Quarter of young Europeans don’t believe in human-driven climate change

On average, older Europeans are more likely to believe in human-driven climate change

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Despite stereotypes, in five of six European countries analysed by More in Common, older people were more concerned about climate change than the younger generation (Photo: Martin Pope/Getty Images)

By Will HazellEducation Correspondent

More than a quarter of young Europeans believe that climate change is either not caused by humans or not even happening at all, a study has found.

Despite stereotypes that young people are more likely to be worried about climate change than their elders, in five of six European countries analysed, older people were more concerned about the phenomenon.

More in Common interviewed more than 26,000 adults on their thoughts about climate change across the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Poland and Spain.

The study found that on average, older people were more likely to believe in human-driven climate change.

While 63 per cent of 18 to 29-year-olds believed that climate change is “real and caused by human action”, the figure was 66 per cent for 30 to 54-year-olds and 71 per cent for those aged 55 and over.

Among 18 to 29-year-olds, 22 per cent believed that climate change is “part of the earth’s natural cycle and human action is not to blame”, while 4 per cent thought it is “not happening”.

More in Common said that “concern about climate change is near universal” across age groups.

“While differences are rather modest, in five of six countries those under 30 are less worried than those over 55 years of age,” it added.

The exception was the United Kingdom, where 83 per cent of 18 to 29-year-olds said they were worried about climate change, compared to 72 per cent of older adults.

While those under 30 are twice as likely to have attended a protest or become a vegan as those over 55, More in Common said such behaviours are “generally rare”, with only 4 per cent across Europe having attended a climate protest.

However, older Europeans are much more likely than young ones to take other measures, such as recycling or conserving electricity and heating.

Seventy-five per cent of those aged over 55 said they recycle and reduce their plastic use, compared to just 53 per cent of those aged 18 to 29.

Stephen Hawkins, global director of research at More in Common said:“Based on media coverage, one can easily get the impression that climate change is a young person’s issue.

“However, based on extensive public opinion polling across Europe we find something strikingly different: concern about climate change is not higher among young people, they are simply more likely to express in particular ways, such as becoming a vegan or participating in a march. But a significant minority of young people also remain uncertain that climate change is human-caused, or even that it’s happening at all.”

The study also found that “citizens characterised by the highest levels of distrust in major institutions and alienation from broader society” are “most likely to be sceptical of human-driven climate change”, suggesting that climate opposition “may be driven less by the particulars of the issue and more by an underlying phenomenon of distrust”.

For example, those who completely distrust the safety of Covid-19 vaccines are about twice as likely (30 per cent) to also believe human action is not the driver of climate change, compared to those who completely trust vaccine efficacy (14 per cent).

More in Common said that the best way to mobilise public support for climate change policies is to “pair them” with popular or urgent policies, such as tackling economic and national security concerns.

Mr Hawkins added: “In this moment of uncertainty, our findings underscore how crucial it is for climate change advocates and policymakers to convey not only how their policies will help the climate, but how they will benefit our towns and cities, how they will punish Russia and build energy independence, and especially how they will with help everyday people dealing with rising costs.”