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Households with solar installations are ideologically diverse and more politically active than their neighbours

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  • Matto Mildenberger

    (University of California)

  • Peter D. Howe

    (Utah State University)

  • Chris Miljanich

    (University of California)

Abstract

Climate risk mitigation requires rapid decarbonization of energy infrastructure, a task that will need political support from mass publics. Here, we use a combination of satellite imagery and voter file data to examine the political identities of US households with residential solar installations. We find that solar households are slightly more likely to be Democratic; however, this imbalance stems primarily from between-neighbourhood differences in partisan composition rather than within-neighbourhood differences in the rate of partisan solar uptake. Crucially, we still find that many solar households are Republican. We also find that solar households are substantially more likely to be politically active than their neighbours, and that these differences in political participation cannot be fully explained by demographic and socioeconomic factors. Our results demonstrate that individuals across the ideological spectrum are participating in the US energy transition, despite extreme ideological polarization around climate change.

Suggested Citation

  • Matto Mildenberger & Peter D. Howe & Chris Miljanich, 2019. "Households with solar installations are ideologically diverse and more politically active than their neighbours," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 4(12), pages 1033-1039, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natene:v:4:y:2019:i:12:d:10.1038_s41560-019-0498-8
    DOI: 10.1038/s41560-019-0498-8
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    Cited by:

    1. Palm, A., 2020. "Early adopters and their motives: Differences between earlier and later adopters of residential solar photovoltaics," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    2. Best, Rohan & Burke, Paul J., 2023. "Small-scale solar panel adoption by the non-residential sector: The effects of national and targeted policies in Australia," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 120(C).
    3. Ahl, Amanda & Goto, Mika & Yarime, Masaru & Tanaka, Kenji & Sagawa, Daishi, 2022. "Challenges and opportunities of blockchain energy applications: Interrelatedness among technological, economic, social, environmental, and institutional dimensions," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 166(C).
    4. Hilary Boudet & Chad Zanocco & Greg Stelmach & Mahmood Muttaqee & June Flora, 2021. "Public preferences for five electricity grid decarbonization policies in California," Review of Policy Research, Policy Studies Organization, vol. 38(5), pages 510-528, September.
    5. Rohan Best & Ryan Esplin, 2023. "Household Solar Analysis for Policymakers: Evidence from U.S. Data," The Energy Journal, , vol. 44(1), pages 195-214, January.
    6. Best, Rohan & Marrone, Mauricio & Linnenluecke, Martina, 2023. "Meta-analysis of the role of equity dimensions in household solar panel adoption," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 206(C).
    7. Nepal, Rabindra & Best, Rohan & Taylor, Madeline, 2023. "Strategies for reducing ethnic inequality in energy outcomes: A Nepalese example," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    8. Best, Rohan, 2022. "Energy inequity variation across contexts," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 309(C).
    9. Corbett, Charles J. & Hershfield, Hal E. & Kim, Henry & Malloy, Timothy F. & Nyblade, Benjamin & Partie, Alison, 2022. "The role of place attachment and environmental attitudes in adoption of rooftop solar," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 162(C).
    10. Best, Rohan & Chareunsy, Andrea, 2022. "The impact of income on household solar panel uptake: Exploring diverse results using Australian data," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
    11. Dana R. Fisher & Sohana Nasrin, 2021. "Climate activism and its effects," Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 12(1), January.
    12. Cha, Min-kyeong & Struthers, Cory L. & Brown, Marilyn A. & Kale, Snehal & Chapman, Oliver, 2024. "Toward residential decarbonization: Analyzing social-psychological drivers of household co-adoption of rooftop solar, electric vehicles, and efficient HVAC systems in Georgia, U.S," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 226(C).
    13. Brown, Marilyn A. & Kale, Snehal & Cha, Min-Kyeong & Chapman, Oliver, 2023. "Exploring the willingness of consumers to electrify their homes," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 338(C).

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