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Climate change: Support for action fading over timeClimate change: Support for action fading over time
In 2026, 49% of Australians agree with the statement that ‘global warming is a serious and pressing problem’ and that ‘we should begin taking steps now even if this involves significant costs’. This is similar to last year’s result (51%) but represents an eight-point drop from 2024.
Under Australia’s Climate Change Act (2022), the Australian government agreed to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions as a result of economic activity by 2050, enshrining in statute targets that are consistent with the Paris Agreement under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. As part of this commitment, Australia legislated a 43% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions below 2005 levels by 2030.
Australians are divided on the benefits of achieving net zero. Nearly four in ten (38%) agree with the statement that ‘achieving the net zero target would leave the Australian economy better off’. The same proportion (38%) say it will leave the economy ‘worse off’, while 22% say it will ‘make no difference’.
About the author
Charles Lyons-Jones
Charles Lyons-Jones is a Research Fellow in the Lowy Institute’s Foreign Policy and Public Opinion Program. He oversees the annual Lowy Institute Poll and the Global Diplomacy Index.
