Americans of color more likely to experience poor environmental conditions
September 21- Regardless of where they live, Americans of color are more likely to suffer from worse environmental conditions. These findings underline the pervasiveness of environmental racism in the United States today, and are explored in greater detail here.
In other news, a plurality of parents report COVID cases in their children’s classrooms since the start of the school year.
Meanwhile, when it comes to exercising and physical activity, Americans report being most likely to take long walks or hikes, ahead of activities like running, swimming and strength training.
Fall officially starts this Wednesday, September 22nd, and we look at how people feel about an ubiquitous fall beverage, the pumpkin spice latte, and how people spent their summer vacations.
Stories this week-
The impact of environmental racism:
A portrait of back-to-school:
Health and wellness:
- Walking and hiking are the most common forms of exercise
- More Americans report never or occasionally exercising amidst pandemic
Fall festivities and vacations:
- For Boomers, the Pumpkin Spice Latte is a polarizing drink
- Interstate travel, road trips, and beach vacations were how Americans vacationed this summer
Across racial and ethnic groups, Black and Hispanic Americans are among the least likely to report experiencing good air quality, tap water, and levels of greenery. They are also less likely to say that the amount of trash, litter and noise pollution is good, particularly as compared to white Americans.
This holds true whether they live in urban or suburban environments. While people of color are still disproportionately likely to live in cities, the suburbs have increasingly become more diverse in recent decades.
These findings come from a recent Axios/Ipsos investigation of environmental racism in America, which explores how race, climate change and civic and urban planning choices intersect to create disparate outcomes in Americans’ lived experiences.
Back to school is off to a bumpy start
Two in five parents say that there have already been COVID-19 cases in their children’s classrooms this academic year as back-to-school gets off to a fitful start. Parents are well-aware of the risks inherent in sending their children back to school this year, according to recent USA Today/Ipsos polling. Yet many want their children to return for a full five-day-a-week schedule against a backdrop of broader concerns about how online learning impacted students’ academic progress.
Despite personal feelings about mask mandates for students, six in ten parents report that their children are being required to wear masks in school.
Walking and hiking are the most common forms of exercise
Hikes and long walks are the most common forms of exercise, with one in three reporting that they do either of the two at least weekly. This is followed by running, biking (stationary or outdoors), or swimming, at 21%. Strength training is a close third, at 18%.
Exercise habits vary slightly across generations, although approximately one in three across all age groups choose to walk or hike at least weekly. Younger generations, from Gen Z to Gen X, are more likely to say they run, bike, swim, or strength train than the Boomer and older generations.
More Americans report never or occasionally exercising amidst pandemic
The number of Americans who report never or occasionally doing or participating in various forms of exercise, like going to wellness classes, lifting weights, running or hiking, has risen compared to before the pandemic.
This may be due to people overestimating the extent to which they exercised before the pandemic. At the same time, it is also true that gyms and exercise classes had to shut down or restrict their offerings during the pandemic, which may have caused some people to stop exercise altogether or alter their usual routines.
Similarly, greater numbers of Americans say that now never meet with support groups or therapists, both of which also went virtual during the pandemic.
For Boomers, the Pumpkin Spice Latte is a polarizing drink
About one in five Americans are self-identified Pumpkin Spice Latte drinkers, sipping them regularly when available or occasionally throughout the fall.
Though, these findings mask wide differences by generation. Three in five Boomers have never tried a PSL and do not want to, which puts them about 30-points ahead of Millennials on that question and 20-points ahead of Gen X and Gen Z.
Interstate travel, road trips, and beach vacations were how Americans vacationed this summer
Over half of Americans who traveled this summer visited another state, Ipsos polling finds. Other popular activities among those who planned travel this summer included going to the beach and taking road trips.
While many Americans chose to unwind in a similar way this summer, the under 35 crowd was much more likely than their older counterparts to take a staycation. One in five people under 35 took a staycation, compared to about one in ten in every other age group.
