Programs & Projects

The Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Program

The Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Program

To inform the public debate on Australia’s foreign policy, the Lowy Institute has sought the views of the Australian public on foreign policy since 2005. The Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Program also conducts polls in important neighbouring countries, and more recently, has started to survey diaspora communities in Australia.

The annual Lowy Institute Poll is one of the Lowy Institute’s flagship publications. It is the leading tracking survey on Australian foreign policy, providing a reliable vehicle for understanding Australian attitudes towards a wide range of foreign policy issues, while being independent and methodologically rigorous.

Over the course of the past decade, the Poll has uncovered significant shifts in public sentiment, including towards our most important neighbours and partners. It has tracked attitudes on important international issues ranging from climate change and the Covid-19 pandemic, to Australia’s relationships with China and the United States.

One of the best ways to explore the data from our eighteen years of polling is through our interactive site. Copies of the previous Lowy Institute polls are available here.

The Lowy Institute continues to conduct influential polls in several of our most important neighbours in the Asia-Pacific, including Indonesia (2006, 2011 and 2021), India (2013), New Zealand (2007 and 2012), China (2009) and Fiji (2011).

Through the Multiculturalism, Identity and Influence Project, the Lowy Institute has also conducted surveys of Chinese-Australian communities in 2020 and 2021. The ground-breaking Being Chinese in Australia study asks Chinese-Australians about their views on a wide range of issues — from foreign influence and relationships with China, to systems of government and pride in Australian life and culture.

The annual Lowy Institute Poll is entirely funded by the Lowy Institute to ensure its ongoing independence, and its questionnaire and results are thoroughly reviewed by independent consultants. The full dataset is available on the Lowy Institute Poll website, and datasets are also deposited with the Australian Social Science Data Archive where they are available free of charge for public scrutiny.

Experts
Latest publications
News and media
Is our love affair with America over?
Commentary
Is our love affair with America over?
Most Australians would greet a Biden victory with relief. But that may not be enough to remedy the fear that the United States has changed for the worse. Originally published in…
DFAT cuts show our foreign policy's khaki tinge
Commentary
DFAT cuts show our foreign policy's khaki tinge
Underinvestment in diplomacy suggests Australia is more eager to defend against a disorderly world than to try to reshape it. Originally published in the Australian Financial…
Emerging from COVID: Policy Responses to the Pandemic
Policy Briefs
Emerging from COVID: Policy Responses to the Pandemic
Lowy Institute experts provide policy recommendations for Australia to address issues that are critical to our nation's — and the world's — successful emergence from the pandemic.
Lowy Institute Poll 2020
Polling
Lowy Institute Poll 2020
The 2020 Lowy Institute Poll, conducted as the COVID-19 crisis was unfolding across the globe, reveals unprecedented changes in Australian attitudes to the world around us,…
The World After COVID
Analyses
The World After COVID
How will the COVID-19 pandemic change the world? Lowy Institute experts provide their analysis.
China is rewriting coronavirus history and nobody will stop it
Commentary
China is rewriting coronavirus history and nobody will stop it
In an opinion piece published in the Nikkei Asian Review, Natasha Kassam argues that China has leapt on the opportunity to shape the global narrative about its response to…
Politics comes first in China's agony
Commentary
Politics comes first in China's agony
In an opinion piece originally published in the Financial Review, Natasha Kassam argues that China's biggest concern in dealing with the new coronavirus is maintaining stability…
As Wuhan virus spreads, Taiwan has no say at WHO
Commentary
As Wuhan virus spreads, Taiwan has no say at WHO
Chinese pressure keeps Taipei out of international organizations—putting everyone at more risk. Originally published in Foreign Policy.
New Year on Australia’s fire ravaged coast
New Year on Australia’s fire ravaged coast
This was supposed to be an idyllic week on the east and south coasts of Australia, when thousands of families traditionally set off after Christmas for their beach holidays…
The Sydney Morning Herald
16 July 2023
Australian Financial Review
4 July 2023
ABC RN Counterpoint
3 July 2023
Australian Associated Press
21 June 2023