Swiss want more state-backed environment action

Most Swiss profess to be nature lovers Keystone

Over half of the Swiss see themselves as more environmentally aware than average, with even more people believing more has to be done to combat climate change. The findings on Switzerland’s views on the environment come from a survey by the GfS-Zurich research institute and WWF Switzerland.

Some 1,009 people took part in the study at the end of 2014, with two-thirds believing that climate change is one of the biggest environmental problems and a third feeling personally affected by it. In the same survey a year earlier, just under half (49%) of people believed they were more environmentally aware than average; in 2014 it was 57%.

While 71% of people surveyed said that efforts to control climate change had to be stepped up, 51% said that Switzerland should strive to be the most climate-friendly country in Europe.

The survey also found that differences in attitudes towards the environment between different age groups, men and women, and various income brackets had become insignificant.

Above average

Looking at how people actively supported an environmentally-friendly approach to life, 48% of those surveyed said they saw their contribution as being above average.

In practical terms that meant a third drove their car less and a fifth took steps to save energy or heating fuel at home.

The support for more government-backed measures against climate change was 56% of survey respondents.

In general, people backed more government measures to protect the environment, giving reasons such as a fear of a having a large impact on the environment, a love of nature and a sense of responsibility for future generations.