This project asks: how does public opinion on coal compare to public opinion on other types of energy infrastructure? What are the implications for public protest and political support? Better understanding of public opinion and public engagement around coal will help scholars to understand how the citizens weigh difficult trade offs between the environment and development objectives. Thus, developing a fuller knowledge of public opinion is one critical component of understanding the challenges to environmentally sustainable, low-carbon development, and to expanded energy access. Moreover, as local leaders often seek to bring in energy projects to gain political support, understanding social acceptance of these projects will expand our ability to predict when such strategies will be effective.