The G20 countries account for around 85% of the world's GDP, 78% of greenhouse gas emissions, more than 75% of world trade, and roughly two-thirds of the world's population.
72% of respondents in a new global survey believe it should be a crime to approve or permit activities that cause serious damage to nature or the climate.
This key finding emerges from the latest Global Commons Survey 2024, conducted by market research group Ipsos UK on behalf of Earth4All and the Global Commons Alliance, and polled respondents across 18 G20+ countries, excluding Russia.
According to Earth4All and the Global Commons Alliance, the survey of 22,000 respondents captures “growing concern” about the state of nature, awareness of global tipping points, and calls for increased environmental protections to safeguard the planet for future generations.
Of 1,000 South Africans polled, 85% agree that it should be a criminal offence for leaders of large corporations or government officials to authorise or permit actions they know will cause widespread, long-lasting or irreversible damage to nature or the climate.
The G20 countries account for around 85% of the world's GDP, 78% of greenhouse gas emissions, more than 75% of world trade, and roughly two-thirds of the world's population.
The groups said their study follows recent landmark legal changes, including in Belgium, which made ecocide a federal crime earlier this year. Chile and France have also passed similar laws, and ecocide bills have been proposed in Brazil, Italy, Mexico, the Netherlands, Peru and Scotland, among others.
The survey included respondents from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, the UK, the US and four non-G20 countries (Austria, Denmark, Kenya and Sweden).
Fifty-nine percent of respondents are very or extremely worried about the current state of nature, a slight increase from the Global Commons survey in 2021. Additionally, 69% agree that human activities are bringing the Earth closer to climate- and nature-related tipping points.
The survey categorised respondents into five “Earth stewardship segments” and showed that the groups of “Steady Progressives”, “Concerned Optimists” and “Earth Stewards” who advocate strong action to protect the environment make up the majority (61%) of people in G20 countries surveyed.
“This is a turning point in society, with more people calling for action to protect the planet than not,” the groups said.
Gender Gap and Emerging Economies
The survey also revealed a gender gap in environmental concern: 62% of women, compared with 56% of men, said they were “very” or “extremely” worried about the current state of nature. The survey also found that 74% of women, compared with 68% of men, said major action should be taken to address environmental issues within the next 10 years.
Only 25% of women, compared to 33% of men, believe many claims about environmental risks are exaggerated, and significantly fewer women (35% compared to 44% of men) believe technology can solve environmental problems without making major changes to personal lifestyles.
The survey results show that people in emerging economies such as India (87%), China (79%), Indonesia (79%), Kenya (73%) and Turkey (69%) feel more personally affected by climate change compared to people in Europe and the United States.
Those who perceive themselves as highly exposed to environmental and climate-related risks also express the highest levels of concern and urgency about climate action. This group is also the most likely to make the connection between human and planetary health and see benefits in addressing environmental issues.
“We found that the idea of earth stewardship is strongest in emerging economies such as Brazil, Argentina, South Africa and Kenya,” said Owen Gaffney, co-leader of the Earth4All initiative.
South African survey results
When asked whether their government is doing enough to tackle climate change and environmental damage, just 24% of South Africans surveyed agreed.
Meanwhile, 61% agreed that nature is able to meet human needs at the moment, while 54% said nature is already too damaged to continue meeting human needs in the long term.
More than half of local respondents agreed that technology can solve environmental problems without changing personal lives, and 70% of local respondents agreed that addressing climate change and environmental destruction could “bring a lot of benefits” to South Africa.
77% of respondents agreed that human activities are bringing the Earth close to environmental tipping points where rainforests and glaciers could change suddenly or become less stable in the long term. A further 67% agreed that the cost of damage caused by environmental pollution is far higher than the cost of the investments needed for a green transition.
However, 31% believe many of the claims about environmental threats are exaggerated.
When asked, “When you think about climate change and nature conservation, how quickly do you think the world needs to take significant action to reduce carbon emissions from electricity, transport, food, industry and buildings?” 83% of South Africans surveyed felt action needed to be taken within the next 10 years.
Eleven percent of South Africans believe action is needed within the next 20 to 30 years, 3% feel action could be delayed by more than 30 years, and 1% believe no action is needed at all.