The World's Climate Change Perception Gap
- 1 hour ago
- 2 min read
There’s a big disparity between how concerned people feel about climate change as an issue personally and how they feel others are perceiving the threat.
In a hammer-blow of irony that could not be lost on anyone, London Climate Action Week (which wrapped up on 28 June) was disrupted by “extreme heat” as temperatures soared to around 34 degrees celsius, or 93.2F, causing panels and other talks at Europe’s largest independent climate event to be postponed.
Meanwhile, a new study has noted a significant disparity between how concerned people feel about climate change as an issue personally and how they feel others are perceiving the threat. That pattern is particularly pronounced across some of the world’s wealthiest nations, according to the Lloyd’s Register Foundation World Risk Poll, recently analyzed by Gallup.
In Portugal, exactly two-thirds of people think climate change presents a “very serious threat” to their country in the next 20 years, while just 24 percent guess that their fellow citizens feel that way - the highest disparity between the two answers of any nation polled. The US wasn’t far behind at all, however, as the poll showed a gaping 41-point gulf between those who feel the threat themselves versus those who perceive that others in the country would say they’d concede that level of danger.
Why is this important? Because human beings are "conditionally cooperative," they are much more likely to make personal changes or push for policy changes when they know they are not acting alone. Moral of the story: assume you are not alone, talk about your climate concerns, and push for change.
Studies show that nearly 90 percent of the global population demands intensified political action. If that includes you, don't let your propensity for being "conditionally cooperative" hold you back. Almost everyone agrees with you.
