Analysis of Google search data reveals that 329,000 searches were made for the term “climate change” in the UK on April 22, 2024 the day we celebrated Earth Day.
On average, people in the UK search for the term “climate change” 2,400 times per day, however on Earth Day (April 22), there was a massive spike of 13,700% reaching 329,000 online searches.
Similar spikes were observed for related terms such as:
- “what is climate change” received 11,180 searches on 22 April, causing a 4,737% spike when compared to the average daily searches of 236.
- “climate change news” with 2,170 searches on 22 April, which is 8,680% spike, when compared to the average daily searches of 25 throughout the year.
- “climate change causes” had 460 searches on 22 April, which is a spike of 1,177% when compared to the average daily searches of 36.
There is no other event throughout the year that caused such a massive spike in searches for the term “ climate change”.
Even Earth Hour celebrated on March 23 or the UN Climate Change Conference (COP28) held on 30 Nov. – 12 Dec. 2023 didn’t come close.
The study done by EcoFurnitureLiving, sustainable furniture experts, saw similar spikes in other countries worldwide.
One reason for the increase in interest in each country is the nationwide media coverage on different environmental topics on Earth Day, which can prompt people to search about “climate change” on Google.
However, another significant reason for the massive spike has to do with the Google Doodle image that was displayed on Google’s homepage above the search bar on 22 April. This year the Google Doodle showed aerial photos of our planet’s ‘natural beauty’ and biodiversity.
Image Credit: Google
Image Credit: Google
When a person clicked on the image, a search was triggered and they were taken to the results page for the term “climate change progress”. Although there is no official data on how many people clicked on the Google Doddle versus those that simply decided to search for the term themselves, official Google Search Data shows that 329,000 searches were made in a single day.
The same correlation was observed on April 22 2023 and April 22 2022, when Google showed another Doodle image related to climate change.
In fact the 22 April 2022 Google Doodle was the most successful, bringing in a record high of around 557,000 searches (for the whole month of April, however the majority of searches were made on 22 April).
The Doodle showed time-lapse satellite images depicting melting glaciers, receding snow cover, deforestation, and coral bleaching.
Image Credit: Google
The Google Doodle on Earth Day 22 April 2023 recorded around 323,000 searches for “climate change”, (for the whole month of April, however the majority of searches were made on 22 April).
For that year, Google showed a Doodle depicting how individuals and communities worldwide can contribute in both significant and minor ways, emphasising collective action against climate change.
Image Credit: Google
However, in 2021 and the years prior to that, Google showed an interactive video as the Google Doodle on Earth Day.
The video prompted people to play an interactive game and learn about a particular environmental topic, without giving them the option to click on the video and open a search results page for “climate change”.
Image Credit: Google
Looking at the numbers we can see that this year’s Earth Day caused a massive spike in number of searches for “climate change”. People were shown information about the impact of climate change, raising awareness and giving more visibility on the topic.
It will be interesting to see what Doodle Google decides to show next year and what impact it will have in raising awareness on climate change issues.
The exact Google Search Data numbers can be found here.
Additional notes: on April 22, 2024 when a person clicked on the Doodle it took them to the Google search page for “climate change progress”. Both terms “climate change” and “climate change progress” received similar amount of search volumes.
