Child Study Center Grand Rounds: "Earth Emotions in Children and Adolescents, turning eco-anxiety into eco-aware action"

A growing segment of the youth population is experiencing mental health impacts of climate change. Lately, the adolescents I work with have been expressing growing anxiety related to climate change. Going to school or just living one’s daily life appears meaningless when the future feels so uncertain. As a world citizen, I believe that anxiety is a healthy reaction to climate change and one that can be fruitfully channeled into action. However, as a youth psychiatrist/researcher, I note that climate change is often overlooked as a cause of distress, is an issue in our daily practice, and requires explicit clinical attention.