(Context: I'm German and on the left side of the domestic political spectrum.) The way I like to think about it is that there are two types of conservatives: T

(Context: I'm German and on the left side of the domestic political spectrum.) The way I like to think about it is that there are two types of conservatives: Type A is conservative because they want to defend the value system on which society is built. Type B is conservative because they don't want the status quo and their way of living to change. And these are two entirely reasonable goals: Most people want to live in accordance with their values, and also most people value stability in their day-to-day life. The problem is that those types of conservatism contradict each other. If you subscribe to some permutation of Christian values [1], I would take that to include respect for God's creation and a will to protect it. So you could argue for swift and strong climate protection measures to be compatible with a conservative value system. [2] On the other hand, swift and strong climate protection measures will affect people's everyday life (reduced reliance on cars, reduced meat consumption, etc.), but most people don't want their lifestyle to change. So that's the "cognitive dissonance" explanation: Their value system would call for change, but their desire for stability overrides that because stability is a more basic instinct than consistent ethical choices (i.e. a lower tier on Maslov's hierarchy). A similar, though simpler explanation, is that the coming wave of climate refugees is an abstract fear to them, whereas the prospect of not being able to eat meat every day or not being able to drive your SUV into the city center is much more concrete and closer. [1] Which most German conservatives do. The conservative party led by Angela Merkel is literally called "Christian Democratic Union". [2] This position is in fact being argued by some CDU politicians, though not by the party leaders. I suppose that's because of opportunism/populism, but I don't have any specific insight into their motives besides what an interested individual can observe from the news.