Urban women and women in general are more likely to worry about climate change than any other segment of the Canadian public, according to a recent report by Statistics Canada.
The report found that 53% of Canadians are "very" or "extremely" concerned about climate change, with 59% of Canadians aged 64 and older and 59% of women reporting higher levels of concern than their counterparts.
Seniors were the most likely age group to report high levels of concern about climate change in Canada, despite doomsday predictions from activists that climate change has stronger psychosocial effects on youth.
Rates of concern were highest among retirees in British Columbia, Ontario, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island, where seniors were more likely to believe that climate change would have an effect.
Education also played a role in concern levels, with 85% of university graduates selecting the response that climate change would affect future generations, compared with 78% of people without a high school diploma.
Women were also more likely to experience mental health impacts related to climate change, with some respondents reporting symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.
Levels of distrust were also evident, with Canadians expressing skepticism about the government's climate agenda and the legacy media's reporting on it.
The report noted that women and university graduates were more likely to believe climate change would affect various groups of people, as well as plants or animals, and to express high levels of concern about climate change.
Despite these findings, Albertans were the least likely to believe future generations would be affected by climate change, with 75% saying they would be affected, while more than 85% of people in Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Quebec said climate change would affect future generations.
