Global expert perspectives on the state of sustainable development, by The Regeneration Roadmap
Our Insights
Keep up to date with our latest news, webinars, and reports.
Keep up to date with our latest news, webinars, and reports.
Second white paper on sustainability leadership from The Regeneration Roadmap.
In the latest The Regeneration Roadmap white paper, we share the perspectives of over 1,600 sustainability experts from 117 countries, and nearly 25,000 members of the global public from 22 countries. Through a series of surveys this spring, we gathered insights from these groups about their views of the state of sustainable development and perspectives on what is needed from business to accelerate progress. Click image to download the full report: Global Public Opinion Report on the State of Sustainable … “Down to Business: Leading at Rio+20 and Beyond”
As businesses seek ways to project credible messages about responsibility, many have been turning to partnerships with NGOs. This is not surprising—GlobeScan’s tracking indicates that public trust in NGOs continues to outstrip trust in business by a very significant margin, and most citizens in our global survey say that they would have increased respect for companies that choose to partner with NGOs.
However, GlobeScan’s latest monitoring of public sentiment on the issue suggests that the issue of partnerships is becoming more hazardous—for NGOs. A majority (53%) of those polled earlier this year across 23 countries say that their respect for a charity/NGO would go down if it chose to partner with a company. And this increased skepticism appears to be more pronounced in some major developing economies. Notably, the proportion in China who say they would lose respect for an NGO engaged in a corporate partnership has risen from 46% in 2003 to nearly four in five (78%) this year. There have also been significant rises in the proportions of such skeptics in India and Russia.
With the reputation of private business in these countries having been tainted by many high-profile corruption scandals, this may reflect public fear that NGOs’ independence and ability to act as rallying points for social change could be compromised. The rise in skepticism may also reflect misgivings about the coherence of existing corporate/NGO partnerships. On a recent GlobeScan webcast, SC Johnson’s Kelly Semrau stressed the importance of retaining “authenticity” when businesses and NGOs work together. These findings show this is also a preoccupation for consumers.
Finding from the GlobeScan Radar, Wave 1, 2012
For more information on this finding, please contact Sam Mountford (Read Bio)
Only 1 in 20 say their country should not commit to any international agreements Download the Press Release (PDF) LONDON, UK, 13 June 2012 – As the Rio+20 Earth Summit kicks off in Brazil this week, a new poll of 17,000 consumers across 17 countries finds that 55% of people worldwide want their government to “play a leadership role in making ambitious international commitments to reduce global poverty in ways that improve the environment.” A further 40% want their government to … “Consumers Call for Ambitious Leadership from their Governments at Rio+20 Earth Summit: Global Poll”
It is often asserted that a responsible approach towards the environment is a luxury that emerging economies—with large proportions of their populations often remaining in poverty—are unable to afford, and that their top priority must be economic growth, whatever the cost.
However, GlobeScan’s and SustainAbility‘s most recent survey of global consumers, conducted in collaboration with National Geographic, shows that those in emerging economies are even more likely than their developed-world peers to reject the notion that environmental responsibility and economic prosperity are mutually exclusive.
The survey among consumers across 17 countries asked them to say whether they thought a Green Economy would be more or less effective than today’s economy in addressing a range of environmental and social challenges—and found that, globally, consumers thought a Green Economy would be more effective in all areas except for the creation of low-paying jobs.
Consumers in emerging economies are much more optimistic about the overall impact of a Green Economy than those in industrialized countries—particularly on “improving quality of life.” In those emerging economies, net expectations of the Green Economy’s effectiveness at “improving quality of life” are nearly 20 points higher than in developed economies. Similarly, the Green Economy’s effectiveness at “increasing long-term economic growth,” “reducing poverty,” and “creating high-paying jobs” is rated much more highly in emerging economies than in industrialized ones, as this chart shows.
Emerging-economy governments—notably in China—having taken a hard-line stance against tougher environmental targets in international climate negotiations in the past, but these findings suggest that they may be underestimating their peoples’ ability to take a long-term view.
Finding from a recent Regeneration Roadmap press release on Green Economy.
For more information on this finding, please contact Sam Mountford (Read Bio)
– This article originally appeared June 7, 2012 on GreenBiz.com – June 8, 2012 – Unilever had painted itself into a corner. After the global consumer goods company published its Unilever’s Sustainable Living Plan laying out ambitious sustainability goals, company leaders realized meeting those goals was going to be tough. So they got creative. Working with GlobeScan, they created an online collaboration platform with one clear purpose – to enable Unilever to hit its sustainability targets for 2020. “We can’t solve these issues on our … “How Unilever Crowdsourced Creativity to Meet its Sustainability Goals”
Fondest memories revolve around water; Canadians concerned about quality of lakes and rivers TORONTO, Canada – June 7, 2012 – With only two weeks to the official start of summer, Canadians are looking forward to vacations, weekends at the cottage and spending time in or on the water swimming, sailing or at the beach. For many, their fondest outdoor experiences involve water – from swimming (33 per cent) and going to the beach (33 per cent), to fishing (28 per cent) and … “Canadians Living a Life Aquatic”
8 in 10 experts fear that governments will not take action short of catastrophe Download the Press Release (PDF) LONDON, UK, 6 June 2012 – As world leaders prepare to gather at the G20 and Rio+20 conferences later this month, two major global surveys released today by GlobeScan and SustainAbility find that expert and public confidence in national governments when it comes to governments’ ability to tackle global economic, environmental and social challenges are at severe lows. The findings suggest national … “International Polls Of Sustainability Experts And The Public Emphasize Growing Need For Private Sector Leadership On Sustainable Development”
The ongoing economic crisis appears to be having a negative influence on the global public’s judgment of progress on economic wellbeing, according to our latest global polling.
When asked to evaluate the state of progress on societal challenges over the last twenty years, people across 22 countries were more likely to feel that environmental protection and creating healthier and more equitable societies had got better over that period than felt the same way about improved economic wellbeing, which nearly as many felt had got worse (36%) as felt it had improved (39%).
These findings suggest that current socioeconomic difficulties may be making it difficult for citizens to perceive the widespread increase in living standards over the last two decades, which has been particularly marked in middle-income countries such as Brazil, India and China. Not surprisingly, these are the three countries most likely to perceive an improvement in economic wellbeing over the period, while troubled European and North American economies, particularly Greece, are the least likely.
The findings are drawn from The Regeneration Roadmap, GlobeScan and SustainAbility’s collaboration aimed at generating a roadmap for sustainable development over the coming years.
Finding from The Regeneration Roadmap, 2012
For more information on this finding, please contact Sam Mountford (Read Bio)
GlobeScan is an independent, employee-owned insights consultancy whose mission is to help co-create a more sustainable and equitable future. We work with large companies, NGOs and multi-lateral organizations to help them better understand and respond to stakeholder expectations and societal issues.
The only way we can do this effectively is through the generous participation of our expert community in our research projects. In return, we will share exclusive reports, invite you to interesting webinars and make donations to One Tree Planted, a leading reforestation charity.
Are you interested in our work? To get involved join our expert community where your opinions will help shape the direction of some of the most influential organizations in the world.
Green Economy Will Boost Jobs and Economic Growth, According to Global Poll of Consumers and Experts
Download the Press Release (PDF) LONDON, UK, 1 June 2012 – A Green Economy would have a more positive impact on major economic, social and environmental problems than today’s economy, according to two new global surveys of consumers and thought leaders released today. The polls, conducted by The Regeneration Roadmap in partnership with UNEP, surveyed 17,000 consumers across 17 countries and 1,600 sustainable development experts from business, civil society, government and academia from 117 countries. Consumers worldwide say a Green Economy … “Green Economy Will Boost Jobs and Economic Growth, According to Global Poll of Consumers and Experts”
In the past few years the internet has become a widely used tool for Chinese people to access information that would otherwise not be available, such as critical information about the government, but also for consumers to learn about the social and environmental responsibility of companies. In response to the banning of global social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube, Chinese internet users have instead developed their own widely used platforms for social networking and microblogging. China now boasts more than double the internet users of the USA, and more than 300 million Chinese consumers use social media according to a recent survey by McKinsey.
Chinese consumers use their newfound access to information to find information about the behaviour of companies; recent findings from GlobeScan’s 2012 Radar research programme shows that Chinese consumers are much more likely than consumers in other key markets to use social media to discover how responsibly companies are behaving on social, as well as environmental, issues. Compared to British or American consumers, the Chinese are twice as likely to claim they use social media to learn about CSR.
In 2011, several corporate scandals in China were uncovered and spread through social media, such as food safety problems of China’s largest meat processor Shuanghui, tainted Mengniu milk products, and a cover-up by authorities of the oil spill in the gulf of Bohai by the American company ConocoPhillips. As more scandals emerge, Chinese consumers are becoming more alert to corporate misbehaviour and increasingly eager to spread the word online.
Finding from the GlobeScan Radar, Wave 1, 2012
For more information on this finding, please contact Sam Mountford (Read Bio)
The newly elected French President, François Hollande, has recently stated that China’s relationship to the EU is fundamentally adversarial. This is just the latest of many calls from Western officials trying to address a perceived unfairness in the world’s trade system, an unfairness for which they consider China mainly responsible.
Yet, despite this official “hostile” rhetoric, GlobeScan’s 2012 Country Ratings Poll finds that the global public’s opinion of China has improved significantly over the past year. The poll asked respondents to rate the influence of 16 countries and the European Union. On average, in 21 tracking countries, 50 per cent of respondents rate China’s influence in the world positively, while 31 per cent consider it to be negative—a substantial improvement since 2011, with positive views increasing by four points and negative views dropping by the same amount. China has now overtaken both the EU and the US on this measure. This improving trend is remarkable in Western countries—although in some of them negative perceptions continue to outnumber the positive. In Australia (61%), Canada (53%), the UK (57%), the US (42%), and Germany (42%), the proportion of positive views has never been higher since tracking began in 2005. Opinion has grown more positive in Spain and France as well.
A subsample of respondents was asked to say which of four possible areas was most influential in their judgment—foreign policy, the economy (including products and services), traditions and culture, or the way people are treated. Of those who think Chinese influence is positive, 51 per cent say this is because of China’s economy, products, and services. While China certainly triggers some feelings of apprehension—the economy is also the top reason (30%) cited by respondents who hold unfavourable views of China—these positive results suggest that publics increasingly acknowledge that China’s economic power has become vital to the world economy.
Finding from the 2012 GlobeScan/BBC Country Ratings Poll
For more information on this finding, please contact Sam Mountford (Read Bio)
GlobeScan’s ongoing tracking of public attitudes towards corporate leadership in social and environmental responsibility reveals a highly disparate picture, probably reflecting persistently low levels of public awareness of corporate activity in this area. When asked to name a company they consider to be socially or environmentally responsible, the public around the world names a very broadspectrum of companies, with the only companies able to “cut through” in individual countries usually being flagship brands strongly associated with the prestige of the nation in question (for instance, Samsung in South Korea, Petrobras in Brazil, VW in Germany, or Safaricom in Kenya).
The reasons given for considering a company to be socially responsible are equally diverse, but show some regional patterns. Charitable support—particularly as governments retrenches—is highly significant in North America. Employee treatment is key in Europe, where the workforce traditionally has higher expectations of employment conditions, while in the wake of a number of product-related scandals, the quality of products and services is dominant as a consideration in Asia. This suggests that companies looking to establish reputations for responsible business will need to take care to tailor the focus of their messaging to the regional context.
Finding from the GlobeScan Radar, Wave 1, 2012
For more information on this finding, please contact Sam Mountford (Read Bio)
[jumplinks] Download the Full Report (PDF) 10 May 2012 – Positive views of the European Union and European nations have declined sharply over the last year—so much so that Germany has been overtaken by Japan as the world’s most positively viewed major nation, a new 22-country global poll for BBC World Service suggests. The poll also finds that views of China have improved significantly over the last year, in both the developing and industrialised world, and that the country has now … “Views of Europe Slide Sharply in Global Poll, While Views of China Improve”
An exploration of climate change policy options, from The GlobeScan/SustainAbility Survey.
Download the Report (PDF) 9 May 2012 – At the end of this year the first commitment of the Kyoto Protocol will expire having failed to get carbon emissions down to a safe level. The main success appeared to be that the international policy process managed to stay on track despite the near breakdown of negotiations at COP15 in Copenhagen. As we move into the post-Kyoto period we still have a climate change challenge that looms larger than ever and the … “Climate Change Policy Options: Beyond Kyoto”
The recent wave of foreign investment in Africa—much of it from China—has started to transform the employment situation and infrastructure in parts of the continent. According toThe Economist, trade between China and Africa surpassed $120 billion in 2010, and it is claimed that China has given more loans to Africa over the past two years than the World Bank. Despite the controversy surrounding China’s new-found influence in the continent—with concern as to whether the benefits of the investment stay in Africa or are all repatriated to China—GlobeScan’s recent public attitudes poll for BBC World Service suggests that Africans themselves are much more relaxed about it than much of the rest of the world.
A narrow majority of those we polled across 22 countries at the end of last year saw foreign investment in Africa as a very or somewhat good thing for the continent, with around one in four holding the opposite view. However, the results indicate that some of the world’s major donor countries have misgivings. A majority of Germans (56%) and significant minorities of French (44%), Spaniards (40%), Britons and Americans (both 32%) think it is a bad thing.
In contrast, the four African countries in our sample all have very large majorities feeling that the foreign investment is a positive thing, with support highest in Nigeria (85%), but also very high in Kenya (75%), Ghana (72%), and Egypt (71%).
Finding from a February 2012 GlobeScan/BBC Poll
For more information on this finding, please contact Sam Mountford (Read Bio)
Highlights report for the Unilever Sustainable Living Lab: a live, online, moderated dialogue on sustainable living.
The worsening labour market and government debt crisis in Spain is leading Spaniards to re-evaluate their attitudes towards their current economic system, according to GlobeScan’s latest global public attitudes tracking across 22 countries for BBC World Service.
Globally, views of the fairness of the economic system and of free market capitalism have remained broadly stable since 2009, when GlobeScan last looked at this question. There has been some polarisation in attitudes about the free market, with an increase in the proportion of people who feel that the system works fine and does not need reform, but also an increase in those who view it as “fatally flawed”’ and feel a new economic system is required.
However, the change in Spanish attitudes over the past few years is strikingly at variance with this picture. The number of Spaniards who regard free market capitalism as “fatally flawed” has jumped from 29% in 2009 to 42% this year, while the view that economic benefits and burdens have not been fairly shared in Spain is now almost universally held (up from 66% in 2009 to 92% this year). In both cases, these proportions are the highest of any nation polled.
These figures suggest that the new right-of-centre Spanish government may face significant public opposition to austerity measures whose impact is likely to fall heaviest on the less well-off.
Finding from a 25 April 2012 GlobeScan/BBC Poll
For more information on this finding, please contact Sam Mountford (Read Bio)
We leverage the largest network of sustainability professionals in the world to produce resources that provide leaders with the inspiration, insight and counsel they need to fully embrace the opportunities and challenges of our world. See how we can support your work.
GlobeScan is a certified B Corporation, which means we meet the highest standards of overall social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability and aspire to use the power of business to solve social and environmental problems.
Multinational Corporations Expected to Play Key Role at June Summit Download the Press Release (PDF) 26 April 2012 – According to a major international poll of sustainable development experts, a majority of opinion leaders surveyed (57%) view the Rio+20 United Nations Summit scheduled for June 20-22, 2012 as a critical opportunity to make progress on sustainability leadership, but very few (13%) think it will succeed. As part of The Regeneration Raodmap, the GlobeScan/SustainAbility Survey polled 642 experts in sustainability from business, … “Poll Reveals Majority of Sustainability Experts Fear Rio+20 UN Summit Will Be Wasted Opportunity”
Download the Press Release (PDF) 24 April 2012 – GlobeScan is pleased to announce the appointment of two new directors to our Board of Directors and welcomes the Right Honourable Joe Clark and Dr. Kellie McElhaney. “It is with great pleasure I am able to announce the appointments of our new directors, each one of whom brings vital perspective and experience to GlobeScan,” said GlobeScan’s Executive Chairman and CEO, Doug Miller. “Joe understands leadership and offers us global perspective and wise counsel. … “Ex-Prime Minister and Leading Corporate Sustainability Academic Join GlobeScan Board”
GlobeScan’s most recent tracking of consumer confidence around the world confirms that to talk about “global” economic sentiment is somewhat misleading.
The polarized picture we have noted in recent years continues, with consumers in the world’s major industrialized economies remaining predominately downbeat, while those in some of the major emerging economies are more likely to feel positive about their financial situation.
Notably, despite increasing talk of an economic slowdown, Chinese consumers appear much more upbeat about their financial situation than they did in 2011. The situation in India is more balanced, although those who report that their financial situation is better than last year still outnumber those who feel worse off than a year ago.
The contrast with the G7 is stark. If the recent improvement in US unemployment figures is translating into less negative sentiment among consumers there, the same cannot be said in France or, particularly, the UK, where sentiment remains heavily negative. There is little sign that Western consumers are ready to be the motor of any sustained economic recovery.
Finding from the GlobeScan Radar, Wave 1, 2012
For more information on this finding, please contact Sam Mountford (Read Bio)
Despite the ever-increasing attention being paid by many companies to developing and communicating a responsible approach to business, there is little evidence that consumers are connecting with the CSR and sustainability efforts being made by the corporate world.
GlobeScan’s international tracking reveals that the number of consumers across 26 countries who said they knew a lot about what companies were doing to improve their social and environmental performance actually decreased slightly between 2009 and 2011, while the proportion saying they were not well informed increased.
While this may reflect greater focus on companies’ financial performance (and job losses) during the recession, it may also reflect the disconnect that continues to exist in many companies between marketing and communications functions and CSR/sustainability functions. Our research suggests that many consumers and stakeholders have not yet been engaged by the way companies try to show what they are doing to be more responsible, and view corporate claims in this area with continuing skepticism.
Finding from the GlobeScan Radar, Wave 1, 2011
For more information on this finding, please contact Sam Mountford (Read Bio)