate and Energy campaigner.
Interestingly, Indonesia is the only other country besides the Philippines in which changing lifestyle and consumption patterns is the second most popular pick of the various priority actions. Twenty-one percent of Indonesians polled are in favor of such personal actions to address climate change. Although almost nearly as many (20%) chose reforms to the energy sector, this is 8% less than the regional average when it comes to choosing clean energy as top priority. Only 14% want action within the agricultural sector to be prioritized in the fight against climate change.
The poll was released ahead of the Major Economies Forum in Washington (17-18 Sept), the Ban-ki Moon Leaders Summit on Climate Change,the UN General Assembly in New York (21-22 Sept) , and the G20 Summit in Pittsburgh (24-25 Sept). UN climate talks will resume in Bangkok on 28 September, and progress in Bangkok will largely depend on outcomes of the meetings in the US.
Editor’s Notes:
· A regional summary report with case studies for China, India, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand including graphs with regional and country data can be found at: http://www.panda.org/climate/press
· A total of 6063 people in China (including Hong Kong), India, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand were polled at different dates in August 2009.
· The share of male and female participants in the poll was almost even, varying between 47% and 53% per group depending on the country.
· Those polled were between the ages of 15 and 64, with a majority having either secondary education levels or graduated from a university.
· The margin of error is 1.3% for a sample size of 6000, at 95 percent confidence interval.
About Tcktcktck: The Tcktcktck campaign brings together an unprecedented alliance of faith groups, NGOs, trade unions and individuals at this crucial time to call for a new international treaty that will save the planet from the dangerous effects caused by climate change. As world leaders prepare to strike a climate deal in Copenhagen in December, Tcktcktck will harness the voices of the people to demand an ambitious, fair and binding new international agreement that reflects the latest science. Time is running out. You can show your support by going to tcktcktck.org and joining the campaign.
For more information:
Fitrian Ardiansyah, Director of the Climate and Energy Programme, WWF-Indonesia,
fardiansyah@wwf.or.id, +62-812 935 5105
Verena Puspawardani, Campaign Coordinator of the Climate and Energy Programme , WWF-Indonesia, vpuspawardani@wwf.or.id, +62-818 897 383
Fazedah Nasution, Communications Officer, Program Iklim dan Energi, WWF-Indonesia,
fnasution@wwf.or.id, +62-813 158 00396
Shailendra Yashwant, Campaigns Director, Greenpeace Southeast Asia,
shailendra.yashwant@greenpeace.org, +66-816670103
Arif Fiyanto, Climate & Energy Campaigner – Indonesia, Greenpeace Southeast Asia,
Arif.fiyanto@greenpeace.org, +62-813 1100 4640
Hikmat Soeriatanuwijaya, Media Campaigner, Greenpeace Southeast Asia,
hikmat.suriatanwijaya@greenpeace.org, +62 811 1805 394, +62 818 930 271