Environmental Degradation and Public Opinion: The Case of Air Pollution in Vietnam

Sung Eun Kim, S. P. Harish, Ryan Kennedy, Xiaomeng Jin, Johannes Urpelainen

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

11 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Air pollution is a pressing problem of public health for developing countries, but governments have few incentives to abate air pollution without public awareness of the issue. Focusing on the case of Vietnam, we examine the determinants of public awareness of air pollution. Using representative survey data for the entire country from 2017, we find that local exposure to air pollution increases public awareness and reduces satisfaction with governments but does not provoke opposition to coal-fired power generation. In contrast, education leads people to oppose coal-fired power plants. These results suggest that while local air pollution contributes to awareness and dissatisfaction with the government, support for effective policy measures depends on education levels.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)196-222
Number of pages27
JournalJournal of Environment and Development
Volume29
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2020 Jun 1

Keywords

  • Southeast Asia
  • Vietnam
  • air pollution
  • education
  • public opinion

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Geography, Planning and Development
  • Development
  • Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law

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