Mobilizing Local Climate Action: Experimental Evidence from American Policymakers

Poster Presentation at the 79th Conference of the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR).

Abstract: Does appealing to international treaties, like the Paris Agreement, help to mobilize elite support for climate action? Our study of local elected policymakers shows that invoking Paris can provoke a backlash and worsen partisan polarization. We surveyed 523 policymakers representative of U.S. towns, cities, and counties. Framing climate action in terms of Paris decreases support for pollution regulation and net zero targets among Republican respondents. In contrast, the same frames do not affect Democrats, who already support climate policies at consistently high rates. Meanwhile, alternative appeals to peer networks like Climate Mayors also have no effect. As scientists urgently call for local climate action, and others tout the promise of appealing to international treaties, our results demonstrate the need to consider local political context in addressing global challenges.

Working draft available upon request at: jingling_tan [at] g.harvard.edu

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