CONNECTED BY NATURE: WHAT UNITES AMERICANS

The report reveals that nature is a unifying force in the United States, with a strong majority of Americans viewing it as essential to their cultural identity and personal health. While 84% of respondents express concern over threats to nature—specifically water pollution, climate change, and air pollution—there is a broad consensus that protecting the environment is a shared civic duty. The findings highlight a preference for collective action, with significant expectations for national and state governments to lead protection efforts.

• Nature is viewed as a core component of American identity, with 73% of adults stating it is an "essential part of America’s cultural identity" and 64% believing it defines their specific state or region.
• Americans strongly associate nature with personal well-being; 84% like or love spending time in nature, and 72% believe such experiences are "important for their health."
• The most significant personal benefits derived from nature are clean air, water, and natural resources (57%), followed by mental health (45%) and physical health (38%).
• Public perception of nature's health varies by scale: while many view their local neighborhood or state as stable, 57% believe nature in the US is in a "strained, critical, or catastrophic state," and 35% describe nature globally as such.
• The most pressing threats to nature identified by Americans are water pollution (48%), climate change (43%), air pollution (42%), and deforestation (41%).
• There is a strong sense of collective responsibility, with 73% of Americans agreeing that taking care of nature is a "civic duty" and 80% believing it must be protected for future generations.
• While urgency for action is expected across all sectors, the highest expectations for "extremely urgent" action are placed on the national government (54%) and state governments (50%).

APA

WWF International (2025). CONNECTED BY NATURE: WHAT UNITES AMERICANS. https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/796/5c72c327sh_WWF_Nature_Attitudes_Sept_8_2025_final.pdf

Chicago

WWF International. CONNECTED BY NATURE: WHAT UNITES AMERICANS. 2025. https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/796/5c72c327sh_WWF_Nature_Attitudes_Sept_8_2025_final.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=WWF International |title=CONNECTED BY NATURE: WHAT UNITES AMERICANS |date=2025 |url=https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/796/5c72c327sh_WWF_Nature_Attitudes_Sept_8_2025_final.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wwfinternational2025connected, author = {{WWF International}}, title = {{CONNECTED BY NATURE: WHAT UNITES AMERICANS}}, institution = {WWF International}, year = {2025}, url = {https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/796/5c72c327sh_WWF_Nature_Attitudes_Sept_8_2025_final.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }