About the Data

Public opinion estimates are produced using a statistical model based on national survey data (n > 25,000) gathered between 2008 and 2020 by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication and the George Mason Center for Climate Change Communication. Positive (e.g., “Agree” or “Support”) and negative (“Disagree” or “Oppose”) responses are modeled separately; the light grey space on the bar charts therefore reflects respondents who marked “I don’t know”, “Not sure”, “Refused”, or similar options. For details see the “Methodology” tab on this page and Howe, P., Mildenberger, M., Marlon, J.R., and Leiserowitz, A., “Geographic variation in opinions on climate change at state and local scales in the USA,” Nature Climate Change. DOI: 10.1038/nclimate2583. Email climatechange@yale.edu for more information.

This research and website are funded by the Energy Foundation, the 11th Hour Project, the Grantham Foundation for the Protection of the Environment, the TomKat Foundation, and the MacArthur Foundation.