Faith, Climate, and Energy Frugality: Unravelling the Nexus in European Perspectives

• Authors: Pablo García-García

Title variants

PL

Wiara, klimat i oszczędność energii – odkrywanie powiązań z perspektywy europejskiej

Abstracts

PL

Niniejszy artykuł bada związek między przekonaniami religijnymi, a postrzeganiem zmian klimatycznych oraz preferencjami dotyczącymi sposobów oszczędzania energii w Europie. Artkuł wykorzystuje dane uzyskane z Europejskiego Sondażu Społecznego przeprowadzonego w 22 krajach w listopadzie 2023 r. Badanie ujawnia dominującą skłonność do mediany wartości w zakresie przeciwdziałania zmianom klimatycznym, z niewielkimi różnicami w zależności od poziomu religijności respondentów. Niższy poziom religijności wiąże się zwykle ze zróżnicowaną tendencją do przypisywania zmian klimatycznych skutkom działalności człowieka. Istnieje złożona zależność między poziomem religijności, a indywidualnym poczuciem odpowiedzialności za przeciwdziałanie zmianom klimatycznym, co wskazuje na pewną polaryzację, ale ogólnie ilustruje wzrost poczucia odpowiedzialności w tym zakresie. Przynależność religijna wpływa na różnicowanie postaw, przy czym protestanci wydają się być bardziej skłonni do przypisywania zmian klimatycznych ingerencji człowieka. Postawy katolików i protestantów wykazują pewną zbieżność, natomiast w przypadku innych wyznań chrześcijańskich można dostrzec pewną elastyczność oraz punkty wspólne z islamem i judaizmem. Stwierdzono jednak, że w porównaniu z poziomem religijności lub wyznaniem religijnym, kluczową rolę odgrywają tu czynniki demograficzne oraz poglądy polityczne.

EN

This study explores the relationship between religious beliefs, perceptions of climate change, and preferences for energy frugality in Europe using data from the November 2023 European Social Survey across 22 countries. The research reveals a  predominant inclination toward median values in addressing climate change, with subtle variations based on levels of religiosity. Lower religiosity tends to be associated with a nuanced attribution of climate change to human activity. There is a complex interplay between religiosity and the perception of personal responsibility in mitigating climate change, indicating some polarisation but an overall increasing sense of accountability. Religious affiliations show distinct attitudes, with Protestants more inclined to attribute climate change to human causes. Roman Catholics are closer to some Protestants, while other Christian denominations exhibit flexibility and common ground with Islam and Judaism. However, it is concluded that demographics and political alignment play a more pivotal role compared to religiosity levels or religious denominations.

Keywords

EN

religion and ecology; environmental consciousness; energy policy; perception analysis

PL

religia i ekologia; świadomość ekologiczna; polityka energetyczna; analiza percepcji

• Publisher: Uniwersytet Kardynała Stefana Wyszyńskiego w Warszawie
• Journal: Studia Ecologiae et Bioethicae
• Year: 2024
• Volume: 22
• Issue: 3
• Pages: 41-56

Dates

published

2024

Contributors

author

Pablo García-García

• University of León, Spain

• https://orcid.org/0000000325721966

References

• Agustinus. 1845. “Enarratio in Psalmum 45.” In Patrologia Latina. Vol. 518. Paris: MIGNE J.-P.
• Balcomb, Anthony Oswald. 2019. “African Christianity and The Ecological Crisis – Tracing the Contours of a Conundrum.” Scriptura 118 (1). DOI: https://doi.org/10.7833/118-1-1469
• Bratton, Susan. 2018. “Eco-Dimensionality as a Religious Foundation for Sustainability.” Sustainability 10 (4): 1021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su10041021
• Briguglio, Marie, Teresa Garcia-Muñoz, and Shoshana Neuman. 2020. “Environmental Engagement, Religion and Spirituality in the Context of Secularization.” Environmental Research Letters 15 (10): 104098. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/abb6a0
• Brown, Colin. 1990. Christianity and Western Thought: A History of Philosophers, Ideas & Movements. Westmont: InterVarsity Press.
• Brown, R. Khari, Angela Kaiser, and Hannah Evans. 2023. “Race, Religious Identities, and Environmental Activism.” Journal of Prevention & Intervention in the Community 51 (1): 90–109. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10852352.2021.1924596
• Cope, Michael R., Kayci A. Muirbrook, Paige N. Park, Scott R. Sanders, Carol Ward, and Rachel M. Sumsion. 2023. “Understanding Environmentalism: The Interplay between Politics and Religion on Environmental Attitudes from Rural Utah.” Society & Natural Resources, January, 1–20. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/08941920.2023.2169423
• ESS Round 10: European Social Survey Round 10 Data. 2020. “Data File Edition 3.0. Sikt - Norwegian Agency for Shared Services in Education and Research, Norway – Data Archive and Distributor of ESS Data for ESS ERIC.” 2020.
• ESS Round 10: European Social Survey Round 10 Data. 2023. “ESS10 - Integrated File, Edition 3.2.” November 2023.
• Ferrara. 2019. “Sustainable International Relations. Pope Francis’ Encyclical Laudato Si’ and the Planetary Implications of ‘Integral Ecology.’” Religions 10 (8): 466. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10080466
• Gozum, Ivan Efreaim A., Abelardo E. Garcia, and John Lu Allan M. Nucum. 2022. “Laudato Si’ and the Role of the Church in Promoting Environmental Awareness Toward a Better Health-Related Quality of Life.” Journal of Religion and Health, August. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-022-01631-4
• Hughes, Donald J. 1975. Ecology in Ancient Civilizations. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press.
• IFEES/EcoIslam. 2024. “Islamic Foundation for Ecology and Environmental Sciences: Protecting our Planet for Future Generations.” Accessed March 11, 2024. https://www.ifees.org.uk.
• International Statistical Institute. 2010. “ISI Declaration on Professional Ethics.” 2010. https://www.isi-web.org/about/policies/professional-ethics/isi-declaration.
• Kollar, Nathan R. 2019. “Religions’ Future in the Anthropocene.” Worldviews 23 (1): 1–32. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/15685357-02301001
• Krosnick, Jon A. 1991. “Response Strategies for Coping with the Cognitive Demands of Attitude Measures in Surveys.” Applied Cognitive Psychology 5 (3): 213–36.DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.2350050305
• LSM. 2024. “Laudato Si' Movement: Catholics for Our Common Home.” Accessed March 11, 2024. https://laudatosimovement.org.
• MacCulloch, Diarmaid. 2009. Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years. New York: Penguin Random House.
• Mayer, Claude-Hélène, Wolfgang M. George, and Elmar Nass. 2020. “‘Care for the Common Home’: Responses to Pope Francis’s Encyclical Letter.” Journal of Religion and Health 59 (1): 416–27. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-019-00957-w
• McHarge, Ian. 2006. The Essential Ian McHarg: Writings on Design and Nature. Washington DC: Island Press.
• Michaels, Jay L., Feng Hao, Julia Smirnov, and Ishan Kulkarni. 2021. “Beyond Stewardship and Dominion? Towards a Social Psychological Explanation of the Relationship between Religious Attitudes and Environmental Concern.” Environmental Politics 30 (4): 622–43. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09644016.2020.1787777
• Monsalve Girón, José Alfredo. 2019. “La Aportación de Las Creencias Religiosas a La Construcción de Una Ética Ambiental.” Observatorio Medioambiental 22 (December): 53–74. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5209/obmd.67063
• Nicholson, Max. 1989. The New Environmental Age. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Öhlmann, Philipp, and Ignatius Swart. 2022. “Religion and Environment.” Religion and Theology 29 (3–4): 292–321. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/15743012-bja10044
• Palmer, G. E. H., P. Sherrard, K. Ware, Nikodimos, and Makarios. 2010. The Philokalia. London: Faber and Faber.
• Pedersen, Olaf. 1992. “Księga Natury.” In Zagadnienia Filozoficzne w Nauce, 14:19–50.
• Petrescu-Mag, Ruxandra Malina, Adrian Ana, Iris Vermeir, and Dacinia Crina Petrescu. 2020. “Beliefs and Actions Towards an Environmental Ethical Life: The Christianity-Environment Nexus Reflected in a Cross-National Analysis.” Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics 33 (3–6): 421–46. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10806-020-09832-1
• Pihkala, Panu. 2018. “Eco-Anxiety, Tragedy, And Hope: Psychological and Spiritual Dimensions of Climate Change.” Zygon® 53 (2): 545–69. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/zygo.12407
• Puglisi, Antonino, and Johan Buitendag. 2022. “A Faith-Based Environmental Approach for People and the Planet: Some Inter-Religious Perspectives on Our Earth-Embeddedness.” HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies 78 (2). DOI: https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v78i2.7582
• Rappaport, Margaret Boone, and Christopher J. Corbally. 2023. “An Ecotheology for Human Settlement of the Outer Planets: Roles for Religion Beyond the Warmth of the Sun.” Theology and Science 21 (2): 209–28. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14746700.2023.2188368
• Rifat, Mohammad Rashidujjaman, Toha Toriq, and Syed Ishtiaque Ahmed. 2020. “Religion and Sustainability.” Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction 4 (CSCW2): 1–32. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1145/3415199
• Sadowski, Ryszard F. 2020. “On Religious and Cultural Principles of Environmental Protection.” Problemy Ekorozwoju 15 (2): 75–81. DOI: https://doi.org/10.35784/pe.2020.2.08
• Sharma, Swati, James B Ang, and Per G Fredriksson. 2021. “Religiosity and Climate Change Policies.” Energy Economics 101 (September): 105414. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eneco.2021.105414
• Shin, Faith, and Jesse L. Preston. 2021. “Green as the Gospel: The Power of Stewardship Messages to Improve Climate Change Attitudes.” Psychology of Religion and Spirituality 13 (4): 437–47. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/rel0000249
• Smiley, Kevin T. 2019. “A Polluting Creed: Religion and Environmental Inequality in the United States.” Sociological Perspectives 62 (6): 980–1000. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0731121419862229
• Smith, E. Keith, Lynn M. Hempel, and Kelsea MacIlroy. 2018. “What’s ‘Evangelical’ Got to Do with It? Disentangling the Impact of Evangelical Protestantism on Environmental Outcomes.” Environmental Politics 27 (2): 292–319. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09644016.2017.1384185
• Stark, Rodney. 2014. How the West Was Won: The Neglected Story of the Triumph of Modernity. Wilmington: ISI Books.
• Sutton, Marc Q., and Eugene N. Anderson. 2004. Introduction to Cultural Ecology. Walnut Creek: Altamira Press.
• Tanzella-Nitti, Giuseppe. 2005. “The Two Books Prior to the Scientific Revolution.” Perspectives on Science & Christian Faith 57 (3): 235–48.
• Thorndike, Robert L. 1953. “Who Belongs in the Family?” Psychometrika 1953 18:4 18 (4): 267–76. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02289263
• Tourangeau, Roger, Lance J. Rips, and Kenneth Rasinski. 2000. The Psychology of Survey Response. Cambridge University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511819322
• Toynbee, Arnold. 1934. A Study of History. London: Oxford University Press.
• White, Lynn. 1967. “The Historical Roots of Our Ecologic Crisis.” Science 155 (3767): 1203–7. http://www.jstor.org/stable/1720120. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.155.3767.1203
• Worster, Donald. 1994. Nature’s Economy: A History of Ecological Ideas. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Identifiers

DOI

10.21697/seb.5812

Biblioteka Nauki

55786762