Key Religious Groups Want Government to Address Climate Change and Its Impact on World’s Poor
Press Contact: Katie Paris or Kristin Williams 202.459.8625
A new national poll commissioned by Faith in Public Life and conducted by Public Religion Research found broad support among key religious groups, including Catholics and evangelicals, for addressing climate change and its impact on the world’s poor.
SUMMARY
More than 6-in-10 (61%) believe dealing with climate change now will create new jobs and help avoid more serious economic problems in the future. Majorities of every religious group agree.
Nearly 7-in-10 (69%) Americans and similar numbers of Catholics and evangelicals agree that climate change is making it harder for the world’s poorest people to support their families by causing increased drought and crop failure.
Approximately three-quarters of the general public and similar numbers of Catholics and evangelicals favor helping the world’s poorest people adapt to food and water shortages caused by rising global temperatures.
More than two-thirds (67%) of Americans (and 66% of Catholics and 61% of white evangelicals) agree that reducing global poverty would increase stability in the most dangerous parts of the world and make Americans safer.
Sixty-three percent of Americans say the federal government should be doing more on the issue of climate change, as do 63% of Catholics and 50% of white evangelicals.
Overwhelming majorities understand climate change is happening
Nearly 7-in-10 Americans and solid majorities of every religious group, including 71% of Catholics and nearly two-thirds (64%) of white evangelicals, believe there is solid evidence that the average temperature on earth has been increasing over the last few decades. One quarter (26%) of Americans, including 25% of Catholics and 30% of white evangelicals disagree. Among those who believe the earth is getting warmer, more than two-thirds (67%), including 70% of Catholics and 60% of white evangelicals, say that the rise in temperatures is mostly due to human activity. Only 29% say that climate change is mostly caused by natural patterns in the earth’s environment. 
Most Agree Climate Change Impacting World’s Poorest
Nearly 7-in-10 (69%) Americans agree that climate change is making it harder for the world’s poorest people to support their families by causing increased drought and crop failure. More than 6-in-10 white evangelicals (63%), white mainline Protestants (61%), and Catholics (69%) agree that climate change is adversely affecting the poorest communities in the world.
Most Want U.S. Government to Take Lead on Climate Change and Global Poverty
Federal Government, Business Corporations Should Do More
Sixty-three percent of Americans say the federal government should be doing more on the issue of climate change, as do 63% of Catholics and 50% of white evangelicals. Large majorities of Americans (73%), Catholics (72%) and white evangelicals (68%) say business corporations should do more on the issue. Fewer Americans say that religious groups (44%) and environmental groups (46%) should be doing more. About 4-in-10 say these groups are already doing the right amount.
Most say U.S. Should Take Lead on Global Poverty, See Link to National Security
Most Americans believe that the U.S. has a responsibility to provide leadership on international issues of hunger and poverty. Six-in-ten Americans disagreed with the statement that taking the lead in addressing global poverty and hunger is not America’s responsibility. White evangelicals (58%) and Catholics (59%) are as likely as the general public to say the U.S. has a responsibility to lead on these issues.
In addition to feeling a general responsibility for addressing global poverty, most Americans also see a link between global poverty and U.S. national security concerns. More than two-thirds (67%) agree that reducing global poverty would increase stability in the most dangerous parts of the world and make Americans safer. Similar numbers of Catholics (66%) and white evangelicals (61%) agree that addressing poverty around the world would increase U.S. security.
Broad Support for Policies That Adapt to Climate Change, Build Resilience
Policies that address climate change by aiding adaptation to new conditions and building resilience receive strong support among all groups surveyed. Approximately three-quarters of the general public (74%), white evangelicals (79%) and Catholics (72%) favor helping the world’s poorest people adapt to food and water shortages caused by rising global temperatures. Nearly 9-in-10 of the general public (88%), white evangelicals (89%) and Catholics (87%) support helping communities prepare for the impacts of increasingly severe natural disasters. Nearly 9-in-10 of the general public, including similar numbers of evangelicals and Catholics, also favor investing in green technology like wind turbines, solar panels, and fuel cells.
Majority Lean toward Tackling Climate Change Now
A slim majority (51%) says climate change is an urgent problem that requires immediate action, compared to 47% who say that it is not an urgent problem and requires further study before taking action. Among Catholics, 55% believe climate change is an urgent problem that requires immediate action. Four-in-ten white evangelicals view climate change as an urgent problem.
However, majorities see economic benefits of addressing climate change. More than 6-in-10 (61%) believe dealing with climate change now will create new jobs and help avoid more serious economic problems in the future. A majority of every religious group, including Catholics (67%) and white evangelicals (52%) agree. Approximately one third (34%) of the general public, 41% of white evangelicals, and 30% of Catholics believe the U.S. cannot afford to deal with climate change right now because of prevailing economic conditions.
The top two environmental problems on which Americans want the administration to focus are air and water pollution (40%) and climate change (23%). Nearly half (48%) of the general public says that the issue of climate change is ‘extremely’ or ‘very’ important to them personally. Roughly half (49%) of all Catholics, 42% of white mainline Protestants, and 35% of white evangelicals say climate change is very or extremely important to them.
U.S. Should Act, Even if Other Countries Do Less
In addition to strong support for greater government involvement, a solid majority believes the U.S. should not wait on other countries to take action on climate change. Six-in-ten Americans, a majority (53%) of Catholics and a plurality (49%) of white evangelicals, say that the U.S. should take action on climate change even if countries like India and China are doing less. Approximately 1-in-5 Americans (21%), and one quarter of white evangelicals and Catholics say the U.S. should act only if other countries agree to do equally effective things. Only 16% of Americans say the U.S. should not take any action at all.
Importance of Religious Beliefs to Thinking about Climate Change
There is strong support for linking environmental laws and regulations with a religious obligation to care for God’s creation. More than 8-in-10 (81%) of Americans agree that we have an obligation to care for God’s creation by supporting stricter environmental laws and regulations. Among white evangelicals and Catholics, support generally mirrors that of the general population (79% and 82% respectively).
Roughly 4-in-10 Americans say their religious beliefs are the most important thing (14%) or very important (28%) to their thinking about these issues. Thirty percent say their religious beliefs are somewhat important. Only 26% of Americans say religion is not too important or not at all important to their views on environmental stewardship and climate change. White evangelical Protestants are much more likely to say their religious beliefs are very important on these issues (58%) than either Catholics (42%) or white mainline Protestants (39%).
SURVEY METHODLOGY
The survey was designed and conducted by Public Religion Research on behalf of Faith in Public Life and Oxfam America. Results of the survey were based on telephone interviews conducted by professional interviewers under the direction of Opinion Access Corporation. The survey includes a national sample of 1,200 adults 18 years of age and older and an over sample of 250 white evangelical Protestants and 252 Catholics. The survey was conducted from March 20 to March 27, 2009.
The margin of error for the national sample is +/- 3.0% at the 95% confidence interval. The margin of error for Catholics (N=508) and white evangelical Protestants (N=522) is +/- 5.0% at the 95% confidence interval. In addition to sampling error, surveys may also be subject to error or bias due to question wording, context and order effects.
The national sample of adults was interviewed using random digit dial process. The sample was weighted to match the national adult population on gender, age, education, race, Hispanic ethnicity, region, and religious affiliation. The demographic parameters were derived from the March 2007 Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey and the religious parameters were derived from 2007 Religious Landscape Survey conducted by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. The religion adjustment was used to correct for an oversample of white evangelicals and Catholics. Weighting was accomplished using sample balancing, a special iterative sample weighting program that simultaneously balances the distributions of all variables.
ABOUT FAITH IN PUBLIC LIFE
Faith in Public Life is a strategy center advancing faith in the public square as a positive and unifying force for justice, compassion and the common good. In order to maximize the faith community’s unique ability to shape public debates, Faith in Public Life identifies and creates moments of opportunity, builds and supports broad coalitions, and designs and implements innovative campaigns, bold initiatives and capacity-building tools. For more information, visit www.faithinpubliclife.org.
ABOUT OXFAM AMERICA
Oxfam America is dedicated to finding long-term solutions to poverty, hunger and social injustice around the world. For more information, please visit www.oxfamamerica.org.ABOUT PUBLIC RELIGION RESEARCH
Public Religion Research is a consulting firm specializing in public opinion polling and research-based strategic advice at the intersection of religion, values, and public policy. We also work with clients to develop strategies to engage people of faith for social change. For more information, visit www.publicreligion.org.
