Climate Awareness Among Healthcare Students: an Educational Study on Carbon Footprint and Climate Change Awareness

May 16, 2026 updated by: Hatice YAĞCI KARAMANLI, Karamanoğlu Mehmetbey University
This research was planned to investigate whether the education provided in universities causes a change in carbon footprints and climate change.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Climate change is considered one of the most fundamental threats to global public health in the 21st century, making it imperative that university students, who will be the healthcare professionals of the future, have a comprehensive awareness of this issue. Since the university period is a critical stage where individuals build their professional identities and assume social responsibility, equipping the younger generation with climate literacy is vital for a sustainable future. The younger generation, in addition to being the group most exposed to the long-term effects of the climate crisis, also has the potential to be agents of change in solution processes. Healthcare students hold a strategic position in this process; the healthcare sector is responsible for approximately 4-5% of global carbon emissions, and students in this field being able to manage their own carbon footprint forms a foundation for implementing "green hospital" practices in the future . Furthermore, understanding the relationship between climate change and health risks such as increased respiratory illnesses, vector-borne diseases, and food insecurity will enable these students, who will be among the most trusted professional groups in society, to play a transformative role in both clinical practice and public health advocacy. Therefore, carbon footprint and climate awareness training for healthcare students is not only about creating environmental awareness but also an academic and ethical step towards making healthcare systems more resilient to the climate crisis.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
130

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Being over 18 years old, being a volunteer, being a healthcare student

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Not being a volunteer

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Prevention
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Deney
A climate awareness training will be given to volunteer health students studying at Karamanoğlu Mehmetbey University's Ermenek Uysal and Hasan Kalan Health Services building. Data collection tools will be administered to the students before and two weeks after this training. The data will be compared to determine if there has been a change in the students' carbon footprint and climate change awareness.
Other: climate change education
A climate awareness training will be given to volunteer health students studying at Karamanoğlu Mehmetbey University's Ermenek Uysal and Hasan Kalan Health Services building. Data collection tools will be administered to the students before and two weeks after this training. The data will be compared to determine if there has been a change in the students' carbon footprint and climate change awareness.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Carbon Footprint Awareness Scale
Time Frame: At the start of the training and 2 weeks after the training.
The scale, developed by Üstgörül, Akkaya, Palazzo, and Micozzi (2024) to measure individuals' awareness of their impact on the environment through greenhouse gas emissions, has 19 items in its final version. The scale is structured using a 5-point Likert scale, rated from 1 (Strongly Disagree) to 5 (Strongly Agree). It consists of 5 sub-dimensions: Transportation (3 items), Fuel Consumption (3 items), Electricity Consumption (5 items), Food Consumption (5 items), and Waste Management (3 items). When the psychometric properties of the scale were examined, it was determined that it explained 56.09% of the total variance and the internal consistency coefficient (Cronbach's Alpha) was 0.88 for the total scale. The reliability coefficients of the sub-dimensions ranged from 0.72 to 0.83. Validated in the Turkish context (Asian and European cultural synthesis) and on individuals over 18 years of age (especially Generation Z), this tool allows for the systematic examination of psychological a
At the start of the training and 2 weeks after the training.
Global Climate Change Awareness Scale
Time Frame: At the start of the training and 2 weeks after the training
The "University Students' Awareness Scale Regarding Global Climate Change", developed by Deniz, İnel, and Sezer (2021) to determine the awareness levels of university students regarding global climate change, is structured on a 5-point Likert scale (1) ranging from "Not aware at all" to (5) "Completely aware". The scale consists of 21 items and four sub-dimensions. When the psychometric properties of the scale were examined, it was determined that it explained 57.72% of the total variance and the Cronbach's Alpha internal consistency coefficient for the scale as a whole was 0.826. The results of the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) confirmed that the four-dimensional structure of the scale exhibited excellent and acceptable levels of fit with the data. This instrument is a valid and reliable measurement tool for measuring the awareness of university students regarding climate change in its different dimensions .
At the start of the training and 2 weeks after the training

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Karamanoğlu Mehmetbey University

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

  • Üstgörül, S., Akkaya, B., Palazzo, M., & Micozzi, A. (2024). Development and validation of carbon footprint awareness scale for boosting sustainable circular economy. Sustainability, 16(18), 8199. https://doi.org/10.3390/su1618819 Deniz, M., İnel, Y., & Sezer, A. (2021). Awareness scale of university students about global climate change. International Journal of Geography and Geography Education (IGGE), (43), 252-264 Guzman, V., Baez, S., & Marquet, P. A. (2021). Climate change education for health professionals: A systematic review. Medical Teacher, 43(6), 668-676. Watts, N., Amann, M., Arnell, N., Ayeb-Karlsson, S., Beagley, J., Belesova, K., ... & Montgomery, H. (2020). The 2020 report of The Lancet Countdown on health and climate change: Responding to converging crises. The Lancet, 397(10269), 129-170. World Health Organization [WHO]. (2021). Health and climate change survey report: Tracking global progress. World Health Organization. Xie, E., De Barros, E. F., Abelsohn, A., Stein, A. T., & Philippe, J. K. (2019). Medical education for a changing climate: Curriculum for a new era. Academic Medicine, 94(12), 1839-1840.

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
May 15, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
June 12, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
December 30, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
May 6, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 6, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
May 12, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
May 20, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 16, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • Haticeygc İklim bilinci

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

Data sharing is not possible.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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