One in five millennials believe humans are about to go extinct, and climate change is the likely cause of this inevitable end.
The Recycling Partnership, a nonprofit organization committed to promoting recycling in communities, commissioned a report to find out what Americans think about climate change.
They study conducted by research firm OnePoll surveyed 2,000 people in the country over the age of 18.
Nearly half of Americans asked said human life on Earth will likely be snuffed out over the next 200 years. Many young adults who answered think those two centuries is still a generous estimation.
Millennials seem to have an even grimmer outlook, with 20 percent of them believing that the end of the world will occur during their lifetime.
The findings offer an interesting glimpse at how young people look at the impacts of global warming on the planet.
How Climate Change Affects Human Lives
Early studies have shown how climate change can disrupt communities around the world. The OnePoll report suggests that many young Americans are keenly aware of how it can directly affect their lives. The survey indicates that 96 percent of the participants said they are worried about global warming in some form.
Over half of people asked said they will see far-reaching changes in their surroundings because of climate change. These include a significant rise in world sea levels and an increase in regional climate by a few degrees.
One in three adults Americans (34 percent) believe the effects of global warming might force them to change where they live eventually. Meanwhile, three-fifths (60 percent) of respondents said they would not buy a home in areas where such impacts are likely to occur.
One in four people said climate change is one of their biggest fears in life, with millennials being twice as likely to have this sentiments. One-fifth of these youngsters claimed that they do not want to have children because of what the planet could become in later years.
Taking Part In Helping Save The Planet
Not everything about the OnePoll report is doom and gloom. Despite their fears of the future, millennials are also the ones more willing to take an active role in saving the Earth from climate change.
Almost all young Americans asked in the survey said they recycle in one form or another. Forty-two percent of them said they are willing to take a $10,000 pay cut every year to have fossil fuel use eliminated from the world, while only 20 percent of adults over the age of 39 agreed to do the same.
A majority of participants (85 percent) said companies should contribute at least 1 percent of their overall profits to help save the planet.
"Millennials want to live in a world of less waste," said Keefe Harrison, chief executive officer of The Recycling Partnership.
"Whether that means wearing clothing made of recycled fiber, biking to work, or purchasing products made of recyclable materials, they are more conscious of the impacts their individual actions and the actions of companies have on creating a sustainable future."
