Faith, Morality, and the Environment

The report finds that while most Americans did not initially view global warming as a moral or spiritual issue, their widely held values regarding stewardship and care for the poor suggest that a moral framing by religious leaders could engage previously unconcerned segments of the U.S. public.

• In Spring 2015, the majority of Americans did not perceive global warming as a moral issue. Only the 'Alarmed' and 'Concerned' groups viewed it as a moral issue, and only the 'Alarmed' group specifically linked it to poverty or social justice. Furthermore, fewer than one-third of any group considered it a spiritual or religious issue, and 40 percent of respondents felt their views on the topic reflected their core moral values only slightly or not at all.
• Despite a lack of initial moral framing, many Americans hold values that align with a religious or moral argument for climate action, such as the belief that humans should be stewards of nature rather than rulers, and the importance of caring for future generations, the environment, and the poor.

APA

Yale Program on Climate Change Communication (2016). Faith, Morality, and the Environment. https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/faith-morality-environment/

Chicago

Yale Program on Climate Change Communication. Faith, Morality, and the Environment. 2016. https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/faith-morality-environment/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Yale Program on Climate Change Communication |title=Faith, Morality, and the Environment |date=19 January 2016 |url=https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/faith-morality-environment/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{yaleprogramonclimatechangecommunication2016faith, author = {{Yale Program on Climate Change Communication}}, title = {{Faith, Morality, and the Environment}}, institution = {Yale Program on Climate Change Communication}, year = {2016}, month = jan, url = {https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/faith-morality-environment/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }