Europe prioritizes reducing immigration over addressing climate change: global study

Europeans prioritize reducing immigration over addressing climate change, and fewer than 15% of respondents worldwide view climate issues as a top three priority for their country’s government, according to a global study released on Wednesday. The report, which evaluated more than 62,950 responses, was published by The Alliance of Democracies Foundation and Latana. It is “the world’s largest annual study on how people perceive democracy” and its relation to current challenges for governments.

According to the report, climate change is one of the top world challenges, only behind war and violent conflict and poverty and hunger as the first and second challenge, respectively, with 33% of the responses indicating this. The report also reveals that while most countries identify terrorism or economic instability as the world’s top challenge, only one country—Italy—listed climate change as the world’s top challenge.

Furthermore, the report says although 33% of the global population sees climate change as one of the top three most significant challenges worldwide, “only 14% say that it should be a top priority for their government.” In Europe, the percentage that sees climate change as a world challenge is around 36%, while only 19% consider it a priority for their government. In Asia, the percentages are 35% seeing it as a challenge to 14% prioritizing it, while in Latin America, the percentages reduce from 32% to 7%.

Additionally, the report reveals that Europeans “put immigration ahead of climate change,” especially in Western European countries. The report stated that the same countries where there is an increase in the number of people saying “reducing immigration” should be a top government priority are the same where there is a decline in the people who say that “fighting climate change” should be a top government priority during the period.