Research and resources, shaped by those doing the work

Blog by climate scientist J. K. Steinberger reflecting on the psychological toll of the climate crisis on children and young people.

This article draws on both psychoanalysis and social theory to deepen our understanding of ressentiment — the complex of feelings revolving around suppressed grievance first identified by Nietzsche and Scheler. In highlighting important differences between authoritarian and totalitarian states of mind, it situates the recent return of the former in the context of the deepening climate crisis and the end of the Holocene. Modernity's foundational belief in progress is periodically shaken by crises for which there seem to be no obvious solution; in such times of profound uncertainty, society may be subject to a veritable plague of toxic feelings and fantasies that fuel various forms of political reaction. The paper connects psychoanalytic analyses of grievance and the 'nursing' of ressentiment with contemporary climate denial and reactionary politics, arguing that the inability to mourn underlies both.

This article uses the lens of both Gaza and the climate crisis to examine some aspects of inhumanity. In both situations, we observe a puzzling indifference to ongoing manifestations of human destructiveness. The article explores the dynamics of disavowal, the complex nature of racism, and the tragic dimension of some political conflicts. In conclusion, some of the psychological and material forces involved in the resurgence of authoritarian nationalism are considered.

ABSTRACT: This paper presents research and clinical material exploring how eco-anxiety can be felt and thought about by children and young people. It discusses the importance of understanding the range of climate anxiety found in practice, ranging from mild to medium to significant, severe, and critical climate distress. Frequently eco-anxiety is perceived as a singular emotional and cognitive experience, and all too often seen through adult eyes. This scale drawn from clinical practice attempts to differentiate between the different experiences children and young people can have by drawing on international clinical and research evidence. The paper argues that supporting children's eco-anxiety requires a both/and approach — acknowledging feelings of loss and grief for losses that have already taken place, whilst holding hope, and crucially not individualising what is a collective hurt.

Eco-anxiety is likely to affect more and more people as the climate destabilises. Already, studies have found that 45% of children suffer lasting depression after surviving extreme weather and natural disasters. Some of that emotional turmoil must stem from confusion - why aren't adults doing more to stop climate change?Talking with children gives a fresh perspective on the absurdity of doing so little about climate change, but it also exposes a troubling disconnect between what we say and what we do.

This paper presents research and clinical material exploring how eco-anxiety can be felt and thought about by children and young people, arguing against treating it as a singular emotional and cognitive experience or seeing it only through adult eyes. Drawing on international clinical and research evidence, Hickman proposes a scale differentiating experiences of eco-anxiety from mild through medium to significant, severe and critical climate distress, and considers individual, relational, collective and planetary dimensions of trauma as experienced by children and young people. The paper closes with considerations for clinical practice.