Few in U.S. recognize inequities of climate change

Despite the overwhelming scientific consensus on the disproportionate impact of climate change on marginalized groups, a significant portion of the U.S. population remains unconvinced.

A recent national survey revealed that just over one-third of U.S. adults believe climate change affects certain groups more than others. Nearly half of the respondents believe that climate change impacts all groups equally. Surprisingly, when race is considered, even fewer people acknowledge the unequal impacts of climate change.

“Our previous research highlighted the public’s misperception of who is concerned about environmental issues, and we’re curious about the reasons behind this,” said Jonathon Schuldt, associate professor of communication at Cornell University. Schuldt and Adam Pearson, associate professor and chair of psychological science at Pomona College, aimed to investigate whether the public is even aware of the unequal impacts of climate change. Their findings indicate that many people may not be aware of this issue.

Schuldt and Pearson conducted a study titled “Public Recognition of Climate Change Inequities Within the United States,” which was published in the journal Climatic Change. The study analyzed data from two national surveys conducted in May and August-September 2022.

The first study posed the question “Do you think that climate change affects some groups more than others, or does it affect all groups about equally?” to 1,084 respondents. Only 37% believed that climate change has unequal impacts on different groups, while 46% believed it affects all groups equally.

In the second study, 1,017 respondents were randomly assigned different variations of the question. One group was asked if climate change affects some groups in the U.S. more than others, while another group was asked if it affects some racial groups more than others. The results showed that when race was included in the question, only 22% believed that some groups were more affected than others, with 57% believing that all racial groups were affected equally.

While Democrats and younger individuals were more likely to recognize the unequal impacts of climate change, the misperceptions exist across all groups.

“It’s surprising that even a minority of Democrats correctly identified the unequal impacts,” said Schuldt. “There seems to be a perception that climate change is a universal threat that affects everyone equally, which may hinder acknowledgment of these inequities.”

The study also revealed that including race in the question weakened the belief in unequal impacts, despite race being a reliable predictor of exposure to climate-related hazards.

Schuldt hopes that this research, along with future studies on climate justice, will raise public awareness and lead to meaningful legislation.

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