This post includes climate and environment headlines, data points, and key takeaways from recent public polls - including new polling on Americans' beliefs about recycling (among and other climate actions) and New Jersey residents' preferences for off-shore wind energy.

HEADLINES

Washington Post + UMD
Americans underestimate the climate impacts of flying and consuming meat and dairy [Article, Topline]

[NJ] Monmouth University
Declining support for offshore wind in New Jersey shows the dangers of misinformation about renewable energy [Release, Report + Crosstabs]

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Americans could benefit from more specific guidance about personal actions to help mitigate climate change. The Washington Post and University of Maryland find that Americans underestimate the climate benefits of several individual actions that people can take to help mitigate climate change, such as cutting down on flying and consuming less meat and dairy. With polls also showing that most Americans are willing to take actions in their own lives to help address climate change, more specific guidance from advocates about the particular actions that are most effective would help people to make more impactful climate-conscious choices.

Clean energy advocates need to fight back against misinformation about wind power. Monmouth polling in New Jersey finds that support for offshore wind development in the state has declined sharply in recent years, with particularly stark drops in support among conservative New Jerseyans. The poll additionally finds that opposition misinformation about the impacts of offshore wind on whales is breaking through to conservative audiences, while New Jerseyans also have concerns about the impact of offshore wind on the coastal tourism industry. Clean energy advocates need to address these concerns to prevent further drops in support for offshore wind in New Jersey and elsewhere, and could benefit from utilizing external validators like marine scientists and representatives from the tourism industry to combat opposition misinformation.

GOOD DATA POINTS TO HIGHLIGHT

[Climate Change] 58% of Americans recognize that the world’s climate is changing as a result of human activity [The Economist + YouGov]

[Issue Priority] More Americans name climate change and the environment as the single “most important issue” to them than any other issue aside from inflation/prices, health care, and the economy/jobs [The Economist + YouGov]