An Analysis of Environmentally Conscious Decision Making and the Influence of Income and Policy in Washington State

Everyday environmentally conscious decisions such as recycling, composting, buying sustainable food, or driving an electric car, are becoming more prevalent in major cities of the United States and the world. As environmental degradation increases and people are negatively impacted, policy makers have begun to create public policies to address these growing environmental concerns. However, not all peoples are impacted the same, and not all policies are equitable. Therefore, the purpose of this project was to determine first, if income played a role in the making of environmentally conscious consumer decisions, and second, if policy makers thought the same. Through quantitative surveys of consumers in Washington state, as well as qualitative interviews with Washington state policymakers and influencers, we better understood the role income played in the environmentally friendly decision making through the thoughts of said consumers and policy makers. Local, regional, and possibly even national, governing bodies can benefit from this research by forming an understanding how an individual’s life circumstances affect their perceptions of environmental degradation, and their wishes to make environmentally friendly decisions. Governing bodies would also be able to form public policy which addresses environmental concerns, and still remain feasible to one’s individual economic circumstances. As the natural environment is continually impacted by our actions, it is vital to understand why a person may or may not make a decision that would benefit the environment because human survival may depend on it