How Americans View Climate Change and Policies to Address the Issue
Among Republicans, 56% think climate policies usually hurt the U.S. economy. By contrast, 52% of Democrats say they usually help.
Brian Kennedy is a senior researcher at the Pew Research Center, where he focuses on science and society research. He is an expert on public opinion on a number of science-related topics and frequently writes about public views on climate and energy issues and public trust in science. His work on climate, energy and environmental attitudes includes Majorities of Americans Prioritize Renewable Energy, Back Steps to Address Climate Change and Americans Divided Over Direction of Biden’s Climate Policies. And his publications on public trust in scientists include Americans Trust in Scientists, Positive Views of Science Continue to Decline and Americans Value U.S. Role as Scientific Leader, but 38% Say Country Is Losing Ground Globally.
Kennedy frequently discusses research on public opinion on climate, energy and environmental issues and public trust in science with the media and presents research on these topics to outside groups.
Kennedy is also an expert in methodological topics, including scale development. He has developed survey questions and scales to measure science knowledge and awareness of artificial intelligence in daily activities.
He received his Ph.D. in political science at Michigan State University, where his work focused on cross-national attitudes about climate change. Kennedy received his bachelor’s degree at Davidson College.
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Public Trust in Scientists and Views on Their Role in Policymaking
Americans’ trust in scientists is slightly higher than it was last year, but remains lower than before the COVID-19 pandemic.
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How Americans feel about hydraulic fracturing for oil and gas
Overall, 44% of Americans support more hydraulic fracturing for oil and gas in the United States, while 53% oppose it.
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Majority of Americans support more nuclear power in the country
Americans remain more likely to favor expanding solar power (78%) and wind power (72%) than nuclear power (56%).
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Americans’ Extreme Weather Policy Views and Personal Experiences
Reports of extreme weather are common but vary by party. Most favor stricter building standards in high-risk areas but not building bans or forced relocations.
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How Americans View National, Local and Personal Energy Choices
A majority favor U.S. efforts to become carbon neutral by 2050, but few express strong interest in buying EVs or reducing their own carbon emissions.
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Most Americans think U.S. K-12 STEM education isn’t above average, but test results paint a mixed picture
Just 28% of U.S. adults say America is the best in the world or above average in K-12 STEM education compared with other wealthy nations.
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Many Americans think generative AI programs should credit the sources they rely on
22% of Americans say they interact with artificial intelligence almost constantly or several times a day. 27% say they do this about once a day or several times a week.
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How Republicans view climate change and energy issues
Just 12% of Republicans and Republican leaners say dealing with climate change should be a top priority for the president and Congress.
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Americans’ Trust in Scientists, Positive Views of Science Continue to Decline
The share of Americans who say science has had a mostly positive impact on society has fallen 16 percentage points since before the start of the coronavirus outbreak, from 73% in January 2019 to 57% today.
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