Research Team: David Reiner, Howard Herzog, Mark de Figueiredo, Thomas Curry, Stephen Ansolabehere
Sponsor(s): Alliance for Global Sustainability; MIT Carbon Sequestration Initiative
Summary:
Through an alliance with University of Tokyo, Chalmers University of Technology and the University of Cambridge, the researchers have developed surveys in the United States, Japan, United Kingdom, and Sweden to assess public attitudes towards carbon dioxide capture and storage. Objectives include gauging public concern for environmental issues and global climate change, understanding the current level of awareness of carbon dioxide capture and storage among the general population, providing data on trends in public understanding, and providing a basis upon which to develop a public outreach strategy.
Specific tasks in this project include:
- Survey of general public - US (completed September 2003)
- Survey of general public - UK (completed October 2004)
- Survey of key industry/NGO stakeholders - US, Europe, Japan (scheduled early 2005)
The US study has been documented in a student thesis (Curry, 2004). Data analysis of the UK survey is continuing, with a written report scheduled for the first half of 2005.
Publications to date:
Curry, T.E., D.M. Reiner, S. Ansolabehere and H.J. Herzog, "How Aware is the Public of Carbon Capture and Storage?" presented at the Seventh International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies, Vancouver, Canada, September (2004). <PDF>
Curry, T.E., "Public Awareness of Carbon Capture and Storage: A Survey of Attitudes toward Climate Change Mitigation," M.I.T. Masters Thesis, June (2004). <PDF>
