Consumers adopting some sustainable behaviors, but change not keeping pace with concern, 18-country survey reveals Americans remain last in global consumer sustainability ranking

WASHINGTON, DC – 26 September 2014 – A new global analysis released today by the National Geographic Society and GlobeScan finds that concern about environmental problems has increased in most countries surveyed, and that more people now expect global warming will negatively affect them during their lifetime than in 2012. Despite this, National Geographic’s Greendex, a comprehensive measure of consumer behavior in 65 areas related to housing, transportation, food and consumer goods, shows that sustainable consumer behavior has only grown slowly.
Results of the 2014 Greendex, a collaboration between National Geographic and global research consultancy GlobeScan, were released today in Boston at the Sustainable Brands New Metrics ’14. Greendex 2014 surveyed 18,000 consumers in 18 countries and is the fifth iteration of the survey, which was first fielded in 2008.
Among the top findings in 2014:

• Environmental concern has increased since 2012: Sixty-one percent of consumers globally now say they are very concerned about environmental problems compared with 56 percent in 2012.
• Compared to the study’s 2008 baseline, sustainable consumer behavior has increased in nearly every country tracked since the first survey, suggesting consumer behavior across the world is improving, albeit slowly.
• Environmentally friendly behavior has increased in nine of the 17 countries that were surveyed in 2012: Argentina, Australia, Hungary, India, Mexico, Russia, Sweden, South Korea and Great Britain. However, sustainable behavior decreased since 2012 among consumers in five countries: Canada, China, Germany, Japan and the United States.
• Top-scoring consumers of the 2014 Greendex study are in the developing economies of India and China, followed by consumers in South Korea, Brazil and Argentina. Indian and Chinese consumers also scored highest in 2012.
• U.S. consumers’ behavior still ranks as the least sustainable of all countries surveyed since the inception of the Greendex study in 2008.
• More and more consumers are embracing local and organic foods and lightening their environmental footprint in the food category. Nearly all consumers believe that we need to change the way we produce and consume food in order to feed a growing population, and many say it is very important to know how and where their food is produced. Yet, relatively few people report that they do.
• Consumers are anxious about climate change: Fifty-one percent across the 18 countries surveyed in 2014 believe that global warming will negatively affect their own lives, up in seven surveyed countries from 2012 and down in none.
• Furthermore, 65 percent of consumers overall believe that most scientists are convinced that human activity causes climate change.

The complete results of the Greendex are online at www.nationalgeographic.com/greendex
“National Geographic developed the Greendex as an important tool for measuring sustainable behavior and changes in behavior around the world over time,” said Terry Garcia, chief science and exploration officer at the National Geographic Society. “The 2014 Greendex provides increased insight into what the drivers are for consumers to engage in more environmentally friendly behavior, such as peer influence and helping people see the connections between humans and the environment. This year we have seen that, although change is coming slowly, consumers are showing positive change in their attitudes about sustainable food choices; this data can help inform behavior change in other sectors.”
Eric Whan, who directs the Greendex project at GlobeScan, added, “It’s vital that all actors work together to enable substantive reductions in the environmental impact of consumer behavior around the world. The research underlines that consumers need more encouragement from peers as well as enablement and better leadership from companies and governments to lighten their own impact. That’s why the Greendex is so important.”
The Greendex was launched in 2008 to inform consumers worldwide and motivate sustainable choices. It explores individual consumer behavior and material lifestyle of 18,000 consumers in 18 countries around the world (14 in 2008), and measures the specific choices and behaviors that contribute most to a consumer’s overall ecological impact — for example, the type of car you drive, the way you heat your house, the kind of foods you eat. A complex algorithm is applied to results to generate an index score — a Greendex score — for each individual respondent, which reflects the relative environmental impact of his or her consumption patterns. Individual scores are averaged to create a mean score for consumers in each country. Combined with questions about cultural drivers and perceptions, the Greendex gives a comprehensive view into the state of sustainable consumption.
Consumers can calculate their own Greendex scores on the National Geographic website and compare their scores to other consumers around the world: http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/greendex/calculator/
They can also examine the Greendex survey results by country, measure their knowledge of green issues and get tips on living a more environmentally friendly lifestyle: www.nationalgeographic.com/greendex
The 18 countries surveyed in the 2014 Greendex were Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, India, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden and the United States. Added since the 2012 Greendex was South Africa, expanding the survey’s reach into the African continent. 

For More Information, Please Contact

• Robin Miller, Manager, Communications and Digital Media, GlobeScan, +1 647 528 2767, robin.miller@globescan.com
• Kelsey Flora, Communications Manager, National Geographic, +1 202 828-8023, kflora@ngs.org

About the National Geographic Society

With a mission to inspire people to care about the planet, the 126-year-old National Geographic Society is one of the world’s largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations. Working to inspire, illuminate and teach, the member-supported Society reaches over 600 million people worldwide each month through its media platforms, products and events. National Geographic has funded more than 11,000 research, conservation and exploration projects, and its education programs promote geographic literacy. For more information, visit www.NationalGeographic.com

Related Links:

National Geographic / GlobeScan Greendex Case Study
2012 Greendex: Press Release | Highlights Report
2010 Greendex: Press Release | Highlights Report
2009 Greendex: Press Release | Highlights Report
2008 Greendex: Press Release | Highlights Report