Climate Change Is Impacting the Way Gen Z Is Dating

People, Gen Z in particular, are increasingly becoming more aware of the damage humans are causing to the environment and the worsening state of climate change. But it appears as though climate change isn’t just impacting the world around us, but our romantic lives, too. So much so, that people are making choices about who to date based on their climate change values.

Much like politics, religion and general beliefs about life, you want to be able to express your thoughts and opinions and have them respected by the person that’s supposed to know you the best. So it checks out that there would be fundamental problems if one partner believes in climate change while the other doesn’t.

New insights from Bumble’s research reveal not only how many Aussie singles care about climate change but also how it’s shaping their dating lives.

How many single Aussies want climate action?

It should come as no surprise, given that we are the ones that are inheriting a dying planet, that Gen Z almost unanimously believes in climate change and want to see serious action implemented.

From Bumble’s research, it turns out that a staggering 81 per cent of single Aussies say that climate change action is important to them.

The shift was probably most evidently seen in our recent Federal Election, where the Greens secured 2 million primary votes. This was the most the party has ever received and reflected the ‘green slide’ that brought climate issues to the forefront.

Since the election, Labor has introduced a climate policy goal that aims to cut emissions by 43% by 2030. The goal is part of the recently-passed Climate Change Bill, which is the first of its kind in Australia.

But how does all this affect our dating lives?

How is climate change affecting our dating lives?

As mentioned, perceptions about climate change are affecting single Aussie’s romantic lives and the choices they make while dating.

From Bumble’s research, it was revealed that 63 per cent of Aussie singles said that when it comes to dating, it’s important that their potential match shares similar views on climate change.

Going further than that, 44 per cent of singles said it would be a deal breaker if the person they are dating is not as passionate or share similar values about environmental and climate change action.

And you can see why so many people hold such strong views here.

Imagine going on a date with someone and the topic of climate change comes up (which is getting harder to ignore). You’re someone who strongly believes in making individual efforts to help reduce emissions and also believes the government should do more to help.

But the person you’re on a date with, however, doesn’t believe in taking action to help address the worsening state of the environment. Yikes.

Finding that out would obviously leave a sour taste in your mouth and shift the way you see your date. You can only imagine how awkward the rest of the date would be.

The good news here is that if you care about climate change and the environment, you’re in the majority. So, here’s hoping your dating experiences reflect that!