Eco-Socialists Announce That Americans Support Eco-Socialism

In a surprising turn of events a group of eco-socialist researchers from the Canadian University of Dubai, The London School of Economics, and The Autonomous University of Barcelona have announced the results of their study into the attitudes of Americans. 

Americans, they find, are hanking to become eco-socialists themselves and desperately want to follow “degrowth” policies. 

It’s undeniable because it’s The Science™ you see, even reported in Phys.org. 

My new favorite study of 2025 thus far: there is a lot of support among the US public for ecosocialist (degrowthish) policy.

“This study paves the way for new strategies for a transition that enhances well-being & reduces dependence on economic growth.” https://t.co/oe8eFWDyVa

— Andrew Ahern (@AndrewsonEarth) January 13, 2025

Also reported is that Americans are excited about getting Herpes, eating bugs, and all men becoming drag queens. 

I made that last part up. 

A new study highlights growing public support in the United States for eco-social policies designed to address the interconnected ecological and social crises of our time. The research, led by the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (ICTA-UAB) and the London School of Economics (LSE), evaluated public support for four key innovative eco-social proposals: reducing working hours (as low as 28 hours per week), downscaling fossil fuel production, providing universal basic services, and limiting advertising for high-emission goods.

The study, published in the journal Ecological Economics, also examined how individual consumption-reduction or “sufficiency” behaviors—such as adopting plant-based diets, avoiding flights, walking, or prioritizing sustainable transport like cycling—influence support for these policies. Additionally, it explored the impact of framing these proposals within a broader agenda of societal transformation (e.g., degrowth, although without using the term).

The spread of immobility, veganism, and commuting using bikes among Americans will soon be on the rise, apparently. It is, as I said, The Science™. 

CNN is having a meltdown because “Americans don’t connect wildfires to climate change.”

Because we’re not rètarded 🤡 pic.twitter.com/qyT9OVF2vg

— Sara Rose 🇺🇸🌹 (@saras76) January 14, 2025

Since many of these policies are already being implemented in Europe and Canada to at least some extent, we can look to the results in other countries to see how popular the policies are. Eco-socialism has been a smashing success, and given European economic “progress” such as the deindustrialization of Germany, degrowth is indeed on the march. 

For a few more months, at least, until more elections are held where governments are falling like dominos. 

Among the most notable findings, the study reveals that, on average, participants preferred these eco-social policies over existing ones. Annual caps on fossil fuel extraction and the provision of universal health care were particularly well-received. Furthermore, individuals who were more engaged in sufficiency behaviors were more likely to support ecological policies, showing stronger support for fossil fuel restrictions, while support for socially oriented measures, such as reduced working hours and universal health care, was less pervasive and depended on other factors.

The analysis suggests that support for these social policies might be higher among individuals with eco-social values and higher levels of privilege, including full-time employment, higher education, and higher income. However, framing the policies within an eco-socialist and post-growth narrative not only failed to diminish support but, in some cases, increased it, as with universal health care.

Policymakers continue to ignore increasing calls for dismantling the fossil fuel industry from scientists and civil society organizations, and instead are in favor of supporting “green growth.”

The recent decisive victory of Donald “Drill, Baby Drill” Trump demonstrates that Americans have definitely become anti-oil. 

BOMBSHELL: “California’s eco bureaucrats halted a wildfire prevention project near the Pacific Palisades to protect an endangered shrub. … In 2019, the LA Department of Water and Power (LADWP) began replacing nearly 100-year-old power line poles cutting through Topanga State… pic.twitter.com/VNqiSEcQIb

— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) January 14, 2025

You didn’t even need a study to arrive at the conclusion that Americans are becoming eco-socialists desperate to reduce the size of the economy, restrict mobility, slam the brakes on oil production, and sing Kumbaya. 

“The eco-social proposals analyzed in the study were not on the electoral agenda,” says O’Dell. As a result, voters’ judgements may have focused more on the charisma, skills and rhetorical abilities of the candidates and less on specific policy issues such as those assessed in the study.

“Voting for one candidate or another would not be directly related to support or lack of support for policies, and the direction of voters’ votes may even have been against their beliefs on policy issues,” she says.

This would be evidenced by the fact that Trump won almost 50% of the vote from voters aged 18–29 (compared to 30% in 2020). Many voters in this age group appeared to diverge from Trump on a number of issues, being more concerned about the economy and climate change (than immigration) and wanting more government intervention in health care and student debt. These views would be much more compatible with support for the kind of eco-social policies discussed here, which aim to improve living conditions and reduce inequality.

Uh-huh. Sounds plausible to me.