Climate Inaction and Its Impact on Youth Mental Health
- dianawchang
- Apr 23
- 6 min read
By Aloïs Gallet
Article translated and repurposed.
Original French version available here: Vers un Monde Soutenable
Aloïs Gallet empowers school children, their families and teachers to tell new stories in order to keep the planet habitable. Along with his co-founder Alexa Camargo, Paris trained lawyer turned social entrepreneur established EcoNova Education to deliver school-based workshops, programs and contests across Canada that help educators shape tomorrow’s eco-conscious citizens.
“We shift cultures and attitudes by integrating environmental science education and sensibility with arts, language and social studies. We offer online and in-person workshops, programs and writing and music challenges for students, teachers and entire school communities in B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Students learn to observe and identify both beauty and problems and to understand the interconnectedness of ecosystems. We inspire and validate childrens’ natural curiosity about nature and encourage individual and collective responsibility to protect it.”... discover more about Aloïs and EcoNova’s work in the National Observer
Climate Anxiety Trend Around the World
Faced with climate change and biodiversity loss, climate anxiety—or eco-anxiety—is defined as a natural psychological and physical response. While these concepts are relatively new, researchers agree on one crucial point: eco-anxiety is not a mental illness. The distress it causes is entirely rational, as climate change is already a reality for young people across the globe.
The study suggests that climate anxiety can have a "beneficial" effect by motivating individuals to reassess their behaviors and act on the climate crisis. However, this anxiety can turn harmful when it is unchecked and overwhelming.
One Billion Children at Extreme Climate Risk
Young people worldwide are experiencing distress due to climate change. The scale of their fear and despair left researchers "disturbed" by the findings. Their concern is justified: according to UNICEF's Children's Climate Risk Index (CCRI), one billion children are "extremely exposed" to one or more climate-related threats, including heatwaves, wildfires, droughts, and floods. For example, the catastrophic floods in Pakistan in August 2022 killed 400 children and displaced 50 million people, as reported by journalist Fatima Bhutto for The Guardian.
The Role of Adults in Climate Inaction
Climate anxiety manifests in a variety of ways. Among the young people surveyed, the most reported emotions were fear (68%), sadness (67%), anxiety (62%), anger (57%), and powerlessness (56%). The least expressed emotions were indifference (29%) and optimism (30%). These negative feelings often lead to bleak thoughts: 83% of respondents believe "humans have failed to take care of the planet." In comparison, 75% find the future "frightening."
The study also reveals a strong correlation between these emotions and feelings of abandonment by governments and adults. Young people around the world overwhelmingly perceive government responses to climate change as inadequate. Researchers go so far as to state: "The failure of governments to adequately address climate change and the impact on younger generations potentially constitutes moral injury."
Societal and Intergenerational Consequences
According to the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), today's climate crisis is the result of past greenhouse gas emissions. The overuse of coal, oil, and gas, deforestation and industrial-scale animal farming have driven global warming for over two centuries. Even today, emissions continue to rise.
This ongoing climate inaction endangers young people both physically and psychologically. This injustice has a name: climate injustice. The failure of governments, corporations, and individuals to act weakens the mental well-being of younger generations and the legitimacy of our institutions. What credibility do public policies have if they cannot protect their citizens from well-documented and foreseeable dangers? And how ethical is private enterprise when short-term profit motives destroy shared resources essential for future generations?
Eco-anxiety sits at the intersection of climate change and human rights and must be treated as a public health priority. By 2050, Canada must reach "Net-Zero" emissions to limit global warming to +1.5°C and mitigate catastrophic climate impacts. But how can we achieve this ambitious goal while addressing the growing fear, anger, and powerlessness of the youth who believe past generations have let them down?
A Climate Emergency and the Responsibility of Adults
The Lancet study serves as a stark warning: adults and governments must act to protect the mental health and well-being of young people. Researchers identify three urgent priorities: an urgent need for greater responsiveness to children and young people's concerns; more in-depth research; and immediate action on climate change.
Another study published in The Lancet (July 2020) also proposed six key steps to address climate anxiety:
Train healthcare professionals on climate change and mental health;
Enhance clinical assessments and support for eco-anxiety;
Harness evidence-based group therapies;
Focus the support to families in addressing climate-related distress;
Increase access to mental health services with an equity approach; and
Incorporate climate change education into mental health strategies.
Policymakers must also recognize and validate young people's concerns, respect their right to a livable future, and integrate their voices into climate policy. The cultural sector also plays a vital role in shaping awareness and action. And finally, families, educators, and teachers must receive climate-issue training. Understanding eco-anxiety and its causes will empower them to support young people. For that, EcoNova believes that climate education must spread at all levels of society, from schools to universities, from the workplace to the communities. In this spirit, EcoNova Education hosted a free online conference, Eco-Anxiety in Children and Adolescents, on October 11, 2022, following World Mental Health Day with Dr. Laelia Benoit from the Yale Child Study Center and two young people who shared their views. EcoNova now offers training for educators about Climate Anxiety and children.
Taking Action with the Young People
The scale of the climate crisis demands action rather than mere solutions. To educate and drive climate action, EcoNova along with a growing number of organisations such as the Starfish Canada, the Sierra Club BC and others visit the schools in Canada. These organizations play a critical role in raising awareness. Their teaching helps us understand the magnitude of climate challenges. Beyond education, their work shapes a culture and a way of thinking that is compatible with the scale of the issue. Planetary limits, carbon footprint, energy intensity, technologies and democracy are among the numerous topics that EcoNova puts forward to help students understand while taking action.
Here are some simple actions discussed during EcoNova’s workshops that everyone–young people and adults–can take:
1. Sustainable Food Choices
Reducing meat consumption, particularly beef and lamb, can significantly lower methane emissions, which is 28 times more powerful of a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.
2. Responsible Transportation
Air and road travel are major contributors to carbon emissions. Choosing public transport, cycling, or electric vehicles whenever possible reduces environmental impact. As for flying, the most serious experts, including those working in the industry, advocate for policies limiting the global number of flights yearly.
3. Conscious Consumption
Every product we buy has a carbon footprint. Opting for durable, locally produced goods instead of mass-manufactured imports can help minimize waste and emissions.
4. Reducing Plastic Use
Plastic production relies on oil and gas and generates massive pollution. Avoiding plastics whenever possible and opting for reusable alternatives can make a difference. Here again, experts suggest that the regulations should limit the production of plastic.
5. Digital Carbon Footprint
Streaming, digital media–and now AI–consume enormous quantities of energy. Downloading content instead of streaming, using Wi-Fi over 5G, and reducing video resolution can help minimize digital pollution. For AI, the debate is growing strong with questions such as, “Should the technology be blindly deployed to all potential markets, or on the contrary, be restricted to objectively valid applications only?”
6. Collective Action
Joining environmental groups, advocating for change, and engaging in community initiatives empower young people to make a tangible impact. As Margaret Mead's famous quote goes, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."
Climate change is one of the greatest challenges of our time. Whether eco-anxious or not, young people will play a critical role in shaping the future. Their voices, actions, and resilience are essential in the fight for a sustainable world. But for the moment, it is the responsibility of the adults to help and to act. Consider taking action now!
Sources:
Climate anxiety in children and young people and their beliefs about government responses to climate change: a global survey, The Lancet, December 2021, Caroline Hickman, Elizabeth Marks, Panu Pihkala, Susan Clayton, R Eric Lewandowski, Elouise E Mayall, Britt Wray, Catriona Mellor, Lise van Susteren
The west is ignoring Pakistant’s super-floods. Heed this warning: tomorrow it will be you. F. Bhutto, The Guardian
Ecological grief and anxiety: the start of a healthy response to climate change? The Lancet, July 2020, Ashlee Cunsolo, Sherilee L Harper, Kelton Minor, Katie Hayes, Kimberly G Williams, Courtney Howard
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