Australians have diminishing confidence in government policy to act on climate change and they want brands and large-scale businesses to provide bold plans for a sustainable future, according to research from Nine and lCrowd.DNA.
The research, released at Nine’s State of the Nation Sustainability virtual event, reveals that despite everyday Australians making changes to live more sustainably, the majority feel that we are not doing enough, and that brands need to lead the way.
The desire for action onn a more sustainable future is 74%, with Australians stating that the benefits for taking further action on climate change outweighs any cost. The findings also uncovered that 38% of Australians can’t name a brand or company that is actively pursuing sustainable practice.
“This research clearly shows Australians are desperate for leadership in sustainability and climate change,” said Toby Boon, Nine’s director of strategy and insights.
“People feel there is a leadership void in this space, and there is an opportunity for brands to embrace this sentiment, providing they adhere to some golden rules – they need to express honesty, transparency, accountability & integrity.”
“Australians want brands to collaborate, not compete. This is much bigger than words and slogans. Consumers want long term solutions to enact positive change to make the world a better place for them and their family. And whilst they don’t expect wholesale change overnight, they do want businesses to communicate where they are on the journey.
"They want progress, not perfection.”
Jo Clasby, Nine’s director of sales - total publishing, announced Nine was making a number of key initiatives in publishing and through its assets to help brands educate, inspire and lead Australians on a clear path to enact change.
These include a new editorial reporting franchise in The Australian Financial Review, Carbon Challenge, that will draw focus on matters surrounding sustainability; a dedicated feature with the Money section of The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age called Clean Capital that will explore all things ESG (environmental, social governance); a podcast series Leaders for the Future from The Sydney Morning Herald/The Age, and a Please Explain sustainability series across the metro mastheads.
The power of Nine’s cross-platform assets will be harnessed to cover sustainability topics every month.
“At Nine we are committed to helping brands in this important space,” said Clasby. “We know we are an important partner as brands tap into a call to arms from everyday Australians wanting leadership on one of the greatest challenges of our time.”
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