Communicating about climate: The challenge of changing public opinion

A new report from Stanford University and Resources for the Future dives deeply into Americans' views on climate change. While 75 percent of Americans acknowledge that the earth has been warming over the past century, this figure is down from 83 percent in 2020—reflecting a subtle shift in public perception. Overall, attitudes on climate have been remarkably stable.

The one area where there has been a marked shift is people’s confidence in their own knowledge. In 1997, 42 percent of respondents said they knew at least a moderate amount about the issue; that figure rose to 73 percent in 2024.

When people are so firmly attached to their opinions, those wanting to affect change may be most successful if they can convince more people that climate issues matter. A small but growing group of people care deeply about climate change. The climate “issue public” makes up a near all-time high of 21 percent of Americans, up from 9 percent in 1997.