Title reads 'The impacts of climate activism'. Photo of protestors holding posters. They read 'Our house is on fire', 'System change not climate change', and 'Evidence over ignorance'.

The Impacts of Climate Activism

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Introduction

Climate activists around the world are taking increasingly bold action to demand urgent climate policies—from school strikes to disruptive protests to fossil fuel divestment campaigns. But does climate activism actually create the change it seeks? Does climate activism work? What 50 studies tell us.

A comprehensive new study from Yale University published in 2025 reviewed 50 of the most rigorous research studies on climate activism to map out what we know about its real-world impacts. The findings offer both encouragement and important lessons for climate advocates.

Here is a summary of the article written by Laura Thomas Walters, Eric G. Scheuch, Abby Ong and Matthew H. Goldberg.

The Bottom Line

Climate activism generally works. The research across these 50 diverse studies showed strong evidence that climate activism shifts public opinion and media coverage in a pro-climate direction, influences political communication and voting behavior, and can pressure companies financially.

However, there is still much to learn.

Most studies focus on intermediate outcomes rather than measuring direct impacts on emissions or policy changes, and the lack of studies outside Europe and North America limit our understanding of activism effects in other contexts.

What Climate Activism Actually Achieves

After reviewing the 50 articles, the authors grouped the findings into three categories: outcomes with strong evidence, moderate, or suggestive evidence. These are the impacts that fell in each category.  

Strong Evidence: Public Opinion and Media Impact

Across all 50 studies, the strongest evidence for climate activism impact was on public opinion and media coverage. In particular, the studies found:

  • Massive attention boost
    Protests led to huge increases in people hearing about climate organisations, searching for information online, and increased concern about climate change
  • Opinion shifts pro-climate
    Studies consistently found that climate activism moved public opinion in favor of climate action, not against it
  • Media amplification
    Climate protests attracted more media coverage than domestic extreme weather events, helping set the public agenda.

In a panel study in Germany, researchers found that concern about climate change increased by about 1.2 percentage points following protests. Additionally, the increases in climate concern were larger when baseline concern levels were lower, and there was little evidence of backfire effects.

Importantly, researchers found little evidence of “backlash effects”. The studies they examined revealed that even disruptive protests rarely reduced overall public support for climate policies.

Moderate Evidence: Political and Financial Pressure

While not as strong as attention and media impacts, many studies also showed evidence that climate activism could affect the political sphere. For example, the papers showed evidence of: 

  • Voting influence
    Areas exposed to Fridays for Future protests in Germany saw a 2-2.5 percentage point increase in Green Party votes
  • Political communication
    Protests encouraged politicians to speak more about climate change, especially online
  • Corporate pressure
    Climate protests reduced the value of carbon-intensive companies and raised the value of environmentally friendly ones, though effects are often short-lived
  • Project disruption
    About 25% of projects targeted by environmental protests were delayed or canceled.

Following Insulate Britain’s series of nonviolent disruptive protests on UK motorways in 2021, mentions of home insulation by the media and in Parliament increased significantly. The researchers suggest there is a 10% chance that Insulate Britain sped up the policy package by about one year.

Suggestive Evidence: Policy and Emissions Impact

Finally, the authors also included a category where the evidence for activism’s ultimate goals—policy change and emissions reductions—was more limited but encouraging:

  • Policy influence
    Some studies linked climate protests to actual policy changes, like the UK’s Great British Insulation Scheme following Insulate Britain protests
  • Long-term emissions
    Historical analysis suggests areas with more environmental activism in the 1970s had lower air pollution decades later
  • Cost-effectiveness
    When measurable, some climate campaigns appeared highly cost-effective at reducing emissions.

The Radical Flank Effect: How “Extreme” Actions Help Moderates

One of the most important findings challenges common assumptions about disruptive protest.

The research consistently supports the “radical flank effect”—when more extreme actions within a movement actually increase support for moderate factions.

Studies found that:

  • Awareness of radical climate groups like Just Stop Oil increased support for moderate climate organisations
  • Disruptive protests can legitimise previously “extreme” ideas like carbon taxes in mainstream discourse
  • The combination of radical and moderate tactics appears more effective than either approach alone.

Studies found that within the same movement, increased awareness of radical climate groups like Just Stop Oil likely increased identification with and support for moderate climate organizations. Social movements are not monoliths, but rather a collection of factions that influence how one another is perceived.

Key Tactics and Context Matter

Following on from these findings about the value of the ‘radical flank’, the authors also considered evidence about impacts related to tactics. As they noted, not all climate activism is equally effective.

Their review of the 50 papers revealed important patterns:

More Effective Approaches:

  • Peaceful protests generally increased support more than violent ones
  • Legal actions received more favorable media coverage than illegal ones
  • Actions targeting industry attracted more media attention
  • Sustained campaigns targeting specific companies had stronger financial impacts

Context Influences:

  • Effects vary significantly between different political audiences (Democrats vs. Republicans in the US)
  • Baseline support levels matter—activism has larger impacts where climate concern is initially lower
  • Media framing shapes how activism translates into public opinion changes.

What We Still Don’t Know

Despite reviewing 50 studies, the study noted that significant gaps remain in our understanding:

  • Geographic bias
    Most research focuses on Western democracies, especially Germany, the UK, and US. We know little about activism’s impact in other political systems
  • Long-term effects
    Very few studies examined whether activism’s impacts persist over time
  • Policy pathways
    The authors noted that more research is needed on how intermediate outcomes (like opinion changes) translate into actual policy and emissions reductions
  • Tactical comparisons
    Insufficient research compares different activism approaches to identify what works best for specific goals.

Although we identified a large body of studies on climate activism, there is an overwhelming bias towards Western democracies, particularly Germany, the UK, and the US. This limits what we can say about the effects of climate activism in places with different forms of political governance.

Implications for Climate Advocates

These findings offer several practical insights for climate organisers:

  1. Activism Works, But Be Strategic
    The evidence strongly contradicts claims that climate activism is counterproductive. However, maximum impact requires strategic thinking about tactics, targets, and timing.
  2. Embrace Tactical Diversity
    Rather than debates about “good” vs. “bad” activism, movements can benefit from a diversity of approaches working together. Everybody is needed, and all tactics can play a role – indeed, radical flanks can legitimise moderate positions.
  3. Focus on Overlooked Outcomes
    While changing hearts and minds matters, advocates should also measure and pursue direct policy and emissions impacts that may be more politically decisive.
  4. Learn from Limited Research
    The geographic concentration of studies means tactics proven effective in Europe and North America may need adaptation for other contexts. That is particularly relevant for us here in Australia. We can play a role by sharing our learnings from our campaigns, doing evaluations, and working with partner organisations to design rigorous studies that will help inform more effective activism in the future.

The Bigger Picture

This research arrives at a crucial moment for climate advocacy. With climate impacts accelerating and political windows for action narrowing, understanding what activism approaches actually work has never been more important.

The evidence clearly shows that climate activism is not just something we should do just because it’s the right thing. Actually, the data shows that activism can be an effective tool for social change.

From shifting public opinion to influencing elections to pressuring corporations, climate activists are demonstrably moving the needle on climate action.

However, the research also highlights how much we still need to learn about maximising activism’s impact, especially in translating awareness and concern into the deep policy changes climate science demands.

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