Generation Z youth claim climate change negatively affects their physical and mental health
SOURCE Blue Shield of California
OAKLAND, Calif., April 15, 2021 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — More than eight in 10 (83 percent) young people in Generation Z are concerned about the health of the planet, according to the NextGen Climate Survey, released today by Blue Shield of California. Most respondents also say their environment affects their physical health (69 percent) and mental health (75 percent).
The survey was conducted in March with the aim of determining young people’s main environmental concerns, how climate change affects their well-being and their optimism about the future. The survey included 1,200 participants, ages 14 to 24, from across the United States.
According to the survey results, the three main environmental issues of most concern to young people are: air quality (60 percent), water pollution (59 percent) and plastic pollution (56 percent). More than half (54 percent) are ‘very concerned’ that the planet will run out of resources. One in four (26 percent) say an environmental or natural disaster, such as a flood, fire or hurricane, has affected their ability to focus on their studies.
“Climate change is very real and we are witnessing a lot of environmental disasters,” said Justin Valenzuela (22), co-chair of the Sustainability Club at Ohlone College and co-founder of Renegade Feedings in the Bay Area. “Most importantly, many marginalized communities around the world face different extremes of climate change, even if they are not responsible for it. Providing sustainable health care for all, especially marginalized communities affected by climate change, seems like the right step,” he added.
Coinciding with the survey, the nonprofit health plan presented its new climate goals that will focus on helping improve the health of individuals, families and communities through greater environmental responsibility.
Blue Shield, a CarbonNeutral® (carbon neutrality) certified company, today announced its new NextGen sustainability goals,which include:
- Becoming carbon negative by 2023
- Achieve zero waste operations by 2025
- Quantifying the cost of climate change to human health by 2023
- Adopt and promote climate-smart healthcare by 2025
These commitments are also part of Blue Shield’s climate action and social justice activities focused on achieving health equality across California. Studies show that climate change disproportionately affects communities of color and those with lower incomes.
Hope for a better future and responsibility for climate change
Other highlights from Blue Shield of California’s NextGen Climate Survey include:
- Racism and social justice (62 percent), environment and climate change (47 percent), education (47 percent), health care (43 percent) and gender equality (41 percent) are the main social problems of Generation Z.
- 62 percent of Gen Z respondents said they took climate change at least quite seriously, while only 34 percent said their parents’ generation took it just as seriously.
- Respondents say they want both the federal (71 percent) and state/local (58 percent) governments to do more to protect people from the negative health effects of climate change.
- Nearly half (48 percent) of Gen Z respondents said they felt better about the future health of the planet under the new White House presidency, while 19 percent said they felt worse.
Blue Shield of California NextGen Climate Survey Methodology
Blue Shield of California commissioned Quest Mindshare an online representative survey of 1,200 young people from across the country, including an oversampling of 300 in California, ages 14 to 24. The survey was conducted online from March 5 to 12, 2021.
About Blue Shield of California
Blue Shield of California is dedicated to creating a health care system not only worthy of family and friends but also sustainably affordable. To read more news about Blue Shield of California, visit our Spanish-language News Center at https://es.news.blueshieldca.com/.
