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Midwest Energy Survey:
Tracking household perceptions and actions
Midwest Energy Survey webinar
Wednesday, June 27, 2012 | 11:30 am–noon CDT
Hear what 2,426 residential customers had to say about energy topics! Join Ingo Bensch for a webinar on the Energy Center of Wisconsin's latest research on consumer perceptions and actions concerning their energy use at home.
Ingo will share insights from the 2011 Midwest Energy survey on the following topics and more:
The economy
- how the economy affects household reactions to energy costs
- whether people know how much they're spending on energy utilities
Energy efficiency
- where households get their information about energy efficiency
- what people think they can do to save energy at home
- what misconceptions need to be addressed
- what people actually do to save energy at home
Climate change—how climate change perceptions are changing
Energy providers—what customers expect from their utilities
The presentation will focus on results from Midwestern and Wisconsin respondents, but we will draw on a national sample for comparison purposes as well.
There is no charge for this webinar! So, mark your calendar for June 27 at 11:30 am Central Daylight Time. Send a note to Ingo Bensch at ibensch@ecw.org to be added to the mailing list for this webinar. (We will not add you to any other mailing lists.)
Midwest Energy Survey—2007 and 2009
Climate change mitigation has grown into an important national policy issue. The majority of human greenhouse gas emissions result from our use of carbon-based fuels. In North America, the main sources of greenhouse gas emissions are linked to energy use in buildings (residential & commercial), manufacturing, and transportation. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions will require extensive changes in our energy infrastructure, as well as the way people and organizations use energy.
Importance of Public Attitudes
Public attitudes toward climate change can propel or retard policy measures and voluntary programs designed to decrease American and global contributions to climate change. Although public opinion surveys have been tracking various attitudes about climate change for a number of years, few surveys have addressed the energy connection in sufficient depth to be used for program and policy development.
Tracking Public Attitudes
View our webinar Silver Lining in Climate Survey Results for a discussion of the 2009 study.
In 2007, the Energy Center of Wisconsin embarked on a sponsor-funded tracking study to assess the state of public attitudes about climate change and energy efficiency.
The study comprised surveys of 3,284 households in nine Midwestern states. Thanks to the support of project sponsors, we are able to make high level results public in three communiqués listed below.
- Climate Change and Energy—Public Opinion and the Capacity for Action (PDF)
- Climate Change and Energy—Public Opinion and Policy Preferences (PDF)
- Climate Change and Energy—The Utility-Customer Connection (PDF)
In 2008, we expanded the project's reach to all 50 states with a repeat of the survey among a national sample. We presented some key results at the 2008 Behavior, Energy & Climate Change Conference.
Implications for Public Education & Messaging
Public attitudes about climate change have implications for advocates of energy efficiency and climate-friendly actions. The Energy Center examined what current attitudes about climate change mean for the use of climate messages to motivate energy efficiency and for public education on the broader topic of climate change. See our findings in this peer-reviewed conference paper:
Project Sponsors
Project sponsors for 2007/8 were: Integrys Energy Group; Wisconsin Energy Conservation Corporation; Wisconsin Power and Light Company, an Alliant Energy company; Wisconsin Public Power Inc.; and Xcel Energy.
Benefits of sponsorship include oversamples of your target group of geography of interest, as well as a detailed report of results and implications.
Contact Ingo Bensch for more information.
