More Singaporeans want a greener future but are doing more emissions-heavy activities

Amongst these activities include use of air conditioners, which rose 21% in 2022.

Whilst more Singaporeans (47%) are expressing a desire to live a sustainable life for a greener future, the majority of them are still not embracing many sustainable behaviours, the OCBC Climate Index has found.

According to the second edition of the index, Singaporeans are doing "more in top emissions-heavy activities," compared to 2021.

In transport, for example, there had been a rise in air travel (55% in 2022 vs 44% in 2021). 

The index also found that more (21% vs 17%) are using air conditioning as the main mode of cooling in their homes. 

Singaporeans are also consuming red meat (78% vs 72%) and buying new, non-essential items (57% vs 47%) more frequently, according to the index.

READ MORE: Consumer demand for sustainable products unmet: report

According to the index, Singaporeans can shift to a sustainable life due to cost (44%) and inconvenience (36%).

The index, however, noted that Singaporeans are still making improvements in adopting sustainable behaviours like taking public transport, walking or cycling instead of travelling by car (71% vs 68%), buying second-hand furniture (77% vs 71%) and clothes (77% vs 71%), and participating in  ‘urban farming’ initiatives (42% vs 39%).

On the flip side, those who are not engaging in carbon-intensive behaviours are also doing it not for environmental reasons, but rather for personal ones like achieving better health saving money, and personal comfort.

"This is why the national average for the Climate Index score – which surveyed over 2,100 Singaporeans from 4 to 16 June 2022 – is unchanged from last year (2021). The score remained at 6.7 on a scale of 0 to 10," the index stated/