(FORTUNE Magazine) – Forget those familiar complaints about college students being a bunch of conservative, careerist stick-in-the-muds. Campuses are turning downright activist again. The biggest issue: the environment. Alexander Astin, a UCLA professor of higher education, directed a survey of 200,000 freshmen at 403 U.S. colleges and universities and found that 86% of the respondents said the federal government is not doing enough to limit pollution. Many attended Earth Day demonstrations in April. The study also showed students likely to demonstrate in higher numbers than their counterparts in the late 1960s. Astin found that 37% of the freshmen had participated in demonstrations during the previous year -- that is, before college -- vs. 16% in 1967 and 21% in 1983. This is a likely indicator that they'll do the same as collegians. The freshmen go along with this prediction: Nearly 7% of them said they intend to demonstrate while in college. Matthew Sands, a junior in economics and social psychology at Tufts University, % confirms the trend: ''The Seventies and the Eighties were the ''me'' generation. Now we're coming into an activist upswing. The issues are always there.'' Other issues they care about: a national health care plan (76% want one), abortion (65% favor free choice), and -- believe it or not -- raising taxes to reduce the deficit (29% think this is something the U.S. should do). More than 35% said they want to do more to help understanding between races, but that percentage could well zoom. Predicts Astin: ''The racial issue is the powder keg that's not being addressed in the U.S. Frustration with the plight of the inner cities is a problem that will erupt on campuses next year.''