According to the UN weather agency, the past 11 years have been the warmest in the modern era. However, individuals feel less compelled to take action on climate change than they did at the start of the decade.
Over the past five years, surveys from the People and Climate Change report (2021–2026) show that in most countries, fewer people now believe individuals would be letting future generations down by failing to act on climate change. In contrast, New Zealand has remained largely steady on this view, except for a dip in 2023.
Globally, although fewer people than in 2021 feel a strong personal responsibility to act on climate change, in every country surveyed this year (including New Zealand), people are still more likely to believe that individuals should take action than to think they should not.
In fact, the proportion of New Zealanders who believe more should be done has risen over the past two years. At the same time, there is a growing perception of weak climate leadership from governments globally, which is felt even more strongly in New Zealand. Only a small minority consider their country a world leader in addressing climate change.
Across 31 countries, 27% of respondents agree that their country is a world leader in tackling climate change, while 34% disagree.
Among G7 countries, perceptions are similarly low, with only 25% believing their country is leading on climate action, while 35% disagree.
Only 6% in the G7 strongly agree that their country is a world leader on climate change. Across the countries surveyed, there is also a strong sense that governments could be doing more: on average, 59% believe their country should increase its climate action, while 15% disagree that additional action is needed.