PARIS: A new UNESCO worldwide survey of 15,000 people, over half of which are under the age of 35, shows 95 percent think global cooperation is crucial to address climate change and loss of biodiversity.

However, only 25 percent report feeling confident that the world is able to address its challenges, including only 4.0 percent who say they are “very confident”. Taken together, UNESCO says the results suggest not a lack of appreciation of the importance of multilateralism “but rather a crisis of faith in its effectiveness”.

The UNESCO ‘World in 2030 Survey’ notes 67 percent of respondents are most worried about increasing natural disasters and extreme weather, biodiversity loss, risk of conflict or violence and impacts on oceans.

While they indicate there is less and less hope to solve these problems, the respondents favour investment in green solutions, education on sustainability, promoting international cooperation, and building trust in science.

“Greater efforts are needed to address people’s specific concerns, and multilateralism is the way to do this. Restoring confidence in multilateralism requires the implementation of concrete and impactful projects, and this is at the heart of our organisation's role,” declared UNESCO director general Audrey Azoulay.

The survey also highlighted education and learning as the area of society most needing to be rethought in light of the COVID-19 pandemic (47 percent), followed by the relationship between humans and nature (45 percent) and scientific cooperation and sharing of research (40 percent).