Login
9 in 10 Australians see action on climate change as an ethical imperative
An overwhelming majority of Australians believe that governments, businesses and multinational corporations have an urgent ethical obligation to take action on climate change, according to new research.
Jerome Doraisamy
The Ethics Index 2019, released yesterday by Governance Institute of Australia, quantifies the perceptions of adult Australians of the overall importance of ethics and what the actual level of ethical behaviour is within Australian society, examining the various sectors, organisations, occupations, issues and influences across the nation.
The volume of persons seeing this as an imperative is reflected in climate change moving from 10th position to be the third most difficult issue – year-on-year for the Ethics Index – to navigate ethically (37 per cent) while immigration is again rated the most difficult area to navigate ethically (49 per cent), followed by euthanasia (39 per cent).
On the question of responsibility for taking such action, 90 per cent said the federal government, state governments, Australian businesses and multinational corporations have an urgent ethical obligation to respond to climate change.
This was closely followed by international bodies such as the United Nations, local councils and individuals, which 89 per cent of Australians perceive as having an urgent ethical obligation to take action.
Further, more than half (53 per cent) of Australians feel there is an urgent ethical obligation for the nation to fully transition to renewable energy, while 37 per cent see it as a slight ethical obligation and just 11 per cent see no ethical obligation at all.
Governance Institute of Australia CEO Megan Motto said the Ethics Index was sending a “clear message” about the way Australians view climate change.
“We’ve been struck by the clear and compelling message from this year’s index for business leaders and the government: that more Australians now regard climate change as an urgent ethical obligation,” she said.
Elsewhere, the Ethics Index found that company secretaries are perceived to be the most ethical in a corporation, and that almost two in five Australians think lawyers are unethical.
Jerome Doraisamy
Jerome Doraisamy is the editor of Lawyers Weekly. A former lawyer, he has worked at Momentum Media as a journalist on Lawyers Weekly since February 2018, and has served as editor since March 2022. He is also the host of all five shows under The Lawyers Weekly Podcast Network, and has overseen the brand's audio medium growth from 4,000 downloads per month to over 60,000 downloads per month, making The Lawyers Weekly Show the most popular industry-specific podcast in Australia. Jerome is also the author of The Wellness Doctrines book series, an admitted solicitor in NSW, and a board director of Minds Count.
You can email Jerome at:
