Citizens' environmental awareness and responsibility at local level

摘要

Citizens have a key role to play in preserving the quality of their local environment. In this article, we examine the relationship between the perception of local ecological risks linked with consumption activities -what we call local ecological awareness - and recognition of a shared environmental responsibility. This study is based on the results of a survey (n - 107) carried out in a peri-urban area close to Bordeaux (South West France). Results show that citizens are able to identify to some extent the local ecological risks linked with household consumption and that they are somewhat distrustful of the environmental commitment of their fellow citizens. The 'aware' group (44% of those surveyed) attributes a greater responsibility for local environmental management to households than the 'optimists' (27%) and the 'suspicious' (29%) groups. Recommendations are made to encourage better involvement on the part of citizens in local environmental management, adapted to the different levels of awareness.