Indians More Confident Than Most in Climate Change Response

A recent report published by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism examines how people engage with climate change news and information, and evaluate politicla leadership in their tackling of the climate crisis. The survey, conducted in eight countries between September and October 2025, found that confidence in political leadership on climate change is low overall, with only around one in three respondents saying they are confident that their political leaders have their priorities right, are making the right decisions, and are setting a good example for other countries.

As our infographic shows, Indians are by far the most optimistic that political leaders are making the right decisions about how to respond to climate change: they were 62 percent to say they were confident or very confident in political leaders' response to the climate crisis. In contrast, people were much more pessimistic in France, Japan and Germany. Overall, in all countries apart from India, larger numbers say they lack confidence than say they are somewhat or very confident.

As the report highlights, leadership plays a decisive role in shaping how societies confront the climate crisis. Yet, despite growing public awareness and scientific consensus, political responses to climate change remain fragmented and often constrained by short-term economic or partisan considerations.