A new research initiative conducted as part of the European ELCRA project involved nearly 800 university students across six countries, highlighting how personal values and hands-on experiences more strongly influence young people’s environmental engagement than theoretical knowledge alone.
The ELCRA project (Environmental Literacy in Higher Education Context for Climate Activism), coordinated by the University of Siena and funded by the European Union’s Erasmus+ program, recently published the results of a quantitative study analyzing university students’ level of environmental literacy and their engagement with climate issues.
The research was carried out by an international consortium that includes the University of Siena and OpenCom (Italy), the Complutense University of Madrid (Spain), the University of Coimbra (Portugal), Jagiellonian University (Poland), and Klaipeda University (Lithuania), with the support of Erasmus Student Network Italy and Portugal. Florida Gulf Coast University also significantly contributed by collecting data in the United States, further enriching the study’s intercultural scope.
The study examined the level of environmental literacy among 792 students, measured through three components: knowledge of sustainability issues, values connected to environmental protection, and past pro-environmental behaviors.
The findings show that students have a moderate level of knowledge of sustainability issues, a strong value orientation toward environmental protection, and moderate pro-environmental behaviors. An interesting result from the analysis is that environmental values and past behaviors are strongly correlated, whereas environmental knowledge has a weaker correlation with both.
“Environmental literacy is strongly associated with pro-environmental attitudes and participation in constructive forms of activism,” the report states. “Values linked to nature conservation and past behaviors appear to be stronger predictors of environmental engagement than knowledge of sustainability issues alone.”
The study also revealed notable differences among the various countries. Poland and Portugal showed the highest levels of environmental literacy, while Italy and Spain reported the lowest. As for activism, U.S. students reported the highest levels of past engagement in common forms of activism (such as participating in discussions or signing petitions), while Spanish students showed the lowest.
Another significant finding concerns the negative correlation between environmental literacy and conspiracy beliefs about climate change, suggesting that environmental education could be vital in combating misinformation in this area.
This research marks the first phase of the ELCRA project, which will continue until October 2026. The next phases include developing a competency framework, creating a MOOC course and training activities for university students, establishing a community of practice, and promoting awareness-raising campaigns.
Overall, these results provide a crucial basis for understanding how universities can foster conscious environmental engagement among students, emphasizing not only knowledge but also values and pro-environmental behaviors in a global context where the urgency of climate change calls for concrete and responsible action.
….
To access the research:
https://docsend.com/view/45iiqji3i49aj5bs
https://osf.io/preprints/osf/8vnby_v1
Telesca, G., Rullo, M., Molinario, E., Grzymała-Moszczyńska, J., Prislei, L., Arag.o, A., Borges, F., Fidalgo, S., Gra.a, M., Lopes, D., Paix.o, M., Jakulyte, D., Straksiene, G., Molina D.ez, M., Marcos Recio, J. C., Song, K., Flores Vivar, J. M., Varona Aramburu, D., de Castro, L., Banchetti, C., & Melacarne, C. (2025). Exploring university students’ environmental literacy, attitudes, and behaviors: Evidence from six countries. Report from the Erasmus+ Project “ELCRA”. https://doi.org/10.31219/osf.
