18-year-old Maria Mitko looks at the mental health impacts of the climate crisis
The LA Fires burnt more than 23.000 acres of Pacific Palisades, Topanga and Malibu in January 2025.
January 31, 2025
What is climate anxiety? And how do we cope?
Climate change has countless implications for our planet, including rising temperatures, unpredictable rainfall patterns and an increase in natural disasters. However, its effects on mental health are less discussed.
A growing number of individuals, especially young people, experience what is now termed ‘climate anxiety’ or ‘eco-anxiety’ – a phenomenon illustrating that climate change is not only an environmental crisis but a psychological one as well. Climate anxiety is not classified as a mental illness.
This article explains what climate anxiety is, along with its implications, while offering tips on how to cope with it.
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What is climate anxiety?
Climate anxiety refers to distress due to the impact of climate change and correlates with higher generalised anxiety and lower mindfulness.
The American Psychological Association has defined it as “a chronic fear of environmental doom”.
People who experience climate anxiety can also have feelings of guilt, grief and desperation. A 22-year-old told the BBC that climate anxiety is “a kind of hopelessness I guess. Helplessness”.
What are the reasons behind climate anxiety?
Climate anxiety is driven by several factors, including the visible deterioration of the planet’s condition, and an increase in extreme weather events. For those who care about nature and the state of the Earth, these events can evoke fear over the ongoing destruction.
Climate anxiety can also stem from powerful corporations’ lack of change. People are disappointed about inaction from those in charge, whether politicians or leaders of huge firms, when it comes to addressing environmental issues.
Activists protest against US climate policies in advance of Trump’s inauguration, London, UK, 11 January 2025.
Corporations, with a huge impact on climate change, fail to address problems and often exaggerate their progress. According to a 2022 report from the New Climate Institute, only three out of 25 major multinationals – together responsible for 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions – actually committed to reducing carbon emissions from their production.
Additionally, the way in which information about climate change is presented can play a role. ‘Doomscrolling’ – staring at a phone or computer and dwelling on negative news – which is becoming increasingly common, can lead people to focus on the ‘bad’, leaving them with little energy to do ‘good’.
Who is most affected and how?
Climate anxiety is said to have the worst effect on children, those who care about environmental issues and/or have suffered greater harm due to climate change or natural disasters.
According to a 2021 report, led by Bath University in the UK, which surveyed 16-25 year-olds, young people are especially affected by eco-anxiety.
Those affected by climate anxiety can be worried, even angered, by the planet’s state, and will take climate change into account when planning their futures. Four out of five surveyed youths expressed their uncertainty regarding having children.
Caroline Hickman, a UK researcher and psychotherapist, in her 2021 survey,asked 10,000 young people from ten countries about their feelings towards climate change. More than 45% of participants stated that such feelings impacted their daily lives, and 56% were of the belief that humanity is doomed. One young respondent said: “For us, the destruction of the planet is personal.”
Minorities and marginalised communities are said to be more affectedby climate change, meaning they are also more prone to experience eco-anxiety.
This is a result of insufficient funds to adapt to life changes caused by climate change. For example, people with lower incomes may struggle to afford air-conditioning during heatwaves. Higher temperatures are usually associatedwith an increase in mental distress.
The United Nations Development Programmereport from 2021 shows that the least developed and poorest countries trailblaze and lead climate action, leaving richer countries behind.
What are the implications of climate anxiety?
Climate anxiety can be a huge burden on mental health and well-being. It is draining and depressing living in a constant state of worry for the future.
However, some researchers argue that it can also have a constructive impact. Anxiety can oftentimes provide a future-oriented perspective, along with the ability to fuel and prepare people appropriately. This means people who experience eco-anxiety are most likely to be motivated to act and do good for the environment.
What’s more, Britt Wray, author and researcher, described climate anxiety as a “powerful catalyst for solidarity, movement building, and action”.
How can you cope?
Britt Wray also suggests mindfulness practices as a way to cope with climate anxiety, as well as spending time in nature. This can be backed up by a 2015 research paper arguing that human connection to green and blue spaces can rectify psychological strain.
Taking personal action, no matter how small, can also help ease the sense of helplessness that is often attributed to climate anxiety. For instance, reducing plastic use, saving water, conserving electricity or even donating to climate charities are tangible steps individuals can take to lessen their environmental impact, thus reducing experienced stress.
However, ecotherapist Phoenix Smith thinks that forced optimism won’t fix anything. Instead, it’s better to feel the negative and work to try and find a solution. Talking to someone, a therapist, family or friends, might help come to terms with your feelings and connect with others.
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