Polling the American Public on Climate Change

This April 2013 fact sheet reports that American concern over climate change is rising across party lines, with strong support for renewable energy and power plant emission regulations, though support for carbon taxes remains low. It highlights that minorities, particularly Latinos, show higher rates of belief in climate change than the general population and notes a strong public link between climate change and extreme weather events.

• Public concern regarding climate change in the United States is increasing across political affiliations, although it remains below 2007 levels. A Duke University poll from January 2013 found that 92% of Democrats, 85% of Independents, and 69% of Republicans view climate change as a serious threat.
• There is significant public support for clean energy and emissions regulation, but less support for market-based mechanisms like carbon taxes. For example, 62% of Americans favor stricter emission limits on power plants and 54% support investing in renewable energy sources, while only 29% support a carbon tax.
• Demographic variations exist in climate change perceptions, with higher levels of concern and support for government action among minorities. A survey of registered Hispanic voters found that 77% believe global climate change is already happening, compared to 52% of the general American population.
• A substantial portion of the public associates climate change with extreme weather and coastal risks. 77% of adults in a Stanford Woods Institute poll believe rising sea levels will be moderately, very, or extremely serious for the U.S. over the next century, and 57% of respondents in a National Wildlife Federation poll believe climate change makes events like Hurricane Sandy and summer droughts more severe.

APA

Suozzo‐Gole, M. (2013). Polling the American Public on Climate Change. Environmental and Energy Study Institute. https://www.eesi.org/files/FactSheet_polling_040213.pdf

Chicago

Suozzo‐Gole, Marguerite. Polling the American Public on Climate Change. Environmental and Energy Study Institute, 2013. https://www.eesi.org/files/FactSheet_polling_040213.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Suozzo‐Gole |first1=Marguerite |title=Polling the American Public on Climate Change |publisher=Environmental and Energy Study Institute |date=April 2013 |url=https://www.eesi.org/files/FactSheet_polling_040213.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{suozzogole2013polling, author = {Suozzo‐Gole, Marguerite}, title = {{Polling the American Public on Climate Change}}, institution = {Environmental and Energy Study Institute}, year = {2013}, month = apr, url = {https://www.eesi.org/files/FactSheet_polling_040213.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }