Coverage of climate change in introductory biology textbooks, 1970–2019

Within individual- or local-level solutions for climate change, most actions described less influential behaviors, such as recycling. Only eight books addressed transportation as a way of decreasing the release of greenhouse gasses; no textbook addressed dietary choices, housing choices, or family planning (Fig 6). Fig 4. Sentences dedicated to description, effects, and solutions within the climate change passage of college introductory biology textbooks. Coverage of the effects of climate change increased substantially over time so that, in the most recent books, it outweighs the description sentences and is responsible for the growth of the passage. Sentences offering actionable solutions peaked in the 1990s, at 15% of the passage, and declined to 3% of the passage in 2010–2019 books. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0278532.g004 Fig 5. Specific effects of climate change addressed within the climate change passage of college introductory biology textbooks. Sentences focused on the effects of climate change most often addressed ecosystem changes or extinction. Human health sentences have increased every decade. Other categories of climate change effects, such as sea level rise, agricultural impacts, rainfall, and changing temperature decreased every decade. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0278532.g005 PLOS ONE Climate change in biology textbooks, 1970–2019 PLOS ONE | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0278532 December 21, 2022 9 / 16