When climate protection is too much

Between worry and clicking away When climate protection is overwhelming As of: November 11th, 2026 • 12:02 p.m

The issue of climate protection is important to many people - at least that's what surveys show. But measures intended to protect the environment are often rejected. How does that fit together?

Climate issues and the reports about them can put people off: too strenuous, too complicated, too depressing. Some people prefer to switch gears or click away when they see relevant reports in the media.

Just a few years ago there was almost something like enthusiasm when it came to climate protection. The Paris climate agreement was celebrated in 2015 as a milestone in the fight against global warming, the Fridays for Future climate strikes were very popular, and something seemed to have started rolling when the Federal Constitutional Court ruled in 2021 that protecting the climate was one of the state's mandatory tasks.

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There is less of that today. Two thirds of people in Germany still say in surveys that climate protection is important to them. "But if you ask: 'How important is climate protection compared to other topics?', then the topic has clearly lost the top position it once had and is actually no longer in the top 5," says political scientist Dirk Arne Heyen from the Oeko-Institut.

Everyday problems, inflation and rising costs of living as well as the various political crises and conflicts of the past few years are still at the forefront. Many people also find the climate protection measures to be unfair and ineffective. It is therefore not surprising that climate issues are highly polarizing, and opinions on them differ more than on few other topics, as the current polarization barometer from the TU Dresden shows.

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Climate protection is also psychologically challenging: because people are confronted with the fact that the earth is changing and they therefore have to question habits and behavioral patterns. “Anything that brings about change is initially met with a certain amount of worry, unrest and perhaps resistance among a certain number of people,” explains transformation psychologist Lea Dohm from the German Alliance for Climate and Health.

In addition, there is the feeling that climate protection is often associated with bans, means doing without or making things more uncomfortable: eat less meat, stop flying on vacation, leave the car at home and take the bus instead. It might be easier not to bother with it at all.

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Studies show that climate protection measures still have a chance if they bring additional benefits. Photovoltaic systems on the roof or heat pumps, for example, can help reduce energy costs and save money in the long term. Especially if the prices for fossil fuels such as gas and oil continue to rise. This can be an incentive to choose more sustainable solutions without the idea of ​​doing something to protect the climate being in the foreground, as researcher Heyen knows from his own studies.

Role models can also help: studies have shown that “when the first people on a street start to put a solar system on their roof, that sets a dynamic in motion,” explains the political scientist. "And once the first ones have started, then some time later many of them will have a solar system on their roof." Heyen hopes that the effect could also be seen in heat pumps and electric cars in the future.

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To overcome psychological barriers, experts recommend acknowledging the negative feelings associated with climate issues, including in reporting on them. And then make it clear what options there are for action. “If we know what we can do, then we are prepared to continue working on it,” says transformation psychologist Dohm. Taking action also reduces the feeling of being at the mercy of things.

Because the ability of individuals to influence complex problems such as global warming is limited, it can also be a lever to increase one's own sphere of influence. You can often achieve more together with neighbors, colleagues or club mates than alone.

This topic in the program: tagesschau.de | When climate protection is too much to handle | 11/10/2026 | 5:54 p.m