Singapore: Less than a fifth of respondents have coverage designed to protect against climate related risks
Source: Asia Insurance Review | Oct 2026
While awareness of sustainability is high among Singaporeans, a study has found that the strongest driver of sustainable action is whether individuals feel a sense of personal ownership and believe their actions can make a difference.
According to a whitepaper by Singlife and the Sustainable and Green Finance Institute at the National University of Singapore, titled ‘Closing the Sustainability Action Gap: Insights from the Singlife SGFIN Sustainable Future Index 2026’, a sense of ownership accounts for 74% of sustainability action, compared with 18% for awareness and 8% for knowledge.
This suggests that fostering a stronger sense of personal ownership is likely to have a bigger impact on encouraging sustainable behaviour than awareness-building efforts alone.
The paper also identified the behavioural drivers behind sustainable behaviour, where the greatest opportunities to close Singapore’s sustainability action gap are and practical recommendations to help businesses, financial institutions and policymakers encourage more sustainable behaviours.
The study found that Singaporeans are more likely to adopt sustainable behaviours when they fit naturally into everyday life, such as 52% of respondents buying less fast fashion and 48% purchasing products carrying eco-labels.
In contrast, adoption declined for behaviours involving greater cost or lifestyle changes: only 25% bought more second-hand clothing, 24% purchased organic food despite the higher cost and 16% adopted electric vehicles.
As such, the paper noted that reducing barriers such as cost and complexity will therefore be key to encouraging greater sustainability action. A