Ahead of World Environment Day, Aira presents a new European survey on young people's views of sustainability and clean energy solutions. The study covers just over 5,000 adults and 2,500 children under the age of 15.
Key insights
• 83% of the children believe that their own actions are important for protecting the planet and 71% think they themselves will have a central role in the fight against climate change.
• 48% urge adults to make more sustainable decisions at least once a week and 42% want to see clearer political action.
• Availability and cost are the biggest concerns: 61% want sustainable products to become cheaper and 42% ask for a lower price on sustainable heating.
• 80% recycle, 56% actively switch off lights and 47% save water.
Children inspire each other the most (32%) and 59% believe they can influence adults towards more environmentally friendly choices. Among adults, 30% feel climate anxiety and 25% frustration over the lack of systemic change. 56% think solar panels and 43% think heat pumps will become common within ten years, but 39% see cost as the main obstacle.
Pamela Brown at Aira stresses that children are already taking action and want to influence their families, while adults often get stuck despite knowing about the solutions. Nearly 40% of adults would switch to a heat pump if they knew it lowers energy bills – which Aira shows can reduce them by up to 40%.
The energy expert Mario Motta emphasises that the technology is mature but that education and guidance are needed for widespread use. Children's influence in the home shows that environmental education should start early.
As part of the Cleaner Future campaign, Aira created an artwork together with the artist Emily Birch based on children's own drawings of a future without pollution. The ambassador and author Gemma Bird underlines that children's engagement shows how important it is to talk openly about sustainability, and that solutions such as heat pumps are both climate-smart and save money.
To support the conversations, Aira is also launching the Cleaner Future Workbook, inspired by the fact that 62% of the children already learn about the climate on their own at least once a week.