MUMBAI: BBC World , the 24-hour international news and information channel along with market research firm Synovate announced the key findings of its opinion survey on global attitudes to climate change.

The survey which was carried out across 21 markets on six continents during February 2007. BBC World also plans to cover this topic extensively throughout April in its Climate Watch season of news, business, documentary and factual programming.

Synovate's global head of media research Steve Garton says, "We set out to find what the world thinks about some of the most important issues facing our planet today. The survey shows some strikingly common views, but also illustrates how the climate issues facing specific countries influence their views about how they can tackle the problem. There does appear to be a need for better education about the matter across all markets."

BBC World editorial director Sian Kevill says, "The results of this global survey have given us some fascinating talking points to analyse and discuss during our month-long Climate Watch season on the channel throughout April.  I’m certain our viewers, many of whom are from the countries involved in the survey, will be as surprised as they are alarmed by some of these findings."

The Synovate Global Omnibus survey on climate change interviewed 14,220 respondents across 21 countries including: USA, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, India, Japan, Poland, Dubai, UK, South Korea, Brazil, Italy, South Africa, Norway, Spain, Denmark, Russia and Canada.

The survey was conducted throughout February 2007, during which time the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPPC) issued a major report from the contributions of more than two thousand scientists specialising in the topic. It indicated there was a direct link between climate change and human activities.

Some of the key findings included:

-More than two-thirds of the world are concerned about climate change with the South Africans and Brazilians most anxious.  As a result they are most likely to encourage their friends to become greener.

-Respondents in the two major industrialised nations not to have signed the Kyoto Protocol are well ahead of their leaders, with 84 percent of Australians and 57 percent of Americans concerned about climate change.

-People are unclear as to the consequences of climate change. One in seven who had an opinion on climate change did not know what the main danger would be, such as desertification, drought, flooding or hunger. Asians (Koreans, Chinese and Singaporeans) especially remain uninformed about the dangers of climate change. 

-41 percent believe one country is responsible and almost all of those look at the United States. Two-thirds of all respondents blame the US before any other country.

- Almost four in five Americans however think that no one country is to blame while more than 40% of Indians think that India is most responsible.

Synovate is the market research arm of Aegis Group plc which generates consumer insights and marketing solutions.