MORE than three quarters of millennials* (76 percent) consider driving eco-friendly car as the best choice to make their lives more environmentally friendly, according to a Nissan European study investigating millennials’ attitudes towards electric and hybrid vehicles.
Revealed exclusively by Gareth Dunsmore, Nissan’s Director of Electric Vehicles at FutureFest in London, the study probed the views of 2,500 European millennials (aged 18 to 34) across the UK, France, Italy, Germany, and Spain.
The study found that as a generation, millennials are willing to try new things, challenge processes, and think differently about the future.
As such, the report showed that the environmental concerns of millennials aren’t smaller scale issues like recycling (24 percent) or overflowing landfills (14 percent) but global issues such as climate change (53 percent) and air pollution (42 percent).
To help solve these issues, they are willing to make bold changes such as switching to an energy provider dedicated to eco-friendly solutions (62 percent), or supporting brands that are committed to being more environmentally friendly (53 percent).
“It gives me immeasurable hope to see that millennials believe electric vehicles, such as the Nissan LEAF and e-NV200 that are already on the road today, are part of the solution for a more sustainable future. As an industry we must work harder to engage the interests and needs of this group.”
Sarwant Singh, Senior Partner, Frost & Sullivan and member of Nissan’s Intelligent Motoring Advisory Board**, said: “The millennial demographic surveyed here has the potential to be hugely influential in determining the future of transport and sustainability.
“We have consistently found in our own research that they are early adopters of new technology, much more environmentally friendly than previous generations and generally willing to make sacrifices and lifestyle changes in line with their personal values and beliefs.”
As the official Innovation Partner of FutureFest 2016, an event run by innovation foundation Nesta, Nissan’s Gareth Dunsmore delivered a speech exploring the future of the automotive sector.
During his speech: ‘When is a car, not a car?’ Mr. Dunsmore examined the evolution of the car and how consumers will soon be able to use their vehicles more intelligently, before looking ahead to the future of mobility and how Nissan is playing a key role in shaping this.
With a focus on Intelligent Mobility solutions that have an ultimate goal of zero emissions and zero fatalities, Nissan has been pioneering the pure electric vehicle market since the introduction of the 100 percent electric, zero emission Nissan LEAF in 2010.
There are now more than 230,000 Nissan LEAFs on the road worldwide, securing it as the world’s best-selling EV. Nissan recently introduced the third generation model that delivers 26 percent more range versus the previous model, and up to 250km*** of driving range on a single charge.
Perhaps surprisingly, the majority of millennials surveyed owned a car (77 percent). Although they might not be driving electric vehicles now, they are in the market for future driving technology with nearly two out of three likely to buy a hybrid car in the next 10 years, and over half saying they would buy an electric car in that time span.
As proof of its ongoing commitment to a safer and more sustainable future, Nissan Motor Company has been a member of the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) Asia/Pacific since 2009, and was recently also added to the World Index, which tracks the leading sustainability-driven companies worldwide.
More information on FutureFest (17-18 September) can be found here: http://www.futurefest.org/
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* A Millennial is the name given to the generation born between 1982 and 2004. The Millennial generation follows Generation X in order of demographic cohorts. This generation is often associated with technology and social media. Also known as Generation Y.
