This composite photo from Yonhap News TV depicts global climate change.
SEOUL, Jan. 31 (Korea Bizwire) — The so-called “eco-wakening effect,” which refers to the rising interest in environmental issues, is spreading in South Korea, an analytics firm said Monday.
Ars Praxia conducted an analysis upon request by the South Korean unit of the international non-governmental organization World Wide Fund for Nature, which showed that 108,324 comments posted on YouTube between January 2017 and September 2022 dealt with climate change and the environment.
The number of comments jumped from 96 in 2017 to 2,657 in 2018 and 35,374 in 2021 with 55,520 comments posted in the first 10 months of last year.
At 47 percent close to half of the comments dealt with climate change, followed by marine waste, biodiversity, and eco-friendly consumption.
The most frequently mentioned keyword with negative connotations was “plastic” (46 percent positive, 54 percent negative).
The most frequently mentioned keyword with positive connotations was “fulfillment” (79 percent positive, 21 percent negative).
“The perception is spreading among people that we cannot delay our response to the crisis any longer. We need individuals, governments, and businesses to take action for change,” WWF-Korea Executive Director Hong Yoon-hee said.
H. M. Kang (hmkang@koreabizwire.com)
