Green child of mine: almost half of young people urge adults to make more sustainable choices every week

• 84% of young people believe their actions matter when it comes to protecting the planet, with 70% believing they will play a central role in tackling climate change
• 45% are encouraging adults to make more sustainable choices once or more a week and 37% are calling on Government to act 
• Heating of the future: 37% of adults expect heat pumps to be commonplace in homes within the decade
• 61% believe they can influence adults to make more sustainable choices 

London, 4^th June 2025.  Ahead of World Environment Day tomorrow, clean energy-tech champion, Aira, unveils new data that explores young people’s attitudes towards sustainability and a cleaner world, while raising awareness of clean heat solutions. New research, conducted amongst more than 1,500 adults and children aged 15 and under across the UK, reveals that 84% of young people believe their actions matter when it comes to protecting the planet and 70% believe they will play a central role in tackling climate change. 

As a rally cry, 45% are encouraging adults to make more sustainable choices once or more a week and 37% are calling on Government to take action to help the planet. Within this, accessibility and affordability are the main concerns for young people, with 57% calling for sustainable products to cost less and 51% asking for sustainable home heating to be cheaper. 

Young people are already taking the lead on driving climate action, with 80% of young people recycling, 53% actively turning off the lights and 42% using less water. In fact, young people are stepping up as educators in their own lives, with 61% saying they can influence adults to make more planet friendly choices.

By contrast, 33% of UK adults are feeling anxious about climate change, with one in five (20%) expressing frustration at the lack of systemic action. This reality highlights a need for more support and clarity on the journey to a cleaner future. Looking forward, more than half of adults recognise that clean energy-tech solutions, such as solar panels (51%) and heat pumps (37%) will be commonplace in homes over the decade but cite cost (45%) as the main barrier to heat pump adoption.   

Pamela Brown, Aira’s Consumer Expert, commented: “Children already believe in climate change, are eager to act, and want to influence their households to do so. While adults know about the solutions, too many still feel stuck. Despite the concern about cost, our data shows that 31% of adults would be motivated to switch to a heat pump if they delivered lower long-term energy bills, exposing how many people are not yet aware that heat pumps already do exactly this - with Aira it’s 25%. Now is the time for change, with more education, inspiration and collective action. We owe it to young people – and ourselves – to create a cleaner future.” 

The findings form the basis of the Cleaner Future campaign, in which Aira has collaborated with sustainable artist, Emily Birch to visualise a cleaner future through the creative minds of young people. Emily guided children through a creative workshop to draw their own interpretations of a world without pollution, which was then used to create a hopeful image that represents a new era of eco-positivity and opportunity, driven by the generation of tomorrow. 

Gemma Bird, Aira ambassador and author, columnist and influencer ‘Money Mum’, added: “I’m so inspired by the creativity that the young people demonstrated during the workshop. They are super switched on and have ambitious ideas about creating a cleaner future. Seeing my own children participate in this campaign was an important reminder as to why talking openly about sustainability is so important. As a money expert, I’m always looking at ways to help people save money and while there is often a perception that living sustainably costs more, there are clean solutions, like heat pumps, that save people money on their bills too. Aira’s research shows that there’s work to be done to educate ourselves more and to match young people’s enthusiasm with action. It’s time to listen to the kids!”

In a bid to empower adults to support younger people’s growing curiosity, Aira today launches its own Cleaner Future Workbook. Inspired by the workshop and research results, which reveal half (50%) of young people are already doing independent learning on climate change at least once a week, this workbook is designed to spark engaging conversations and curiosity. 

Download the Cleaner Future Workbook here

ENDS

Notes to editors 

For more information, please contact: press@airahome.com 

Survey Methodology

An online survey was conducted by Walr among 1,002 UK adults and 505 children aged 7-15. Adults were grouped based on whether they were Eco-Identified, Moderately Engaged, or Low-Identity / Disengaged*. Minimum quotas have been applied to major cities. Fieldwork took place between Wednesday 30th April - Wednesday 7th May 2025. Data has been collected adhering to MRS (Market Research Society) and ESOMAR guidelines to ensure ethical and accurate data collection. 

* Coding assessing sustainability engagement:

Eco-Identified - Strongly identify with environmental values and see it as part of who they are.

Coding criteria (any of the following):

• Strongly agree/agree with: “Being environmentally conscious is an important part of who I am”
• Strongly agree/agree with: “I sometimes think about how my actions affect the environment”
• Disagree/strongly disagree with: “Being environmentally conscious is not an important part of who I am”

Moderately Engaged - Think about their impact, but don’t strongly connect it to identity.

Coding criteria (any of the following):

• Neither agree nor disagree on all three statements
• Mix of agree and neutral responses (e.g. Agree with “I sometimes think…” but neutral on identity statements)
• Agree with both identity statements (e.g. agree that it’s important and agree that it’s not important → shows ambivalence)

Low-Identity / Disengaged - Don’t feel a personal connection to environmental action or identity.

Coding criteria (any of the following):

• Disagree/strongly disagree with: “Being environmentally conscious is an important part of who I am”
• Agree/strongly agree with: “Being environmentally conscious is not an important part of who I am”
• Disagree/strongly disagree with: “I sometimes think about how my actions affect the environment”

About Aira

Aira is one of Europe’s leading direct-to-consumer clean energy-tech players. Aira accelerates the electrification of residential heating with intelligent clean energy-tech to help consumers reduce increasingly volatile energy bills and enable the net zero transition. With Aira, consumers across Europe have a go-to provider for complete home energy-saving solutions, with intelligent heat pumps at the heart.

Aira’s vertically integrated model, combined with a consumer-centric monthly payment plan that requires no upfront cost, delivers best-in-class consumer economics — making clean energy not only more accessible, but more affordable. By significantly reducing household energy bills, Aira empowers people to take control of their energy use, save money, and contribute to a cleaner future.
 

Aira’s mission is to empower people to join the clean energy revolution, one home at a time. Founded in Stockholm, Sweden, by Vargas Holding and backed by climate and innovation investors including Altor, the Burda family, Collaborative Fund, Creades, Kinnevik, Lingotto, Nesta Impact Investments, Statkraft Ventures, and Temasek. https://airahome.com/en-gb