One prejudice is that climate protection is not important to older people. A new survey shows: That's not true at all – they even have something ahead of younger people.
Kassel – Older generations are often accused of not working for climate protection. While many young people are involved in "The Last Generation", who attract attention with their sticking campaigns, or "Fridays for Future" and fight politically for climate protection, older people are rather cautious. But now it turns out that older people are even more willing to act sustainably in everyday life.
New survey shows that older people are more likely to act sustainably for climate protection than younger people
Flying more sustainably, reducing waste, not wasting food, shopping regionally – there are many measures to keep your own climate footprint low. And that's exactly what's important now, because climate change was already setting weather records in 2022. The over-50s in particular are comparatively more likely to pay attention to living sustainably and protecting the climate. That's according to a Yougov survey commissioned by the cooperative team bank on May 11.
A new survey shows that older citizens are more willing to embrace sustainability than younger ones. © Müller-Stauffenberg/Imago
For the representative survey, around 3200 people between the ages of 18 and 79 were interviewed online. About three-quarters of people in this age group avoid food waste and save on water consumption and heating. Almost 60 percent pay attention to regionality and seasonality when buying fruit and vegetables and avoid plastic waste.
In contrast, among younger respondents (between 18 and 29 years of age), only about 40 percent pay attention to not wasting food or saving water and heating energy. Only about a third of those surveyed try to avoid plastic waste. Almost 20 percent of the young respondents even stated that they do not pursue sustainable action for climate protection.
What can you do for the climate in everyday life?
These five tips will help you protect the climate:
0
Also Read
16-year-old beauty queen marries 65-year-old millionaire who doubles as mayor
READ
Devastating floods in Italy: communities under water, power outages, evacuations and deaths
READ
Red alert on the Adriatic Sea: Pictures show terrible extent of flooding in Italy
READ
Situation threatens to escalate: landslide pushes half a village in Austria towards Bavaria
READ
ESC freak out: When Sweden gets 12 points from Germany, Olli Schulz's collar bursts
READ
Fancy a voyage of discovery?
My Area
- Leave the car at home – it's better to travel sustainably by bike, bus or train
- Eat less meat and dairy products – vegetarian or vegan dishes are delicious and good for climate protection
- Shop local! Buy food from the region and season - preferably in organic quality
- Secondhand Shopping – saves money and protects the climate
- Less packaging waste – shop in the unpackaged store
So climate protection doesn't have to be difficult at all. Even small changes in everyday life can reduce one's own carbon footprint and ensure greater sustainability. Of course, this applies equally to young and old.
