A new survey has shown that global warning concerns have remained constant in spite of the prevalence of other crises. The survey has also shown that the number of voters that see climate change as a major voting issue is rising. Americans are beginning to feel even more passionate about climate change and it is bound to play a pivotal role in the coming elections.
What even makes this quite significant is the fact that despite the global turmoil resulting from numerous global and national crises running concurrently, support for climate change action has not dissipated. A poll back in May 2018, saw 68% acknowledge that governments had to do more concerning global warming. And that number has remained the save in the latest survey.
A different result might have been predicted by social scientists, particularly those that believe in the finite pool of worry. This hypothesis is a psychological one that suggests that when an individual’s concern for one issue rises, the concern for other issues diminish. This was thought to be the case before the survey, as climate change action is seen to be a luxury issue.
The recent survey suggests that climate change and its inaction has become an extremely important topic that even with the global COVID 19 pandemic and its rising US death tolls, it still remains at the forefront of the Americans mindset. It appears that the pressures of self-isolation due to the pandemic has helped Americans concentrate on the pressing issues of the world.
Democratic candidates have appeared to notice this shift and have been reaping the associated benefits. For example, the Democratic Party has received a wave of donations from climate change voices for Presidential candidate, Former Vice President Joe Biden. This has been a significant departure when certain party leaders openly discouraged climate change based fundraising.
Proponents of the survey state that the issue public concerning climate change ranks at 25% making it the second largest issue on the public’s mind, second only to abortion which is ranked at 31%. This is particularly striking given that the group of American adults that claim they are passionate about gun control typically hovers around 17%. Capital punishment, another important topic for American adults weighs at about 14%.
It does seem that climate change has once again become a major topic also in the political sphere, however, there is a difference this time, the public truly cares about the issue of climate change.
