Families with children pay more attention to environmental protection
Families with children pay more attention to environmental protection
22 April 2020
Hungarian families are well aware of the problems threatening our environment and are willing to act for environmental protection for the future of their children, according to a representative survey of the Mária Kopp Institute for Demography and Families (KINCS) published on the occasion of Earth Day.
The vast majority say that environmental problems affecting the Earth should be taken seriously (89.5%), and 60.4 percent of respondents believe we are facing a very serious problem. 62.8 percent of women, while 52.5 percent of men are committed to protecting the environment.
The analysis of the research results revealed the image of three distinct groups, those committed to environmental protection (57.9%), those interested in it (28.6%) and those uninterested (13.5%). Based on the results, 65.1 percent of families with children are actively committed to environmental protection, while for childless adults, this value is only 41.6 percent.
Nearly 40 percent of people are most concerned by the increasing amount of waste and its improper management, followed by air pollution (18.6%) and climate change (15%). Respondents consider large quantities of disposable plastics and corporate emissions to be the most pressing issues to be addressed. Littering and illegal dumping at the residence is considered to be the most serious problem by 31.5 percent of those with children.
More than half of the respondents (58.3%) feel personal responsibility for the deterioration of the environment, but mostly factories / plants (61.7%), transport (51.1%) and multinational companies (50.3%) are being held responsible.
Eighty percent of those surveyed fully agree that climate change threatens the future of our children, but they believe this is an issue we should not only complain about, but act against it. Nearly the same number fully agree that we are already helping our Earth by planting a few trees. However, with the statement that it is not worth bringing a child in this world because of the impending climate catastrophe, only 9 percent of those surveyed can identify themselves. 47 percent of respondents with children believe that youngsters should not be rioted nor people intimidated because of climate change.
More than two-thirds of respondents consider themselves “rather environmentally conscious” than other people, and nearly one-third think they are definitely “environmentally conscious”.
Large families are most likely to consider their lifestyle to be environmentally conscious, and those who do not have children are the least likely to believe so.
94% of Hungarian families raise their children in an environmentally conscious way, this way of life is most characteristic of large families. 90.5 percent of respondents already partially collect waste in their homes selectively. More than half of those who raise their children in an environmentally conscious way have been collecting waste selectively for at least 5 years.
Overall, it can be said that Hungarian families are sensitive to the issue of environmental protection and those with children are slightly more concerned towards the state of their environment.
Methodology: KINCS conducted a telephone questionnaire survey in March 2020, during which 1,000 people were interviewed. 70% of the respondents in a representative sample by national, territorial, age, gender and education have children, one third of whom raise children under 18 years of age.
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