Public awareness campaigns for environmental protection : case studies on Hong Kong

Abstract

Public awareness campaigns are often used as a tool to promote environmental protection to a community and to spur behavioral change. Nevertheless, campaigns may not always be effective in promoting this goal. This study looks at the effectiveness of environmental protection campaigns in order to recommend best practices to improve efficacy. It also includes an assessment framework for evaluating the success of environmental campaigns so that stakeholders can see the value of campaigns for themselves. This report looks specifically at food waste reduction campaigns in Hong Kong and therefore serves as a tool for NGOs, the government, funders, and interested members of the public in Hong Kong to see the effectiveness of current environmental protection campaigns and plan better campaigns in the future. The study uses quantitative and qualitative research to see the efficacy of both the planning and results of three case studies. These are the government run Food Wise Hong Kong, the NGO run Waste no Food, and the single event campaign at the 2014 Rugby Sevens. This study reveals that food waste reduction campaigns in Hong Kong overall promote a care for the environment, but fail to promote behavioral change among some groups including certain age groups, the media, and the government. Therefore, this study recommends more targeted planning and rhetoric in order to create change among these groups. It also recommends an assessment framework specifically for environmental protection campaigns that stakeholders can use to better see the effectiveness of current and future campaigns.