Ek Kutumb Solutions, a research organisation studying how Indians’ values and beliefs shape their relationship to climate change, released a report titled “State of Mind: Mapping Values and Climate Perceptions Maharashtra Edition” at Charcha 2026 in New Delhi. It is among the largest state-level psychographic studies conducted in the country, and the first to map how climate concern actually translates, or fails to translate, into action and institutional trust.
Drawing on 6,160 respondents across Maharashtra, the study comes in at the time when India’s climate transition moves from planning to implementation, where policies succeed or stall based on whether citizens see them as legitimate, fair, and worth acting on.
The study’s central finding is that climate action lands more effectively when it is framed not as a response to a distant global crisis, but as a means to secure better cities, more stable livelihoods, and sustainable economic growth. When forced to choose directly between economic development and environmental protection, two in three Maharashtrians chose the environment, a clear signal that citizens do not see climate action and development as competing priorities, but expect both from the state and from institutions.
The research also surfaces a sharp articulation gap between how experts and policymakers describe the climate crisis, and how citizens actually experience it. Just 1.5% of respondents used scientific terms like “global warming” to describe environmental problems. Instead, when asked without prompting, 39% pointed to changing weather patterns, 38% to pollution, and 28% to rainfall problems. Concern is also highest among citizens whose livelihoods depend directly on land and water – evidence that relevance of climate action tracks with direct exposure to its effects, not with education levels or geography. Overall, 58% of respondents said they are concerned about climate change, with a further 23% uncertain rather than dismissive: a group the report identifies as likely to engage actively once climate is framed around tangible, local stakes such as better cities, secure livelihoods, and sustainable economic growth.
Deepa Bhatia, CEO, Ek Kutumb Solutions said, “India is developing its own unique playbook on climate policy and implementation. India’s climate response must include a localized approach that starts with understanding its citizens and their perceptions of climate interventions. Citizen participation is shaped by which communities trust which institutions, the values driving their willingness to act, and where policy is likely to encounter friction.”
Perhaps the report’s most actionable finding for practitioners: no single institution currently commands strong public confidence on environmental issues. Government and local authorities, NGOs and foundations, climate activists, and local youth groups are all viewed with similarly modest trust, ranging between 26–36%. Yet citizens’ sense of personal agency is high, 66% believe their own actions matter for the environment, compared with only 32% who place their faith primarily in institutional action, and 69% believe civic and political involvement can lead to change. Together, these findings suggest that institutional efficacy is not the bottleneck, the absence of a trusted messenger is.
The research identified seven citizen archetypes, from “Urban Status Quoists” (12%, techno-optimist but low-agency) to “Rooted Rural Custodians” (17%, the most climate-concerned segment at 84%) to “State Anchored Optimists” (17%, trusting of government-led solutions) and more. Each segment differs in who they trust to lead climate action and what messaging resonates versus backfires, a finding Ek Kutumb says should reshape designing of climate programmes.
