Climate Change Is Our Common Ground

Graphic: Annabel Driussi for Our Daily Planet

New public opinion research reveals a totally surprising level of agreement in America on the long-term national priorities that we need to focus on as a nation.  The research was undertaken by Populace, a think tank that blends thought leadership and original research with public engagement and grassroots advocacy.  They studied public attitudes and created “The American Aspirations Index” which is the first-ever private opinion survey of the public’s ambitions for the long-term future of the country. They found that “there is a surprising level of support for action on climate change and conservation. However, Americans don’t recognize it. Climate action privately ranks as the third-highest personally-held national aspiration out of a full 55 possibilities; Americans believe that ‘most others’ would register climate action as a back half priority.”

Why This Matters:  The Index’s authors describe the issue of climate change as a “collective illusion” because there are significant gaps between personal and perceived societal national aspirations.  And this “myth” that the public does not agree on climate change is a real obstacle to progress.  We need to shatter the misperception that climate change is a divisive issue in order to make real progress on it.

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