Americans Want Fair Climate Action — The President
Is Moving the Other Way

The President’s recent executive order — blocking states from enforcing climate laws — is just one of the latest blows to America’s climate progress. From dismantling federal climate efforts to rolling back environmental justice, the administration’s actions raise a critical question: Are these moves what the American people want?

ecoAmerica’s latest poll says no. Nearly three-quarters of Americans (72%) are concerned about climate change, with a strong majority of Democrats (88%), most Independents (71%), and more than half of Republicans (56%).¹ Even more striking: 81% agree that climate change doesn’t impact everyone equally, with recognition of this fact growing among Republicans. Republicans increasingly acknowledge the unequal toll on younger generations, low-income communities, people of color, and women. 

And it doesn’t stop there. Climate change is among the top three issues Americans call unfair and want addressed under President Trump’s leadership, after health care and housing affordability. Americans aren’t asking for partisan climate fights. Rather, they’re demanding climate action — rooted in fairness and accountability — that helps communities hit by rising extreme weather events and ensures solutions are affordable, accessible, and benefit everyone.

Americans See the Unequal Harms of Climate Change 

Even as climate denial returns to Washington, Americans continue to see its unequal toll. A striking majority of 81% (unchanged since ecoAmerica’s 2021 poll) agree that climate change harms some people more than others. This strong consensus spans party lines, with 91% of Democrats, 79% of Independents, and a growing share of Republicans (72%, up from 63% in 2021) in agreement.

When identifying who bears more burdens than others, Americans agree that young people and future generations (72%), low-income, rural, and labor communities (67%), Black Indigenous, and People of Color (56%), and women and girls (54%) experience disproportionate harms of climate change. A look at political affiliation shows differences in understanding of the disproportionate harms these groups face amidst climate change.

In good news, despite Republicans showing the lowest overall consensus on the disproportionate climate harms faced by key impacted groups, comparison with 2021 polling reveals growing awareness. More Republicans now agree that young people and future generations (59%, up 2 points from 57% in 2021), low-income, rural, and labor communities (53%, up 11 points from 42%), Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (42%, up 6 points from 36%), and women and girls (42%, up 7 points from 35%) are disproportionately affected. While there’s still plenty of room for growth, this shift reflects rising awareness and progress.

Nationally and across parties, recognition of climate change’s disproportionate impact on women and girls remains the lowest across other impacted groups. ecoAmerica’s 2025 polling reveals a stark ethnic and gender divide that may explain the low national numbers. While majorities of Black or African American (70%), Hispanic/Latino/a (66%), and female respondents (61%) recognize women and girls as disproportionately affected, fewer White/Caucasian (49%) and male respondents (47%) agree.

Climate Change Joins Health Care and Housing as Top Issues
Americans Call Unfair Under President Trump

Nearly half of Americans (46%) view climate change impacts as unfair and believe they should be addressed under the Trump administration. Climate ranks third after top concerns like health care (56%) and housing affordability (55%), and above income inequality (43%), racial discrimination (43%), and LGBTQ+ discrimination (42%) as unfair issues that should be addressed in the U.S.

Americans Want Fairness in Climate Action — Funding, Access, and
Affordability Top the List

Many Americans are calling for climate solutions that prioritize fairness. Top actions include funding communities hurt by extreme weather events (46%), ensuring climate solutions benefit everyone fairly (45%), and making clean energy options like solar panels, electric vehicles, and public transit more affordable and accessible (43%). Nearly two-fifths also support charging polluters and providing job training for clean energy (39%), while 31% want compensation for those harmed by dirty energy pollution. Notably, support for funding communities hit by extreme weather has jumped 11 points (up from 35% since 2021) — a clear response to rising climate disasters.

¹ See full toplines for findings showing climate concern trends across age, gender, and ethnicity. 

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Full data featured in this blog is available in the accompanying toplines.

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Methodology
ecoAmerica designed and administered this survey, which was conducted online from March 26 – April 3, 2025, using SurveyMonkey. The survey yielded a total of 1,048 complete adult responses and used the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey to weigh the national general population and reflect the demographic composition of the US. The sample was drawn from an online panel, and the respondents were screened to ensure that they were over the age of 18. The margin of error for the sample is +/-3%. In interpreting the survey results, it is important to note that all sample surveys are subject to possible sampling errors. Thus, the results of a survey may differ from the results that would be obtained if the entire population were interviewed. The sampling error size depends on the total number of respondents in the survey and the percentage distribution of the responses to a particular question. For example, if 50% of the respondents in a sample of 1,048 respondents answered “Yes” to a particular question, we can be 95% confident that the true percentage would fall within 3 points or range from 47% to 53%.

Suggested Citation
Speiser, M., Ishaq, M. (April 2025). American Climate Perspectives Survey 2025. Vol II. Americans Want Fair Climate Action. The President Is Moving the Other Way. ecoAmerica. Washington, DC.

© 2025 ecoAmerica. The contents of this report may be shared and used under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

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