Underestimation of personal carbon footprint inequality in four diverse countries

Kristian S. Nielsen (), Jan M. Bauer, Ramit Debnath (), Charles A. Emogor, Sonja M. Geiger, Sakshi Ghai, Wencke Gwozdz and Ulf J. J. Hahnel
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Kristian S. Nielsen: Copenhagen Business School
Jan M. Bauer: Copenhagen Business School
Ramit Debnath: University of Cambridge
Charles A. Emogor: University of Cambridge
Sonja M. Geiger: Murdoch University
Sakshi Ghai: University of Oxford
Wencke Gwozdz: Justus-Liebig-University Giessen
Ulf J. J. Hahnel: University of Basel

Nature Climate Change, 2024, vol. 14, issue 11, 1136-1143

Abstract: Abstract Extensive research highlights global and within-country inequality in personal carbon footprints. However, the extent to which people are aware of these inequalities remains unclear. Here we use an online survey distributed across four diverse countries: Denmark, India, Nigeria and the USA, to show widespread underestimation of carbon footprint inequality, irrespective of participants’ country and income segment. Of the 4,003 participants, within each country, 50% of participants were sampled from the top 10% income group. Our results show links between carbon footprint inequality perceptions and climate policy support, but with significant variations observed across the four countries and with participants’ income segments. Furthermore, there are links to the perceived fairness of actual carbon footprint inequality, highlighting the need to raise awareness about carbon footprint inequality and further unpack its implications for climate justice and policy.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1038/s41558-024-02130-y

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