Dueling realities? Age, political ideology divide Canadians over cause and threat of climate change

With Canada’s place recently reconfirmed among the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitters, the Trudeau government finds itself under increased pressure and scrutiny in the wake of a United Nations report stating this nation will fall short of emission reduction goals.

But with just over one month until the implementation of a federal carbon tax ostensibly aimed at reducing Canada’s carbon footprint, new public opinion data from the Angus Reid Institute finds one-in-three Canadians skeptical about whether climate change is a fact caused by human activity.

Demographic differences between Canadians on age and political ideology largely drive differences on this quarrelsome issue.

For example, 18 to 34-year-old Canadians appear to carry a heightened sense of gravity than older respondents regarding the threat from climate change.

And while more than four-in-five past Liberal and New Democrat voters believe climate change is a fact, (81 per cent and 85 per cent respectively), this drops to just one-third of those who voted for the Conservative party in 2015.

More Key Findings:

Half of Canadians (49 per cent) say that they have noticed significant changes to their local climate. Another 37 per cent say that they think they have noticed changes, but not major ones;

Nine-in-10 Canadians say that they believe the global temperature is rising. This slips to 71 per cent among past Conservative voters and rises to near unanimity among past Liberals (95 per cent) and New Democrats (96 per cent);

While three-quarters of Canadians say that something can be done to reduce climate change globally, they are less convinced they, themselves, can have an impact. Overall, six-in-10 (61 per cent) say they feel they can personally help – this sentiment is highest in Quebec (80 per cent).

The full poll can be viewed at www.angusreid.org/climatechange-beliefs.