Willingness to know and talk: Citizen attitude toward energy and environmental policy deliberation in post-Fukushima Japan

By employing an online social survey in a prefecture that is home to a nuclear power plant and a prefecture that consumes a large amount of energy, this paper investigates the following elements: levels of desire to understand the issues relevant to complex energy and environmental policies, their willingness to talk about such issues in a random sample at the national and prefectural levels, and the relationship between these two elements. Results found that 70-85% of respondents showed a moderate or strong willingness to learn about 14 relevant issues ranging from nuclear waste management to policy transition periods. Moreover, 35% of respondents indicated a moderate or strong willingness to participate in a national-or prefectural-level random sampling citizen dialogue on energy and environmental policy. A stronger desire to learn about the issues is directly associated with a greater willingness to participate in public discussions. The Japanese government produces and disseminates pertinent information reflecting the results of public dialogue, which shows citizens' increasing willingness to participate in debates at the national level, particularly for those who are more inclined to pay for renewable energy. This survey shows the propensity of Japanese citizens to engage in talks on energy and environmental policy.