Majority of Citizens Believe Government Needs to Declare a Climate Emergency

A significant portion of Indonesian society believes the government should declare a climate emergency and address it more seriously.

This is evident from a survey conducted by the Center of Economic and Law Studies (CELIOS) and Unity of Trend (UniTrend).

Of all the provinces surveyed, 100% of respondents in 11 provinces felt a climate emergency declaration was necessary.

This was voiced by 100% of respondents from Aceh, Gorontalo, West Kalimantan, North Kalimantan, Maluku, North Maluku, West Nusa Tenggara, West Sulawesi, Central Sulawesi, Southeast Sulawesi, and North Sulawesi.

Another 11 provinces showed agreement levels between 90-99%, and 5 provinces showed agreement between 70-80%.

Only 5 provinces showed agreement below 50% regarding the climate emergency declaration: Bangka Belitung Islands, West Sumatra, Lampung, Bengkulu, and Central Kalimantan, as shown in the graph.

CELIOS assesses that perceptions of a climate emergency are largely determined by the environmental conditions faced by respondents.

"The more frequently someone faces threats of ecosystem damage or extreme symptoms of climate change, the more likely they are to have a climate emergency perspective," stated the CELIOS team in their report.

"Most respondents urging the government to take serious action are located in regions with mining, smelters, and extractive industries," they continued.

CELIOS and UniTrend conducted this survey among 1,245 respondents aged 18 and above, randomly and proportionally selected from across Indonesia. Data collection was conducted online in March-April 2023.