The governing body conducted the survey during its World Championships in Oregon in July.

It also found that 72 per cent feel they had already been impacted by the issue while three quarters of respondents said that climate change had impacted the sport.

"Young people don't just look at us as an international federation," said World Athletics President Sebastian Coe.

"It may just be a subliminal observation, but I think they're asking themselves fundamentally a very important question when they look at us and say: 'Do they reflect the world I live in?'

"And if we don't, then the reality of it is that they'll move on to something that does.

"For me, the issue is that young people are sitting at the crossroads of all the big moral hotspots in a way that previous generations didn't.

"They're very much more attuned to it.

"We need to not only be saying something, we need to show that we are able to break out of our sport silo and be sitting at the table and making a contribution."

The results were discussed at a panel session in Zurich where participants also spoke of the importance of reducing their own environmental and social impacts, building credibility around their sustainability initiatives, helping athletes to use their platforms to help drive behavioural change and fighting accusations of greenwashing.

"We shouldn't hide from the fact that what we need to do is going to cost," continued Coe.

"It's important to bear in mind the costs of not investing.

"I will always argue that you're investing in children and grandchildren by providing a sustainable environment for them."

Coe said that World Athletics will continue to embed sustainability into its licensing and bidding processes and regulations with the aim of making it a key component of a successful hosting bid.