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India, China and the US are the biggest climate sceptics, new survey

India, China and the US are the biggest climate-crisis sceptics despite being three of the world’s biggest producers of emissions, according to a new survey conducted across 142 countries. 

Climate change is widely understood as offering an existential threat to life on earth, however, a new survey conducted by global charity Lloyd’s Register Foundation reveals worrying levels of scepticism.

The survey which involved over 150,000 people from 142 different countries revealed that only 41% of people see climate change as ‘a very serious threat to their country,’ with 28% ‘somewhat concerned’ and 13% believing it is ‘no threat at all.’

The researchers found that the highest levels of scepticism occur in the world’s biggest producers of emissions, with 21% of those living in the US listing it as ‘no threat at all,’ alongside 19% in India and 30% in China.

In comparison, people in Southern Europe and Latin America are the most likely to see climate change as a serious threat.

The researchers found that education played a large role in shaping attitudes towards the climate change, people with 16 or more years of education were more likely than those with 8 years of education to say climate change is a ‘very serious’ threat.

The researchers behind this survey have said they hope the findings will aid understanding of how people across the world think and feel about the climate crisis, they have said that this insight will be vital for those involved in communicating risks and aiming to change public behaviours.

Professor Richard Clegg, chief executive of Lloyd’s Register Foundation said: ‘The Lloyd’s Register Foundation World Risk Poll represents the views of 98% of the world’s population on safety and risk, including many people whose voices have never been heard before.

‘Knowing what people think will help us to identify gaps between peoples’ thoughts about risk and their experiences of threats to their safety. We can use this data to work with communities and empower people to take action most likely to reduce harm – that saves lives and helps them feel safe.’

Photo Credit – Pixabay

Pippa Neill
Reporter.
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