Understanding residents’ environmental knowledge in a metropolitan city of Hong Kong, China

Abstract

This study aimed to understand the environmental knowledge (EK) of the residents of Hong Kong. A territory-wide survey was administered to investigate the subjective and objective EK of the respondents as well as their means of receiving information about the environment. The results indicated that Hong Kong’s residents have a comparatively low level of EK, with a mean environmental knowledge score of 3.35 out of 8. The youngster (15–24 years old), students, and employed individuals reported more extensive EK than the older and unemployed respondents, thus suggesting that the younger generation and employed individuals have increased opportunities to receive EK through various channels. A weak positive correlation was identified between subjective and objective EK, thus implying that the residents of Hong Kong could not accurately evaluate their own level of EK. The results indicate that traditional media plays a significant role in disseminating EK. Digital media, such as websites and digital social networks, were also determined to be influencing factors in disseminating environmental messages to the younger generation.

Keywords:

• environmental knowledge
• environmental information
• environmental education
• promotion channel
• Hong Kong

Acknowledgements

This study was funded by the Environmental Campaign Committee of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). The authors would like to thank the three anonymous referees for their fruitful comments on previous version of the paper.