Earth or Economy: A Global Snapshot

The global standpoint on the two major issues of the economy and the state of the environment is far from uniform. According to data from the World Values Survey conducted in the years 2017-2022, Vietnam was one of the countries polled with the highest share of people who said that protecting the environment should be given priority, even if it causes slower economic growth and some loss of jobs. At the other end of the spectrum came Lebanon and Argentina, where a greater share of people said that economic growth and creating jobs should be the top priority, even if the environment suffers to some extent.

With the global economy having seen a continued downturn since this survey was taken, these figures may well have shifted, as according to the writers of the OECD Skills Outlook 2023: Skills for a Resilient Green and Digital Transition, when unemployment increases, individuals are less likely to prioritize the environment over the economy. This has to be balanced though with the fact that the occurrence of natural disasters linked to climate change or environmental degradation can also increase perceptions of the benefits of climate change mitigation policies.