The stories continue to pile up. Story after story about the changing environment and how close humanity is to completely destroying the earth. Although there is overwhelming proof of human impacted climate change, a percent of the population still believes that climate change is not real.

Robert Kavicky, a Montana resident was born in 1949 and is 69  years old. He is considered a “baby boomer”, which is the generation born between 1946 and 1964. As a young adult he was a chemist for Stuart oil company. Although a scientist, he does not believe in climate change. He often reflected to a time when he lived in Chicago when many Americans thought that they were going into another “ice age”.

“…it came in cycles, temperature [fluctuations] come in cycles, droughts come in cycles. Which is changing climate, but not climate change.”

When he was asked, he stated that his parents did not at all support climate change. He said that they were not at all concerned with how humans were affecting climate.

Robert Kavicky’s beliefs are not uncommon with the generation. According to, SaveonEnergy.com  22.67% of male baby boomers strongly believe that climate change is not real, and 13.33% do not have an opinion on the matter. 10.2% of female baby boomers strongly believe that climate change is not real, and 8.84% do not have an opinion. So why is it that so much of the population doesn’t believe in climate change? The reason, is in the name. Due to a large economic “boom” Americans could afford to have children. Behind the economic “boom” was industrial success. Much of which caused pollution. So why save the planet when making money causes success?

Amy Metz, a Carlton resident, was born in 1976 and is apart of Generation X. She believes in climate change and has since she was old enough to understand and care. Her beliefs stem from independent research and her parents. She feels that oil companies pay money to politicians to keep people dependent on materials that pollute.

“I think that there is a lot of things that we do in the industrial world, such as plastic, oil, and coal products, and there is a lot of money at stake when it comes to changing the way these things are produced. Lots of jobs and money would be lost into relearning how to create these things.”

Along with Metz, much of her generation agrees. 13.23% of Gen X women believe that climate change is not real, and 6.82% have no opinion one way or another. 12.55% of men in the same generation deny climate change, and 9.02% have no opinion. While the number of women who deny climate change are higher in Gen X than in Baby Boomers, the number is nearly half of the number of males.

Kate Gomes, a YC Sophomore,  is apart of generation Z, the generation after millennials. Gomes also believes in climate change and she found her beliefs through articles online and the news. Her parents do not agree with her opinion, and feel that climate change is publicized  to strike fear. She also feels that it is so widely denied because reforming the way that waste is destroyed is too difficult and expensive.

Although not a millennial, Kate’s opinion is very common among them. Only 3.11% of millenial women deny climate change and 5.05% have no opinion. 8.53% of millenial men deny climate change and 8.53% of men have no opinion.

It seems as though that generation X has the highest amount of women believers and millenials have the smallest amount. Although, going down through the generations, more men believe in climate change each generation. As time progresses more and more people believe and feel that climate change is an issue. Unfortunately, it seems that governments are disagreeing with their people. Whether it be ignorance or greed, it is difficult to find a politician that supports change to help save the planet. There is no issue more important than this. Equality, racism, wealth gaps, and money will cease to matter if there is no planet to live on. In order to change all of the issues, protecting our home is the first step.

SOURCES

“The Age of Ecology: Analyzing American Environmental Perspectives and Practices.” SaveOnEnergy.com, www.saveonenergy.com/the-age-of-ecology/