00:00 Many of us are living through one of the most brutal summers of our lives.
00:04 Some people still question if it's because of climate change,
00:07 while for others, our record heat is changing opinions.
00:11 I haven't noticed any climate change, if that's what you're saying. No,
00:14 hot is hot. We're in the desert.
00:16 I've always been pretty concerned about climate change,
00:18 but this definitely feels like,
00:20 like we're in that point of no return that people have talked about for a long
00:23 time.
00:23 Some climate psychologists think this summer could be a turning point in climate
00:28 change communication. Long-term polling data from the Yale program,
00:32 on climate change communication shows that the majority of people in the U S
00:37 believe in climate change.
00:38 While about 10% of people don't believe in the science at all.
00:42 Researchers believe as more people experience climate change,
00:45 they will believe it.
00:47 You know, we're a little bit like the frog in the boiling water where we just
00:50 said, yeah, it's getting hotter,
00:52 but maybe we're not as perceptive about the increase and the
00:56 significance of it as, as we might be, if it were a sudden event.
01:01 So it's really not that sudden. It's been a bit gradual.
01:03 It's been heating up for many decades.
01:06 Another professor who teaches a course on the psychology of climate change says
01:10 when people feel like they're threatened by things like heat or wildfire smoke,
01:15 they're more likely to support adapting.
01:17 Researchers say the real test will be if those personal experiences cause more
01:22 people to embrace the science of climate change,
01:25 but also take actions to address it.
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