EarthBeat Weekly: For young US adults, climate change remains major worry

For young US adults, climate change remains major worry   EarthBeat Weekly Your weekly newsletter about faith and climate change May 22, 2026   (Unsplash/Joice Kelly) In April, the journalism consortium Covering Climate Now (of which National Catholic Reporter is a member) issued a white paper examining the state of climate coverage in mainstream media.  It found that climate news coverage globally declined 14% in 2025, while in the U.S. the three main broadcast networks — CBS, NBC, ABC — spent 35% less airtime on climate news last year.  "Much of the media has gone, if not silent, certainly quiet," Covering Climate Now said in the report.  Reduced news attention on climate change, even while its impacts become more pronounced around the country and the world, could partly explain a slight drop in levels of "eco-anxiety" among young adults in the U.S., which was a main finding in a survey from Sacred Heart University that I covered this week for EarthBeat. A majority, 55%, of the 1,500 respondents ages 15-29 still reported eco-anxiety — psychological distress over climate change impacting their daily lives — but that represented an 8-percentage point decline from the 2025 survey.  Researchers with Sacred Heart's Laudato Si' Office of Sustainability and Social Justice, which conducted the survey, suggested the fall in eco-anxiety might be linked to the issue being less top-of-mind, to which less news coverage could be a contributor.  "Climate concern is widespread among U.S. youth, but the climate experience is defined by anxiety, not intensity," they said in a report on the survey results. Overall, the vast majority of U.S. young adults, nearly seven in 10, still worry about climate change but have declining faith in government and institutions to effectively act on sustainability issues. Each of the 11 institutional groups listed by the survey received lower trust ratings in 2026 than 2025, with the steepest drops for the federal government (42.1%, down 14.4 percentage points), large corporations (36.5%, down 11.4 percentage points) and the country's wealthy elite (33.2%, down 11.5 percentage points). Read more: US young adults concerned by climate change, skeptical on action, Sacred Heart U survey finds What else is new on EarthBeat:   The church defended workers from industrial capitalism. Now Pope Leo XIV is taking on AI. by Brian Fraga Catholic labor historians see parallels between Magnifica Humanitas, Pope Leo XIV's upcoming encyclical on protecting the human person in the age of AI, and his 19th century predecessor's landmark encyclical Rerum Novarum. Read more here »   Bolivia's bishops urge 'humanitarian pauses' as protests collapse country by David Agren, OSV News Bolivia's Catholic bishops appealed for dialogue and "humanitarian pauses" during disruptive protests, which have collapsed the highlands of the Andean country and threatened the administration of President Rodrigo Paz.  Read more here »   As Ebola epidemic spreads, Uganda postpones Martyrs Day celebrations by Frederick Nzwili, OSV News Catholic bishops in Uganda have urged the people to remain calm after the government postponed the annual Martyrs Day celebrations, following an Ebola outbreak in the East African region. Read more here » What's happening in other climate news: The worst climate future is less likely, but the best one is slipping away, scientists say —Seth Borenstein for the Associated Press What to know about the predictions for a potentially record-breaking El Nino —Jennifer Mcdermott for the Associated Press Trump eases restrictions on climate 'super pollutants' —Lisa Friedman and Maxine Joselow for The New York Times EPA wants to repeal limits on 'forever chemicals' in drinking water —Jake Spring and Brady Dennis for the Washington Post Utah's fragile desert could feel like the Sahara if America's biggest data center gets built —Leia Larsen for Grist and The Salt Lake Tribune ICE changes environmental review plan for detention centers —Taylor Mills for Bloomberg Law Companies join a deep-sea mining rush after Trump executive order, as regulators fast-track permits —Helen Wieffering for the Associated Press Solar to overtake coal on Texas grid for the first time ever this year —Julian Spector for Canary Media Final Beat: On Monday, Pope Leo XIV will release the first encyclical of his papacy, Magnifica Humanitas, on "the protection of the human person in the age of artificial intelligence." Two days earlier marked the 11th anniversary of Pope Francis signing his first solo encyclical, "Laudato Si', on Care for Our Common Home." (Francis had previously issued Lumen Fidei, a document on faith begun by Pope Benedict XVI.) How Magnifica Humanitas connects with Laudato Si' — specifically Francis' stinging critiques of the technocratic paradigm that holds technology alone can solve environmental challenges like climate change facing the world — will be something I'll be watching and reporting on next week. In the meantime, you can revisit all of EarthBeat's coverage of Laudato Si' at its 10th anniversary last year. As always, thanks for reading EarthBeat.   Brian Roewe Environment Correspondent National Catholic Reporter broewe@ncronline.org     Featured Advertisers   Looking to Hire? Offering Retreats? Selling Books? Place an Ad in NCR's Online Classified Section for Only $75 per Month!   Advertisement