Faced with inflation, the energy crisis and Russian nuclear threats, action by States to counter the impact of climate change should be a priority, assures a YouGov poll published exclusively by AFP and carried out in five European countries and the United States ahead of COP27 in Egypt.

More than half of respondents - between 1,000 and 2,000 per country - plead for the climate issue to become "a priority" regardless of the economic situation, while only 30% want it to be "put on hold" time to deal with other issues.

"This poll proves that there is a consensus on climate change and the means to fight against it in public opinion, much broader than what we too often see on television or on Twitter", commented Luke Tryl, responsible for the NGO More in Common in Great Britain.

However, the results differ radically from one country to another: those most affected by extreme climatic events due to global warming see the problem as more urgent.

More than 60% of respondents in France, Spain and Italy believe that tackling climate change should be a top priority, compared to only 40% in Germany, Great Britain and the United States.

Americans less concerned about climate change

Germany and Great Britain have not been spared by torrential rains and heat waves, but the Mediterranean basin - one of the most vulnerable places on the planet, according to the UN - suffers much more frequently droughts, heat waves and forest fires, phenomena that will increase further in the future.

In fact, 48-58% of respondents in Spain, Italy and France say they have suffered such disasters, compared to 44% in Britain, 38% in the United States and 36% in Germany.

In the six countries, respondents are two to three times more likely to believe that climate change will have "a big impact" on the planet than those who believe that the effects will affect them themselves. 

A gap that seems to indicate to what extent the inhabitants of rich countries are protected from the harshest consequences of climate change. 

Americans are regularly at the bottom of the pack in this poll, even as they have just experienced a 500-year-old drought in the Southwest, fires on an unprecedented scale in the Northwest, floods and droughts in the center and devastating cyclones on the east coast.

Barely half of them believe that human activity is the cause of climate change, compared to 80% on average in Europe and even 84 and 88% in Spain and Italy.

Americans differ on the climate issue according to their age, their gender or their community affiliation, but also and above all, according to their political orientation.

More than 80% of those who voted for Democrat Joe Biden in 2020 think climate change is man-made compared to just 25% of those who voted for Donald Trump.

A lack of trust in government action

Overall, however, say world leaders are not doing enough for the planet.

Nearly 40% believe that government policies to reduce carbon emissions will have a "positive impact" in the long term and 14% in the short term.

But when we ask those who believe that the climate is actually changing, ie 90% of respondents, if their states "are ready to take the necessary measures to stop global warming", two thirds answer "no".

"There is a lack of confidence which seems to be divided on the ability of governments to tackle the crisis", deciphers Luke Tryl.

For Ameira Sawas, of the British NGO Climate Outreach, "politicians do not always follow" even though "there are surely more progressive ideas emerging in public opinion".

For the majority of respondents, the first reason for taking climate action is to protect future generations: 40 to 50% of respondents cite it.

The second reason is the protection of ecosystems necessary for human life.

These ecosystems will be at the heart of a UN summit on biodiversity in early December in Montreal.

With AFP

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