American Opinions on Pope Francis, Climate Change: A Summary of Research

Research indicates that Pope Francis is generally viewed as a trusted source of information on global warming among Americans, with a majority (55%) believing it is appropriate for him to take a public position on the issue. Among American Christians, Catholics show higher levels of belief in human-caused global warming (57%) and higher levels of worry (57%) compared to other major Christian groups. While awareness of the papal encyclical on climate change remains low (31%), there is strong cross-denominational support for climate policies, including renewable energy research and carbon dioxide regulation.

• A majority of Americans believe it is appropriate for Pope Francis to publicly address global warming, and he is considered a trusted source of information on the topic across all American demographics.
• Catholics in the US are more likely than the general American public and other major Christian groups to believe global warming is occurring and is caused by human activity.
• Awareness of the Pope's encyclical on climate change is low, with 60% of Americans unaware of it, although awareness has increased since March 2015.
• There is strong support among Christians, particularly Catholics, for various climate and energy policies, such as funding renewable energy research and regulating carbon dioxide.
• Catholic Republicans demonstrate higher levels of concern and support for climate policies compared to non-Catholic Republicans.

APA

Schwarz, B. (2015). American Opinions on Pope Francis, Climate Change: A Summary of Research. Yale Program on Climate Change Communication. https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/news-events/american-opinions-on-pope-francis-climate-change-a-summary-of-research/

Chicago

Schwarz, Bessie. American Opinions on Pope Francis, Climate Change: A Summary of Research. Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, 2015. https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/news-events/american-opinions-on-pope-francis-climate-change-a-summary-of-research/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Schwarz |first1=Bessie |title=American Opinions on Pope Francis, Climate Change: A Summary of Research |publisher=Yale Program on Climate Change Communication |date=22 September 2015 |url=https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/news-events/american-opinions-on-pope-francis-climate-change-a-summary-of-research/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{schwarz2015american, author = {Schwarz, Bessie}, title = {{American Opinions on Pope Francis, Climate Change: A Summary of Research}}, institution = {Yale Program on Climate Change Communication}, year = {2015}, month = sep, url = {https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/news-events/american-opinions-on-pope-francis-climate-change-a-summary-of-research/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }