Young hesitant to act on climate change

By 2050 people will travel in flying cars, get much of their power from renewable energy and live a life of luxury in a world without borders.

That optimistic image of the future emerged from a survey of young adults in 27 countries worldwide. And while survey respondents believe their generation will have to adapt to rising sea levels and other effects of global warming, they are reluctant to make personal sacrifices that could help address the problem.

The poll of 17- to 24-year-olds by market researcher TNS, which was supported by Shell, gives a fascinating insight into their view of the future. Their answers to 24 questions about hopes and fears show they are largely optimistic about their own welfare. Most expect to be better off than their parents by 2050. More young adults in Nigeria, India, Mexico and Russia think so than in any other surveyed country. On the other hand, Dutch and Japanese respondents were the most pessimistic, expecting to earn less than their parents.

Down-to-earth hopes

Most young people expressed down-to-earth hopes about the future. Job satisfaction and raising a family were the top two aspirations in most countries. In China, however, three-quarters of respondents aspired to focusing on spirituality, while in Indonesia 63% — four times the global average — hoped to become famous.

In the eyes of young people transport will look very different by 2050, although there is little agreement on where it is headed. Brazilians believe their country’s two-million-strong fleet of biofuel-powered cars will grow further, while Canadians say electric vehicles will be more widespread. For the Chinese it will be magnetic monorails and solar-powered cars. Bruneians expect to get around in personal flying machines. Americans expect to see more hybrid vehicles on the road, but Nigeria’s young adults see little change and expect petrol-fuelled cars will remain the most common mode of personal transport. Meanwhile the Dutch forecast more hydrogen-powered cars, and — ironically for a nation where bicycles already outnumber people — even more bicycles.

War and climate change

When it comes to fears about the future, young adults most often cited war and terrorism, followed by climate change. The vast majority of respondents believe human behaviour causes climate change and are certain it will affect them personally. One-fifth of Russian respondents even said life on earth will be extinct by 2050. At the other extreme, one-third of Nigerians did not expect any real change to the environment.

In general, young people in developing countries are far more concerned about climate change than those in developed countries. Higher awareness about climate change roughly correlates with less worry about it, the survey shows. Some 80% of German youths, for instance, say they have heard of the term “carbon footprint”, while just 18% are very concerned about the environment. In China, on the other hand, 21% have heard of carbon footprints and 64% are concerned. 

Unfettered economic ambitions

Although they fear climate change, very few young people say they are prepared to rein in their economic ambitions to help protect the environment. Over 80% of those surveyed want to live in a big house and to travel the world. Although two-thirds are ready to make small changes in their lives to help the environment, such as composting or recycling, they are less willing when it comes to tougher lifestyle choices that could have the largest impact on climate change. Only one-fifth of respondents are prepared to take fewer long-distance holiday trips and just a third will change their diet to eat only locally grown food.

“This could create a global flashpoint well before 2050 if these attitudes do not alter,” Professor Lord Anthony Giddens, a former director of the London School of Economics and Political Science, says in his introduction to the survey.

Respondents remained optimistic, however, with 94% confident that “something” will be done to avoid the dangers of climate change. Most young people said that governments — especially in industrialised countries — were responsible for trying to avert environmental damage.

→ back to Shell World Online home