Summary
Recent polls and statements suggest a shift in how Americans, including some prominent figures, view climate change. While many still believe in global warming, fewer people see it as an immediate, insurmountable threat, leading to decreased support for drastic measures. Notably, Bill Gates criticized the extreme views on climate change, and a major study predicting severe economic decline due to carbon emissions was retracted due to errors.
Key Facts
- A July 2025 report found 69% of Americans believe global warming is happening, but only 60% think it's mainly caused by humans.
- A University of Chicago study noted a decline in belief in human-driven climate change since 2017.
- An October 2024 Pew Research Center poll revealed only 45% of participants felt human activity contributes significantly to climate change.
- Bill Gates published a blog post criticizing the extreme "doomsday" view of climate change at the COP30 summit.
- A high-profile 2024 study predicting a 62% decline in economic output by 2100 if emissions were not reduced was retracted for flawed data.
- The retracted study's corrected prediction lowered the anticipated economic decline to around 23%.
- Public willingness to make personal sacrifices for climate reasons is decreasing.
- These developments show a growing skepticism toward catastrophic climate change narratives.
