Sky: behaviour change on climate can be driven by TV
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Joseph O'Halloran
| 02 November 2021
As the COP 26 conference gets into full swing, leading pan-European pay-TV provider Sky is calling for new era of collaboration amongst broadcasters to help consumers decarbonise their lifestyles through on-air content.
Sky environmemnt 2 Nov 2021
Research released by the broadcaster, working with the Behavioural Insights Team (BIT) across six European countries, has revealed that fundamentally TV has power to encourage consumers to decarbonise with a third having changed their lifestyle because of content seen on TV.

Using behavioural science techniques, Sky and BIT set out ten new behavioural science principles to guide broadcasters on helping their viewers to take action. The study aimed to develop a clear role for content creators and broadcasters to inspire green behaviours from their viewers, as well as revealing data on consumer attitudes to climate change.

Over 3,500 participants were interviewed in the report from the six countries in Europe where Sky operates. Of those polled in The Power Of TV: Nudging Viewers To Decarbonise Their Lifestyles, 70% stated that they are worried about the environment and the same proportion stated they were willing to make lifestyle changes in order to tackle the climate crisis.

However, many respondents also said they were overwhelmed by choice and their understanding of how to make lifestyle changes to reduce their carbon impact is low. Only 16% knew what they needed to do to act sustainably, while just a fifth of people said they know how to recycle or save energy at home.

The study also found four-fifths of people across Europe support the idea of broadcasters using content and advertising to encourage people to adopt more environmentally positive behaviours. Of those asked, three-quarters of survey participants supported TV broadcasters ‘nudging’ viewers to think about the environment, whether that’s through documentaries, advertising or increasing the coverage of environmental issues in the news.

The report was launched at COP26 by Sky Group CEO Dana Strong who said: “At Sky we have set out our pathway to achieve net zero carbon, but we know this alone will not be enough. Through the content that we bring into our customers’ homes we believe broadcasters have a clear role and responsibility to encourage lifestyle changes that address the climate crisis. We’re publishing these research results in full as an open tool for content creators and broadcasters. This means that for the first time we have empirical evidence demonstrating how the creative industries can work together to deliver the behaviour change required to meet our net zero ambitions.”

Behavioural Insights Team CEO David Halpern added: “Broadcasters like Sky have a unique role in fostering behaviour changes that are essential to tackle climate change. [The Power Of TV: Nudging Viewers To Decarbonise Their Lifestyles]The Power Of TV: Nudging Viewers To Decarbonise Their Lifestyles] finds not only that people’s behaviours and attitudes are significantly shaped by the media they consume, but also that viewers expect and encourage broadcasters to do more to educate and inspire viewers to do their bit for the environment. We hope this report will provide broadcasters with actionable and evidence-based insights on how they can do their bit to avert the climate crisis.”