Climate Change in the British Mind


Executive Summary

From 7 November to 13 November 2024, the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication conducted a nationally representative survey of 10,660 British residents (ages 16+). The study was designed to investigate the British public’s awareness of climate change, their perceptions of climate change risks and impacts, and their experiences with extreme weather. The report also investigates public attitudes toward climate policies and renewable energy.

Among the key findings of this report:

Climate Change Beliefs

  • People in the United Kingdom who think climate change is happening outnumber those who think it is not happening by a ratio of more than 14 to 1 (86% to 6%).
  • A majority of people in the UK (75%) understand that climate change is mostly human-caused. By contrast, 17% think it is caused mostly by natural changes in the environment.

Climate Change Risk Perceptions and Engagement

  • A majority of people in the UK (80%) say they are at least “somewhat worried” about climate change. This includes 35% of people in the UK who say they are “very worried.”
  • A large majority of people in the UK think climate change will harm future generations of people (85%). Fewer people in the UK, but still a majority, think climate change will harm them personally (56%).
  • About eight in ten people in the UK (82%) say the issue of climate change is either “extremely,” “very,” or “somewhat” important to them personally, while 18% say climate change is either “not too” or “not at all” personally important.
  • 62% of people in the UK say they have personally experienced climate change.

Climate Change and Renewable Energy Policy Support

  • 68% of people in the UK think climate change should be a high or very high priority for the government of the United Kingdom.
  • Most people in the UK (82%) support the use of renewable energy for providing their electricity, fuel, and heat.

Impacts of Climate Change

  • About two-thirds of people in the UK (68%) say their local area has experienced at least one environmental problem in the past 12 months. This included severe storms (34%), flooding (32%), air pollution (31%), water pollution (29%), extreme heat (16%), agricultural pests and diseases (9%), rising sea levels (8%), water shortages (6%), droughts (4%), or wildfires (3%).
  • Majorities of people in the UK are either “very worried” or “moderately worried” that water pollution (57%), severe storms (54%), and air pollution (53%) might harm their local area, while nearly half are worried about flooding (49%). Many people in the UK are worried about extreme heat (36%), water shortages (36%), and agricultural pests and diseases (31%), droughts (28%), or rising sea levels (27%) in their local area, while fewer are worried about wildfires (16%).
  • Most people in the UK think climate change is affecting environmental problems in the United Kingdom, including flooding (88%), severe storms (85%), rising sea levels (80%), air pollution (79%), extreme heat (79%), water pollution (74%), water shortages (73%), droughts (71%), agricultural pests and diseases (65%), and wildfires (62%).