Environmental Awareness and Responsibility: A Machine Learning Analysis of Polish University Students

This study explores the concept of environmental responsibility and assesses the attitudes and perceptions of young adults towards environmental challenges. Applying a hybrid approach based on feature selection, machine learning methods (classification and regression trees (CART) and recursive feature elimination (RFE)) and statistical methods (chi-squared tests), we analyzed survey data from 500 students across three universities. The results reveal that 82% of students rate their climate knowledge as moderate or good, while 92% perceive climate change as a serious threat. Women are more likely than men to report engagement in pro-environmental initiatives. Students’ environmental orientation weakens in the middle years of study but re-emerges in the final year, possibly reflecting greater maturity and a stronger sense of responsibility before graduation. The willingness to establish sustainable enterprises does not always correspond to a high level of knowledge or daily environmental practices. While undergraduates report high levels of climate awareness, they often fail to translate this into concrete actions, indicating a gap between knowledge, motivation, and practice. The insights from the research can inform environmental education strategies, institutional practices, and youth engagement programs within higher education.