Public support for climate finance to developing countries: a contingent valuation study in South Korea

Unofficial AI-generated summary based on the public title and abstract. Not an official translation.

🔬研究者:Provides a robust contingent valuation methodology and empirical estimates of WTP for climate finance in a middle-power country.

🏢実務担当者:Useful for climate finance advocacy groups and government agencies to calibrate communication strategies and funding levels based on public acceptance.

🏛政策担当者:Highlights the need to align climate finance commitments with public support, and offers a cost-benefit rationale for sustained contributions.

This study investigates public support in South Korea for climate finance directed to developing countries, using contributions to the Green Climate Fund (GCF) as a tangible and policy-relevant proxy. A nationally representative contingent valuation survey was conducted, employing a double-bounded dichotomous choice format and the Spike model to capture both positive and zero willingness to pay (WTP) responses. The analysis reveals that the average annual WTP among South Korean households is KRW 5,291 (USD 3.87), with a statistically significant yet modest proportion of zero WTP respondents. To assess policy implications, a cost – benefit analysis was conducted using a conservative five-year benefit window and a 4.5% social discount rate. The resulting benefit – cost ratio of 1.39 suggests that perceived public benefits outweigh national costs. Although South Korea is not formally obligated under the current international climate finance regime, its continued voluntary commitments – underpinned by public support – underscore the growing relevance of middle-power engagement in global climate governance. As climate finance expands under the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG), it becomes particularly vital to understand domestic drivers of support in emerging donor countries like South Korea. This study, the first to empirically estimate South Korean public WTP for climate finance, contributes to the literature by situating public sentiment within policy and economic contexts, while also offering a methodological reference for future contingent valuation studies in comparable settings. These findings provide empirical and policy insights, emphasizing the importance of contribution levels and public engagement to legitimize and sustain commitments. Public willingness to pay (WTP) for climate finance to developing countries is sensitive to contribution levels; policymakers should calibrate commitments within a range that sustains public acceptance.To build durable public consensus – essential for the political feasibility and sustainability of international climate finance – government communication should foreground value-based narratives such as global solidarity and moral responsibility, alongside the recognition that strategic benefits may follow.The finding that public-perceived benefits outweigh national costs provides an empirical basis for sustaining voluntary climate finance contributions, and can serve as a reference for other emerging donor countries. Public willingness to pay (WTP) for climate finance to developing countries is sensitive to contribution levels; policymakers should calibrate commitments within a range that sustains public acceptance. To build durable public consensus – essential for the political feasibility and sustainability of international climate finance – government communication should foreground value-based narratives such as global solidarity and moral responsibility, alongside the recognition that strategic benefits may follow. The finding that public-perceived benefits outweigh national costs provides an empirical basis for sustaining voluntary climate finance contributions, and can serve as a reference for other emerging donor countries.

• openalex https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.32054467.v1first seen 2026-05-05 07:57:35 · last seen 2026-05-05 19:14:25