Environmental Literacy and Awareness about Global Climate Change among Nursing Student Towards Sustainable Development

Introduction: The incidence of diseases has increased due to climate change and nurses play a vital role in addressing these health challenges. However, there is inadequate incorporation of environmental literacy and global climate change in nursing programs, which leads nursing graduates to be unprepared in handling environmental issues. Aim: This study aimed to determine the degree of environmental literacy of nursing students toward sustainable development, assess their level of awareness of global climate change, and examine the significant relationship between environmental literacy and global climate change awareness among nursing students. Methods: A descriptive-correlational research design was employed. The study was conducted from March to April 2025 in five universities in Baguio City and involved 358 nursing students. Respondents were selected using simple random sampling through the fishbowl method from each stratum. Data were collected using two standardized instruments: Environmental Literacy Scale for Adults and the Awareness Scale of University Students About Global Climate Change. Descriptive statistics and the Pearson Correlation Coefficient were used for data analysis. Results: The study revealed that nursing students have a high level of environmental literacy of all three domains with a mean of 4.16. Nursing students have a moderate level of awareness about global climate change with a mean of 3.26. The results showed a weak positive correlation between environmental literacy and awareness about global climate change among nursing students with a Pearson Correlation of 0.372. Conclusion: Nursing students show proficient knowledge on environmental issues, but demonstrate adequate awareness on global climate change. Enhancing environmental and climate change education may strengthen nursing students’ capacity to support climate action and sustainable development.