Climate Change Awareness: an explorative study on the discursive construction of ethical consumption in a communication campaign.

The recent interest of the European Commission about the issues of ethical consumption and protection of the environment carried out the creation of Climate Change Awareness Campaign. The launch of the campaign was in 2006, throughout the 25 member states to raise awareness of climate change and the positive role that citizens can play in figuring it. There are strong indications, in several countries, that many consumers are switching towards more socially and environmentally responsible products and services, reflecting a shift in consumer values. The aim of this explorative study is to investigate the discursive construction of ethical awareness which would guide actual ethical consumption behaviour with reference to a communication campaign. Indeed, though scientific literature as already pointed out the efficacy of persuasive communication in social public campaign appealing at ethical issues, little is known about what happens between the fruition of the campaign and attitude and behavioural consumption. Participants to the study, a sample of university students were asked to examine one of the videos of the Climate Change Awareness Campaign promoted and broadcast by the European Commission, as to investigate their social representation of ethical consumption, arguing that this could act as interpretative repertoire of their attitude toward ethical consumption. Focus group discussion was used as methodological tool. Main results, implication and further development were discussed