Climate change can scarcely have been more at the forefront of the public debate than it is now, but has this prominence managed to shift public attitudes?  That was the question posed by a recent study from Cardiff University, with the finding that climate change has indeed leaped up the public consciousness, to be regarded as the most important issue facing society in the next 20 years.

“With climate policy entering a critical phase, as the UK prepares to host the UN climate summit—and as many areas seek to recover from winter flooding—these survey results provide strong evidence of a shift in perceptions among the British public towards greater concern for climate risks and their impacts,” the researchers say.  “Many people are beginning to worry and care enough to demand wide-ranging action from government on the climate crisis.”

The study revealed that around a quarter of respondents thought that climate change was the biggest issue facing Britain in the next 20 years, with only Brexit reported as a more pressing concern.  This is a radical leap from 2016, when the same survey placed climate change in a lowly 13th spot, with just 2% of respondents believing it to be crucial.

This manifests itself in some 40% of respondents saying that they were very, or extremely, worried about climate change, which has doubled since 2016.  This concern was perhaps a result of almost two thirds of respondents already suffering the direct effects of climate change.

Taking action

This concern lends itself to strong support for action, including adaptation policies to mitigate against the risk of flooding.  Some 75% of respondents said that public money should be used to better prepare the country for the effects of climate change, while there was also support for individual measures to lower one’s carbon footprint, including eating less meat and flying less.  This didn’t extend to raising electricity bills to try and reduce consumption, however.

“The current sharp rise in risk awareness is a real departure from that trend,” the researchers explain, “and this is probably due to prominent recent severe weather events, widespread climate protests and greater media coverage.”

The scientific consensus around climate change has been fairly well established for some time, and if this survey is any guide, consensus among the general public is also forming.  With both in unison, it seems likely that effective actions are more possible than perhaps they have ever been before.  The question is, will it be sufficient, or has the point for action already passed?