Abstract This study examines an under-explored implication of population ageing: its relationship with environmental outcomes at the country level and environmental attitudes at the individual level. The analysis introduces a novel classification of environmental outcomes, distinguishing between action-requiring and nature-concerning dimensions based on the degree of civic engagement necessary for their realisation. Using panel data from a broad set of countries over the period 1995–2018, population ageing is shown to be associated with improvements in environmental outcomes that require limited civic engagement, while no systematic relationship is observed for outcomes that rely on active public participation. Complementary evidence from individual-level survey data for 2005–2016 indicates that ageing societies exhibit lower levels of environmental engagement, without a corresponding decline in underlying environmental concern. The findings contribute to the literature on demographic change and environmental performance by highlighting the role of civic engagement as a mediating mechanism and suggest that ageing societies may face specific challenges in sustaining participatory forms of environmental action.
Irmen et al. (Mon,) studied this question.