Earth Day 2014: In Our Multicultural Society, Asians Are Most "Green"

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Apr 22, 2014, 07:00 ET

NEW YORK, April 22, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- In celebration of the 44^th annual Earth Day, DDB Worldwide today announced findings from the 2014 DDB Life Style Study^® (LSS), which indicates that across both attitudinal and behavioral measures, race is one of the best predictors of "green" living. The LSS survey compares U.S. adults from among four racial groups – those who identify as White, Black, Hispanic, or Asian – and reveals that by a significant measure, Asians show the highest levels of agreement with stated beliefs and intentions about doing the right thing for the environment.

According to the DDB Life Style Study data, over 75% of U.S. Asian adults agree that recycling is important and that they make a strong effort to recycle everything they possibly can. In addition, 62% of U.S. Asian adults say they use a refillable water bottle when they drink water outside of the home, compared with only 52% of U.S. White adults.

Asian adults are willing to pay more for an environmentally safe version of a product than White adults (57% vs. 44%). They are also significantly more likely to make a special effort to buy from businesses that are environmentally conscious than any other racial group, with 54% of Asians doing so, versus 36% of Whites, 43% of Blacks, and 46% of Hispanics. Furthermore, they are much more likely than other racial groups to admit that a business's social or environmental practices are important to them (59% vs. 50% for Whites and Hispanics and 48% for Blacks).

Finally, when it comes to deciding what's best for the environment over what's best for the individual, 60% of U.S. Asians say they would be willing to accept a lower standard of living to conserve energy. Only 50% of U.S. Hispanics, 46% of U.S. Blacks, and 41% of U.S. Whites are willing to make the same sacrifice.

Denise Delahorne, SVP/Group Strategy Director of DDB U.S., commented, "It's important to consider another demographic variable that influences these results, and that is education. U.S. Asians are much more likely than other racial groups in the United States to be college educated."

The study finds distinct differences between those who have completed college and those who have not when comparing green attitudes and behaviors across highest levels of education completed.

Nelson Mandela said, "Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." Earth Day is a good time to remember that it can also save the planet.

RACE	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian
SAMPLE SIZE	4,749	816	989	330
I would pay more for an environmentally safe version of a product	44%	53%	51%	57%
I make a strong effort to recycle everything I possibly can	67%	61%	72%	78%
I use a refillable water bottle when I drink water outside of the home	52%	51%	58%	62%
I make a special effort to buy from businesses that are environmentally conscious	36%	43%	46%	54%
I would be willing to accept a lower standard of living to conserve energy	41%	46%	50%	60%
How important is this issue to you? Recycling	71%	65%	71%	76%
How important is this issue to you? Whether a business ensures that its practices have minimal social/environmental impact	50%	48%	50%	59%

HIGHEST LEVEL OF EDUCATION COMPLETED	High School	Bachelor's Degree	Post Graduate
SAMPLE SIZE	1,727	1,786	878
I would pay more for an environmentally safe version of a product	42%	52%	51%
I make a strong effort to recycle everything I possibly can	62%	74%	71%
I use a refillable water bottle when I drink water outside of the home	49%	58%	55%
I make a special effort to buy from businesses that are environmentally conscious	35%	44%	44%
I would be willing to accept a lower standard of living to conserve energy	46%	44%	44%
How important is this issue to you? Recycling	64%	76%	74%
How important is this issue to you? Whether a business ensures that its practices have minimal social/environmental impact	42%	56%	57%

The DDB Life Style Study^® is the nation's longest running and largest longitudinal study of attitudes and behaviors. Conducted annually since 1975, the sample is balanced to the U.S. Census on gender, age, and race. This proprietary survey, with its 600+ questions, enables DDB to provide exceptional insight into American consumer attitudes and behaviors. The 2014 study was fielded among 7,020 respondents during January 2014. ©2014 DDB Worldwide Communications Group Inc.

About DDB
DDB Worldwide (www.ddb.com) is one of the world's largest and most awarded advertising and marketing networks. In 2012 DDB was named Advertising Network of the Year by Campaign, as well as Agency of the Year and Digital Agency of the Year by Strategy magazine. At the prestigious 2013 Cannes International Festival of Creativity, DDB won 93 Lions, the most ever for the network. In addition, The Gunn Report has listed DDB as one of the Top 3 Global Networks for 12 of the last 15 years. The agency's clients include Volkswagen, McDonald's, Unilever, Mars, Johnson & Johnson, and Exxon Mobil, among others.

Founded in 1949, DDB is part of the Omnicom Group (NYSE) and consists of more than 200 offices in over 90 countries with its flagship office in New York, NY.

About Omnicom Group Inc.
Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE-OMC) is a leading global marketing and corporate communications company. Omnicom's branded networks and numerous specialty firms provide advertising, strategic media planning and buying, digital and interactive marketing, direct and promotional marketing, public relations, and other specialty communications services to over 5,000 clients in more than 100 countries.

Contact:
Christie Giera
Director of Corporate Communications and North American Public Relations, DDB Worldwide
Email: [email protected]
Office: 212-415-2186

SOURCE DDB Worldwide