Tracking expert opinion on climate change issues and policies: A pilot study in Belgium and France

The pilot study, conducted by the University of Siena, surveyed experts in Belgium and France across two waves between December 2023 and December 2024. Findings indicate high expert support for renewable energy, green hydrogen, and energy storage, while support for blue hydrogen, gas, coal, and oil remains low. There is a strong consensus that the economic benefits of clean technology investment outweigh short-term costs. While a majority of experts believe governments should do more to address climate change, the perceived importance of climate change as a top issue for voters decreased over time, particularly in Belgium, as concerns over defense and security increased.

• A majority of experts in both regions believe their respective governments should increase efforts to combat climate change, with this sentiment growing over time. In Belgium, the share of experts believing the EU should do more rose from 55% to 70%, while in France, the share believing the French government should do more increased from 84% to 92%.
• Expert support for renewable energy investments is very high (70-100%), with specific increases noted for onshore wind. Support for energy storage is between 80-90%. Regarding hydrogen, support for green and pink hydrogen is high, whereas support for blue hydrogen is relatively low and has declined.
• There is a significant disparity between Belgium and France regarding nuclear energy; 90% of experts in France support nuclear energy investment compared to 60% in the Belgium (EU) sample. Generally, the Belgium sample is mostly against nuclear energy while the France sample is mostly in favor.
• Support for fossil fuel investment is low, with gas at 30-40% (and 30% specifically in France) and coal and oil at 0-10%. Approximately 90% of experts argue that the transition from fossil fuels to clean energy should be prioritized, using CCS and CDR only where no alternatives exist.
• Over 80% of experts in Belgium and over 85% in France believe that the long-term economic benefits of clean technology and reduced climate impacts will outweigh any short-term costs of ambitious climate action.
• The perceived importance of climate change as a top issue for voters decreased over time. In the Belgium sample, this was accompanied by an increasing trend in the perceived importance of defense and security.

APA

Climate Opinion Research Exchange (n.d.). Tracking expert opinion on climate change issues and policies: A pilot study in Belgium and France. https://climateopinion.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Europe-expert-panel-climate-change-Pilot-study-results-CORE.pdf

Chicago

Climate Opinion Research Exchange. Tracking expert opinion on climate change issues and policies: A pilot study in Belgium and France. n.d. https://climateopinion.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Europe-expert-panel-climate-change-Pilot-study-results-CORE.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate Opinion Research Exchange |title=Tracking expert opinion on climate change issues and policies: A pilot study in Belgium and France |url=https://climateopinion.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Europe-expert-panel-climate-change-Pilot-study-results-CORE.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climateopinionresearchexchangendtracking, author = {{Climate Opinion Research Exchange}}, title = {{Tracking expert opinion on climate change issues and policies: A pilot study in Belgium and France}}, institution = {Climate Opinion Research Exchange}, url = {https://climateopinion.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Europe-expert-panel-climate-change-Pilot-study-results-CORE.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }