# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
10,000+ subscribers. A newsletter about staying sane in the climate crisis. Click to read Gen Dread, a Substack publication.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
RATCLIFFE-ON-SOAR, England - When the coal-fired turbines at this sprawling power plant north of London went silent this week, the skies above its eight giant steam stacks finally cleared - and Britain became the world's first major economy to quit coal power.

It's a milestone for the country that was first to harness the dirty fuel, in the 19th century. Coal powered the Industrial Revolution and the expansion of the British Empire. At the height of its reliance on coal, in the 1950s, of the United Kingdom's electricity came from burning it.

That fell to zero Monday evening, when the Ratcliffe-on-Soar power plant, in the English Midlands, shut off its turbines after 57 years. It was the country's last coal-fired plant.

"This is the first time in 142 years that there's no coal in the U.K. electricity system," says Michael Lewis, CEO of Uniper, the German company that runs the plant. "It's a big, big moment in industrial history. That history can continue with zero carbon."

It's also a milestone in the effort to tackle climate change. Burning coal releases carbon dioxide, and is a major driver of global warming. A handful of smaller countries have already phased out coal power, but Britain is first among the Group of Seven advanced economies to do so. The entire G7 has to follow suit by 2035.

The U.K. has turned to cheaper and cleaner power sources, including natural gas but also a major expansion of offshore wind and solar farms. Meanwhile, regulations targeting air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions have made burning coal increasingly uneconomical.

In its heyday, Ratcliffe-on-Soar received more than 20 trainloads of coal per day, according to Uniper. That's enough to power two million homes. (Or in British terms, a billion cups of tea a day.)

Decommissioning will take two years; most of the plant's 170 employees are being reallocated. There were a few tears, Lewis said. The longest-serving employee had worked at the plant for nearly 50 years.

"We need to get off coal. We need to address climate change targets," Lewis told NPR. "But at the same time, it's the end of an era."

Coal made modern Britain

The Romans found coal in western England as early as the third century, according to the British Geological Survey. Mining began in earnest in the 1600s across England, Scotland and Wales.

Around the turn of the 18th century, the coal-powered steam engine was invented in Britain, going on to power industry. In the early 19th century, a British engineer invented the coal-fired locomotive, speeding commerce across the country and its colonies in South Asia and Africa.

Then in 1882, Thomas Edison's company opened Britain's first coal-fired power plant in London.

Since then, British coal plants have burned 5 billion tons of coal, emitting more than 11 billion tons of carbon dioxide. That's according to an analysis by the British publication Carbon Brief, which says the U.K.'s long coal habit produced more carbon emissions than most countries have ever produced from all sources - making it one of the largest historical contributors to climate change.

Those emissions typically stay in the atmosphere for decades or centuries.

By the 1950s, British coal use peaked, and so did pollution. Cities were shrouded in "pea soup" - a green toxic haze that included soot and sulfur dioxide from factory furnaces and residential coal fireplaces. The word "smog" was coined in London.

In the so-called Great Smog of 1952, at least 4,000 people died in the span of four days. It was so toxic, cows were said to have choked to death in fields.

That health emergency ultimately changed the economics of coal.

"In the 1950s, when the smog was killing thousands of people in London, the clean air laws came in, and then from the 1990s, relatively cleaner and cheaper gas began edging coal out," says Sepi Golzari-Munro, a Scotland-based climate and energy analyst. "Now we see that transition happening again, with renewables."

How did the U.K. manage this energy milestone?

In part, Britain got lucky: In the 1960s, it discovered natural gas - a cheaper, relatively cleaner-burning fuel - in the North Sea. Last year, about a third of U.K. electricity came from gas.

In recent decades, the U.K. has also invested in a massive expansion of renewable energy, especially offshore wind. Britain is now the world's second-largest offshore wind market, after China. Last year, offshore wind generated 17% of the nation's electricity, according to the Crown Estate, which manages wind farms on royal land.

"We were able to take the onshore wind industry and move it offshore, where you get much higher wind speeds, and you can put in bigger turbines, and bigger wind farms," says Bryony Worthington, an environmental campaigner now in the House of Lords. Worthington helped write the country's Climate Change Act of 2008, which set national targets for the reduction of carbon emissions.

Britain also operates five nuclear power plants. The government to quadruple nuclear capacity by 2050.

Unlike the United States, where a of lawmakers question the scientific consensus that human activity is driving global warming, there's widespread, cross-party consensus in the U.K. in favor of this clean energy transition, and environmental regulation.

"In the early 2000s, we were writing the world's first set of comprehensive laws on climate change that created legally binding carbon budgets," Worthington recalls. Those laws limited how much particulate matter coal stations could emit, banned new coal stations from being built, and taxed coal plants for their pollution, she notes.

Looking ahead, the government aims to eliminate natural gas from the U.K. power grid by 2030, and cut carbon emissions entirely by 2050.

Altogether, these laws and taxes mean it's no longer economical to mine British coal, or burn it. In 2015, lawmakers identified the last day of coal power a decade in advance, and then moved it up by a year - a relatively rapid phaseout that could be a model for other countries.

End of an era

This energy transition has been aided by globalization and deindustrialization. Since the 1970s, the U.K has moved away from manufacturing, to a service economy. This country no longer runs as many big factories.

On Monday night, at a pub not far from the Ratcliffe-on-Soar smoke stacks, former workers raised a pint to the past. But the nostalgia only goes so far.

"It's good it's closing down, because of all the rubbish that was coming out into the atmosphere," says 71-year-old Simon Humble. "When I worked there, even after a shower, you'd sneeze and all the coal dust was coming out of your nose."

He says he's looking forward to seeing the plant's eight giant cooling towers demolished.

"I imagine they'll dynamite them down to the ground," he says. "Now that'll be something to see."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
In a climate milestone, the U.K. - 1st to harness coal power - is among 1st to quit it

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The U.K. used coal power to drive the Industrial Revolution and expand the British Empire. It's now the first major economy to quit the fossil fuel, a primary contributor to global warming.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Ongoing ecological and climate crisis affects all life on Earth - human and more than human. Because so many factors are involved that include the destruction of ecosystems and loss of species as well as social, economic, and political issues, this is now being called the "polycrisis." In the face of this global crisis, some humans are experiencing both acute and chronic mental health impacts broadly known as climate or eco-anxiety. The American Psychological Association points to several sources of eco-anxiety, from the "unrelenting day-by-day despair" that can occur during droughts to the stress that comes from " watching the slow and seemingly irrevocable impacts of climate change unfold, and worrying about the future for oneself, children, and later generations."*

Victims of climate change are especially vulnerable and many have become climate refugees. Some people in the developed world may feel eco-anxiety because they are " deeply affected by feelings of loss, helplessness, and frustration due to their inability to feel like they are making a difference in stopping climate change." This might develop into guilt as they consider how their own actions may have contributed to the current state of the environment. Psychologists are now acknowledging the extent to which internalizing ecological concerns and experiences truly affects human well-being.
Here you will find a wealth of resources in response to these challenges-resources dedicated to understanding and coping with global eco-anxiety and eco-grief both individually and as a human community.
*all quotes from the March 2017 report "Mental Health and Our Changing Climate: Impacts, Implications, and Guidance," a collaboration of ecoAmerica, the American Psychological Association, and Climate for Health.

Books:

All the Feelings Under the Sun: How to Deal With Climate Change
Children's book by Leslie Davenport. Illustrations by Jessica Smith. American Psychological Association, 2021.

World as Lover, World as Self

By Joanna Macy. 30th anniversary edition. Parallax Press, 2021.Edited by Paul Hoggett. Springer, 2019.By Renee Lertzman. Routledge, 2016.

A Field Guide to Climate Anxiety
By Sarah Jaquette Ray. University of California Press, 2020.

Words for a Dying World: Stories of Grief and Courage from the Global Church
Edited by Hannah Malcolm. SCM Press, 2020.

Climate Psychology: On Indifference to Disaster

Your Guide to Forest Bathing: Experience the Healing Power of Nature
By M. Amos Clifford. Red Wheel, 2018.

Emotional Resiliency in the Era of Climate Change: A Clinician's Guide
By Leslie Davenport. Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2017.

The Wild Edge of Sorrow: Rituals of Renewal and the Sacred Work of Grief

Despair and Personal Power in the Nuclear Age
By Joanna Macy. New Society Publishers, 1983.Environmental Melancholia: Psychoanalytic Dimensions of Engagement

By Francis Weller. North Atlantic Books, 2015.

Reports:

"Mental Health and Climate Change: Policy Brief"
World Health Organization. ‎2022.

"Climate Change Sparks Emotional Responses: American Climate Perspectives Survey 2022. Vol II. Part II"
By M. Speiser, A. N. Hill, and K. Catalano. ecoAmerica. May 2022.

"Mental Health and Our Changing Climate: Impacts, Inequities, Responses"
By Susan Clayton, Christie Manning, Meighen Speiser, and Alison Hill. American Psychological Association, Climate for Health, and ecoAmerica. 2021.

"The Rise of Eco-anxiety"
By Sacha Wright, Vida Han, and Clover Hogan. Force of Nature. March 2021.

"Cooler Earth - Higher Benefits: Actions by those who care about children, climate and finance"
By Frederique Seidel and Emmanuel de Martel. 2nd edition. World Council of Churches. 2021.

Journal Articles:

(March 2022): 17- 29.. January 14, 2022. "The Process of Eco-Anxiety and Ecological Grief: A Narrative Review and a New Proposal"
By Panu Pihkala. Sustainability 14, no. 24 (December 12, 2022).

"Christic Witnessing: A Practical Response to Ecological Trauma"
By Timothy A. Middleton. Practical Theology (April 2022): 1-12.

"Climate Anxiety: What Predicts It and How is It Related to Climate Action?"
By Lorraine Whitmarsh, Lois Player, Angelica Jiongco, Melissa James, Marc Williams, Elizabeth Marks, and Patrick Kennedy-Williams. Journal of Environmental Psychology 83 (October 2022).

"Understanding Eco-anxiety"
By Bronwyn Wake. Nature Climate Change (September 2022).

"Climate Changes Mental Health"
By Nicole Hill and Robert Perkowitz. Journal of Environmental Health (July/August 2022): 38-39.

"Children and Climate Anxiety: An Ecofeminist Practical Theological Perspective"
By Joyce Ann Merce. Religions 13, no. 4 (March 31, 2022): 1-15.

"Social Media May Contribute to Eco-Distress: The Role of Nature Relatedness as Both Causal Mechanism and Protective Factor"
By Crystal Smith, Andrew Allen, and Lee Kannis-Dymand.
Ecopsychology
"Toward a Taxonomy of Climate Emotions"
By Panu Pihkala. Frontiers in Climate

"The Anatomy of Inaction - Climate Complexity Change"
"Climate Complexity Change," unpsychology magazine, Issue 7, Spring 2021.

News Articles:

By Kortni Washington. Climate XChange. October 27, 2021. "4 podcasts on climate anxiety and the environment in 2023"
By Aisiri Amin. Mint Lounge. January 5, 2023.

"Young artists process climate grief in new digital zine Solastalgia"
By Kaila Johnson. Ubyssey. December 21, 2022.

"'The Grievers' of Climate Change"
By Erica Hellerstein. Noema. December 15, 2022.

"Climate fear and anxiety on MDI inspired a movement poised to grow across Maine"
By Nicole Ogrysko. Maine Public. December 15, 2022.

"Researchers investigate the impact of climate change on mental health"
By Sharon Aschaiek. University Affairs. December 13, 2022.

"Finding the Antidote to Climate Anxiety in Stories About Taking Action"
By Kiley Bense. Inside Climate News. December 10, 2022.

"Mourning has broken: View expressions of ecological grief from around the world"
By Natasha Rego. MSN. December 9, 2022.

"Eleventh Hour: The role of the arts in overcoming climate anxiety"
By Climate Reality Project Philippines. Manila Bulletin. December 8, 2022.

"Climate anxiety to climate action: They made careers out of saving the planet"
By Vanessa Glavinskas. Environmental Defense Fund. December 7, 2022.

"Teens Are Struggling With Climate Anxiety. Schools Haven't Caught Up Yet"
By Madeline Will. Education Week. December 7, 2022.

"Eco-anxiety: Worrying about climate change can be stressful but it can also help to spur us into action"
By Julia Shaw. Science Focus. November 28, 2022.

"Climate anxiety: prime motivator for climate action?"
The Bubble. November 25, 2022.

"What is eco-anxiety? The psychological condition triggered by climate crisis"
By Daphne Clarance. India Today. November 23, 2022.

"When Climate Anxiety Makes for Great Art"
By Jeff Turrentine. NRDC. November 15, 2022.

"Why Climate Grief is the Next Mental Health Crisis"
By Adrian Johansen. Green Queen. November 11, 2022.

"Eco-anxiety: how to cope at a time of climate crisis"
By Sacha Wright and Emily Osterloff. Natural History Museum. November 9, 2022.

"Why the Climate Crisis Is Also a Mental Health Crisis"
By Kim Wong-Shing. CNET. November 8, 2022.

"COP27: Climate anxiety is rising - it might be a good thing"
By Georgina Rannard. BBC. November 5, 2022.

"Eco-anxiety: A looming mental health crisis"
By Liz McLaughlin. WRAL News. November 3, 2022.

"Guilt, Anxiety and Hope: The Lives of Young Climate Activists in India"
By Rashmi Mishra. Vice. November 1, 2022.

"Love in the time of climate crisis"
By Jessie Krahn. The Manitoban. November 1, 2022.

"Hope for an anxious generation"
By Ashiah Scharaga. Chico News & Review. November 1, 2022.

"UEA offering course to help students deal with 'eco-anxiety'"
By Sam Russell and Ashlea Hickin. Norfolk Live. November 1, 2022.

"6 New Insights on Climate Change and Mental Health"
By Sebastian Ocklenburg. Psychology Today. October 30, 2022.

"Photos: Pakistan's fishers submerged in 'climate anxiety'"
By Maha Akbar. Aljazeera. October 28, 2022.

"How Climate Change is Affecting Mental Health"
By Simon Elstad. Greener Ideal. October 26, 2022.

"International collaborators to launch climate pastoral care course"
Religion News Service. October 20, 2022.

"Climate café for eco-anxious youth coming to Natural History Museum"
By Bea Mitchell. Blooloop. October 18, 2022.

"A Cookbook for Climate Resilience and Storytelling"
By Vikki Xu. 34th Street. October 18, 2022.

"Have Eco-Anxiety? Here's What to Do"
By Renée Reardin. Best Health. October 17, 2022.

"Worried Earth: Eco-Anxiety and Entangled Grief"
University of Winnipeg. October 17, 2022.

"'Many Young People Are Seized With Sadness, Anger': In Toulouse, A Large School Is Launching Workshops On Eco-Anxiety"
By David Sadler. Globe world News Echo. October 13, 2022.

"How to tackle climate change anxiety in children"
Open Access Government. October 12, 2022.

"Hope for an anxious generation"
By Ashiah Scharaga. Chico News & Review. October 12, 2022.

"The Little Rituals That Keep Us Going"
By Dani Blum. New York Times. October 8, 2022.

"Climate Anxiety Disorder? It's More Likely Than You Think"
By Jordan A. Sanchez. The Harvard Crimson. October 7, 2022.

"Climate anxiety is a normal response to an abnormal situation. Here's what to do about it."
By Laura Newberry. Los Angeles Times. October 4, 2022.

"How Two California Artists Can Help Personalize Your Eco-Grief"
By Dina Gachman. Smithsonian. October 4, 2022.

"How does climate change affect mental health?"
By Amberley Davis. Patient. September 29, 2022.

"Climate anxiety is affecting more & more people. Here's how some doctors are trying to treat it"
By Mouhamad Rachini. CBC Radio. September 23, 2022.

"Dealing with dread: how virtual therapy can help people cope with eco-anxiety"
By Simon Lewsen. Toronto Star. September 14, 2022.

"SU students, professors discuss mental health toll of climate change studies"
By Ethan Chanin. Daily Orange. September 11, 2022.

"A new campus offering: Climate anxiety therapy"
By Ta'Leah Van Sistine. Washington Post. September 12, 2022.

"Stressed out about climate change? 4 ways to tackle both the feelings and the issues"
By Lisa Doggett. NPR. September 3, 2022.

"Climate anxiety an important driver for climate action, according to new study"
By University of Bath. Phys.org. September 2, 2022.

"The Land Mourns"
By Andi Lloyd. Christian Century. September 1, 2022.

"How Sound Can Help Soothe Eco-Anxiety"
By Daphne Chouliaraki Milner. Atmos. September 1, 2022

"Climate anxiety: 21 resources to energise you into action"
By Leah Das. Greenpeace. August 31, 2022.

"Edmonton climate activists use their 'eco-grief' as a tool for building communities"
By Anna Wdowczyk. CBC News. August 29, 2022.

"Climate change is worsening youth mental health, research shows"
By M.A. Jacquemain. The Weather Network. August 28, 2022.

"Climate anxiety on the rise for a 'planet in peril' "
By Eleanor Mannion. RTE. August 27, 2022.

"Overcoming climate anxiety, one step at a time"
By Marc Light. Australian Jewish News. August 26, 2022.

"'I feel my heart breaking today' - a climate scientist's path through grief towards hope"
By Joelle Gergis. The Conversation. August 25, 2022.

"3 surprising ways to cope with climate change"
By Rebecca Ruiz. Mashable. May 22, 2022.

"What is a global polycrisis?"
By Scott Janzwood and Thomas Homer-Dixon. Cascade Institute. April 27, 2022.

"How can we help kids cope with 'eco-anxiety'?"
By Josie Glausiusz. BBC. April 22, 2022.

"5 Things That Can Alleviate Your Eco-Anxiety"
By Dekila Chungyalpa. Psychology Today. April 19, 2022.

"The Unseen Toll of a Warming World"
By Sarah Kerr, Noah Throop, Jack Healy, Aidan Gardiner, and Rebecca Lieberman. New York Times. March 9, 2022.

"The best ways to teach and talk about climate change with kids"
By Mary Democker. Popular Science. February 23, 2022.

"Yale's Happiness Professor Says Anxiety Is Destroying Her Students"
By David Marchese. New York Times. February 18, 2022.

"Can religion and faith combat eco-despair?"
By Rita Sherma. The Conversation. February 17, 2022.

"Climate Change Enters the Therapy Room"
By Ellen Barry. New York Times. February 6, 2022.

"Facing our Climate Feelings Together"
By Blair Nelsen. Earth & Altar. February 2, 2022.

"At 22, This Young Activist Has Found Ways To Channel Her Eco-Anxiety Into Action"
By Emily Chan. Vogue. November 1, 2021. "As COP26 gathers, faith-based environmentalists fight eco-grief"
By Elizabeth E. Evans. Religion News Service. EarthBeat. November 4, 2021.

"Prioritizing Mental Wellness in Climate Change Education"
By Nicole Howard. Climate XChange. October 28, 2021.

"SCPN Spotlight: Jerilyn Lopez Mendoza on Climate Activism and Making Space for Self-Care"

"
By Brianne Hogan. She Knows. September 21, 2021. "How to Reduce Eco-Anxiety and Make Positive Change"
By Ilan Kelman. Psychology Today. October 25, 2021. "Specters of Sorrow: Eco-Grief, Ambiguous Loss, and Religious Creativity"
By Jacob J. Erickson. Counterpoint Knowledge. June 24, 2021.

"How to Help Kids with Eco-Anxiety When 'Fire Season' Is A Thing
"Living With Eco-Anxiety: Indians Tell Us About Their Climate Change-Induced Anxiety"
By Meghna Mathew. Homegrown. June 3, 2022.

"Why Emotionally Intelligent Climate Work Matters"
By Britt Wray. Gen Dread. January 6, 2021.

"COVID-19 Crisis Blog: Are we there yet? Beyond Apocalypse Fatigue and the New Normal"
By Jacob J. Erickson. Trinity College Dublin, The University of Dublin. May 26, 2020.

"A Climate Grief, Observed: Transforming Our Ecologies and Theologies of Magical Thinking"
By Jacob J. Erickson. Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs. April 16, 2020.

"Climate grief: How we mourn a changing planet"
By Panu Pihkala. BBC. April 2, 2020.

"So Your Kids Are Stressed Out About the Climate Crisis"
By Mary DeMocker. Sierra. January 25, 2020.

"The Rise of Eco-Anxiety"
By Lauren Dockett. Psychotherapy Networker. January/February 2019.

Videos:

Experts and parents weigh in on living sustainably and managing 'climate anxiety'
Good Morning America. December 23, 2022.

Climate Crisis: What Is Eco-Anxiety And How To Deal With It?
India Today. November 27, 2022.

Eco-Anxiety
Yale Forum on Religion and Ecology Spotlights with Sam Mickey. November 21, 2022.

Greta Thunberg on how to tackle climate anxiety
The One Show - BBC. November 1, 2022.

How To Manage Climate Anxiety
New York Times Events. October 21, 2022.

Dealing with eco-anxiety
With Heather White. PIX 11 News. September 19, 2022.

What's Deeptime Therapy?
With Lisa Verni, LCSW LLC. Deeptime Network. September 13, 2022.

Turning Eco-Anxiety into Eco-Action
Our Broken Planet. Natural History Museum. April 19, 2021.

How to turn climate anxiety into action
With Renée Lertzman. TEDWomen. December 2019.

The Challenge of Climate Change
interview with Thomas Hübl by Brian Weinberg. March 27, 2018.
With Renée Lertzman. TEDWomen. December 2019.

Podcasts:

"How to Save A Planet"
Podcast series hosted by Alex Blumberg and Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson

"Outrage and Optimism"
Podcast series hosted by Christina Figueres, Tom-Rivett Carnac, and Paul Dickinson

"Climate and You"
Podcast series hosted by Domyo Burk

"What Could Possibly Go Right?"
Resilience podcast with Joanna Macy and Vicki Robin. October 25, 2022.

"Religion, Ecology, and the Future"
The Great Simplification podcast with Mary Evelyn Tucker and Nate Hagens. October 12, 2022.

"Environmental and climate change education, climate anxiety ahead of National Public Lands Day"
WGCU - PBS and NPR. September 20, 2022.

"Britain's new PM, confronting eco-anxiety"
Green Biz. September 9, 2022.

"Seeds, Grief, and Memory"
With Rowen White. Finding Your Way. May 24, 2021.

"Tonglen for Eco-Anxiety"
Guided meditation with Dekila Chungyalpa. Center for Healthy Minds. University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Syllabus:

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Ongoing ecological and climate crisis affects all life on Earth - human and more than human. Because so many factors are involved that include the destruction of ecosystems and loss of species as well as social, economic, and political issues, this is now being called the "polycrisis."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
5 Steps That Helped Me Figure Out My Role in the Climate Movement

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
There is no simple formula, no fact sheet or checklist, for figuring out our roles in the vital work to fight climate change and forge a just, livable future.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
This is an interactive space to explore how you respond to climate change.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In addition to its traditional deadline and lifelines, the Climate Clock includes a virtual "hotline" offering support for those experiencing climate anxiety and trauma.

Let's take care of each other.

Je Antônio from the Terena people

FROM ANXIETY TO ACTION...

When people first see the Deadline on the Clock, they often feel a flood of anxiety.
That's an understandable and natural response to a very real threat.

Young people with the most to lose are particularly impacted. A recent study in the Lancet medical journal revealed that 62% of young people feel anxious about the climate crisis. If that includes you, you are not alone.

One of the best remedies for anxiety is action. Which is why the Clock is an action project, and alongside the Deadline, shows many Lifelines, tracking our progress on key solution pathways that can help us secure a liveable future.

In the meantime, we must take care of ourselves and each other.
Here are a host of RESOURCES - from "climate cafes" to listings of climate-aware therapists - that can help you and your community move from anxiety to action:

What our spokespeople Are Saying

"The evidence shows that the climate crisis is hurting young people's mental health worldwide. Many climate anxious youth experience moral injury from living in a system where power holders are not doing what the science says must be done to protect the future habitability of the planet. It isn't that young people are so upset because the environment "is not doing well", it's that they feel betrayed by leaders on this issue, which makes their suffering worse. The good news is that courageous climate action can change that, and if we want today's youth to enjoy a well functioning society when they're older, it must."

- Dr. Britt Wray, Lead of the Special Initiative on Climate Change and Mental Health, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford Medicine, and author of Generation Dread

"Climate anxiety is the internal alarm bell that tells you something is wrong. Right now, humanity is hurtling toward a cliff of climate collapse: we need people to wake up and look in the face of this crisis. When we're honest with ourselves, when we hold space for difficult emotions, we open the door to our courage... and instead of shutting us down, climate anxiety can be the fuel that motivates us."

- Clover Hogan, Climate Activist and Founder of Force of Nature

"The climate crisis impacts our minds, hearts, and bodies far more than is discussed privately and publicly. Globally, climate anxiety, depression, and trauma are all on the rise. The most vulnerable among us are the least responsible, and most impacted. Collectively, we need to change course. In order to collaboratively develop pro-social, equitable, and timely solutions to the crisis, it is essential that we address individual and community mental health needs. Caring for ourselves, each other, and the planet are mutually interdependent. Acknowledging the uncertainty of the moment helps us to move beyond hope vs doom, and find meaning and purpose in the crisis. We invite you to join us so that we can grow together towards a regenerative way of life."

- Rebecca Weston, Co-President, Climate Psychology Alliance - North America

Recognizing the scale of climate anxiety, Senator Markey (MA) and Representative Tonko (NY-20) are introducing the Community Mental Wellness and Resilience Act during Mental Health Awareness Month

The CMWRA will establish a first-of-its-kind $30 million pilot grant program through the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to provide funding to community-based mental wellness and resilience programs designed to address the compounding systemic mental health issues faced by communities bearing the brunt of the climate crisis.

"I applaud the Climate Clock for creating a virtual hotline so our families, friends, and neighbors can access resources to feel empowered to tackle the climate crisis. Environmental justice communities continue to bear the brunt of climate disasters that take a lasting toll on their mental health. We need to invest big into mental health resources that are affordable and accessible and empower communities to build resilience to climate change's catastrophic impacts. That is why I am proud to introduce the Community Mental Wellness and Resilience Act with Representatives Tonko and Fitzpatrick. I will continue to fight for large, comprehensive funding in mental health care that uplifts individuals and families who are on the frontlines of climate disasters."

- US Senator Ed Markey of Massachusetts

"The increasing number and severity of natural disasters and toxic stresses cost our communities dearly, taking lives and livelihoods-and the trauma felt from these disasters runs even further. Studies show that these impactful events can traumatize upwards of 40 percent of those who live in the affected area. That's why I'm partnering with my colleagues to lead the way on this resilience building legislation that will help address our nation's mental health crisis through grants and partnerships with local, community-based initiatives. I'll continue to work to deliver science-based, evidence-informed solutions that benefit communities across our nation and offer a holistic response to the climate crisis."

- Congressman Paul D. Tonko of New York

Follow our journey on Instagram

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In addition to its traditional deadline and lifelines, the Climate Clock includes a virtual "hotline" offering support for those experiencing climate anxiety and trauma. Je Antônio from the Terena people When people first see the Deadline on the Clock, they often feel a flood of anxiety.That's an understandable and natural response to a very real threat.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
the All We Can Save project x Gen Dread

As Susi Moser writes in All We Can Save, "Burnt-out people aren't equipped to serve a burning planet ... [so] the well-being of our hearts and souls must be reestablished to their rightful place as relevant, essential." The climate crisis has many folks feeling on the edge. How can we cope, care, and heal? What do our emotions have to teach us? Can climate work and leadership grow from a more rooted, powerful place?

The All We Can Save Project teamed up with Britt Wray of Gen Dread to develop this shortlist of resources created specifically for navigating the emotional terrain of climate. For people who have completed an All We Can Save Circle and are looking for more support in this area, you may find fruitful next steps here - to take individually or as a group.

If you find yourself feeling so depressed, anxious, or overwhelmed by the climate crisis that you're struggling to stay afloat or stay in the work, it might be a great time to call a climate-aware therapist. In recent years, a conscious group of psychotherapists, social workers, and psychiatrists have come together to help people live more comfortably with their climate-awareness through diverse methods and practices.

These therapists are special in the sense that they will never pathologize one's eco-distress or dismiss it as catastrophic thinking, whereas other therapists sometimes do (which ends up leaving people feeling misunderstood, alienated, and many times worse). They understand this distress to be a natural and reasonable reaction to what is happening - a sign of one's connection to and care for the world - at the same time that they provide perspectives, tools, and techniques for coping with it.
Some starting places to find climate-aware mental health professionals:

"Emotional methodologies" help people connect with and process difficult climate feelings, such as anxiety, grief, and dread, in ways that build courage, acceptance, and inner resilience. Unlike much climate-aware therapy, emotional methodologies are practices that are designed to be done in groups, and are not necessarily facilitated by a mental health professional.

In each their own way, they move people past denial and emotional paralysis towards deeper understanding of their own felt responses, as well as meaningful external actions they can take. (For more on emotional methodologies, see Jo Hamilton's 2020 PhD thesis.)

Here are a couple of our favorite emotional methodologies:

The Work That Reconnects

TWTR is practiced around the world as a way to cultivate inner resilience, healing, and connection in collectively dark times that demand empowered action. It is based in the teachings of Joanna Macy , a renowned activist and author whose life has been dedicated to helping people tap into the interconnectedness of all living things using a mixture of modern systems theory, Indigenous, and Buddhist philosophies.

TWTR moves participants through a four-stage journey that brings them into close contact with climate emotions for personal transformation:

The Evolving Edge

The Evolving Edge is a branch of TWTR that is focused on decolonizing the practices of TWTR to better meet the needs of communities of color.

Good Grief Network

GGN is an innovative peer support network for processing and integrating the uncertainty and grief that the climate and wider eco-crisis can awaken in people. Based on Alcoholics Anonymous, this group format moves participants through a 10-step program in which key topics are processed in a supportive setting, such as: "accept the uncertainty of the predicament," "practice being with uncertainty," and "honor my mortality and the mortality of all."

Volunteers can request facilitation packages and run their own GGN 10-step programs, though they are also regularly facilitated online via a donation-based format that anyone is welcome to sign up for.

To practice somatics (from the Greek soma for "body") is to listen to the sensations that come in through the body as a foundational language. It is a way of working with the connection of the mind and body to become aware of deeply rooted conscious and unconscious patterns, survival strategies, and modes of existence that we learn from traumatic situations.

By becoming aware of these patterns embedded in our neurobiology, we can uproot and reorganize them towards justice-oriented change and liberation.

Generative Somatics

Generative Somatics, an organization that works in the service of climate and social justice, offers several kinds of trauma-informed somatic programs that engage our emotions, sensations, and physiology for individual, collective, and societal transformation. Specific programs for BIPOC are available.

As GS defines it, transformation means "the ability to take new actions that are aligned with our visions and our values even under the same old pressures."

Too often, we sit in silence with our difficult eco-emotions, which creates a sense of loneliness and powerlessness. Authentic conversations about how we're feeling - in a space where those feelings are welcomed - can dramatically change that. Talking with others who give us permission to share openly can be comforting, empowering, and unleash creativity all at the same time.

Climate Awakening

Sometimes you just need to express your climate feelings with other people who get it, and not much more is required. Activist and psychologist Margaret Klein Salamon created Climate Awakening as a series of ongoing sharing and listening sessions that anyone can drop into virtually.

Climate Cafes

Climate cafes are human-centric, emotions-friendly meetings where people can safely express what they're sensing about what the climate crisis means-not in some far-out future way, but for their own lives and loved ones. They are a relational and permission-giving space that help people work through their fears and frustrations.

Conceivable Future

Drawing attention to the pressure that the climate crisis puts on reproductive decisions, and the injustice this causes for people of childbearing age today, Conceivable Future hosts "house parties" where people can express their concerns and desires about how to have kids, or not, in these times.

The founders adamantly support personal choice and do not endorse any way as the "right" way to navigate reproductive decisions in the climate crisis, whether that might mean having multiple children, adopting, or refusing to reproduce.
the Conceivable Future "House Party How-To" and host your own gathering, or upload a about how the climate crisis is shaping your intimate decisions.

Climate and social justice activists are no strangers to feelings of overwhelm, depression, and burnout. While the ills of the world that we work to heal often feel like a relentless uphill battle that we can withstand for a while, eventually that climb becomes too much to bear.

Mindfulness and mindful meditation have been proven to be effective ways of finding restoration by grounding oneself in the present moment. They tap into truths about the non-dualistic joy and suffering that are part of existence at all times, in ways that are soulfully nourishing.

Here we share two climate-focused options. But mindfulness retreats that are not climate-specific-other retreats in a given faith tradition are also beneficial in their ability to cultivate rest, presencing, and restoration.

Plum Village

Plum Village, a Zen Buddhist retreat center in France that is rooted in the teachings of activist and global spiritual leader Thich Nhat Hanh , sometimes offers online mindfulness retreats for and climate activists . Recommended for moments of high emotional drama, despair, burnout, compassion fatigue, and general exhaustion.
You can also use their app from the comfort of your own home for free.
Boundless in Motion

The climate crisis disproportionately burdens communities of color and layers more stress on top of existing oppression. This in turn demands culturally sensitive support.

Zen Buddhist priest and senior scientist at the Environmental Defense Fund, Dr. Kritee Kanko hosts multi-day ecodharma retreats for people of color, as well as BIPOC grief circles.

Another very helpful way to cope with climate emotions is to learn more about how they're showing up in people's lives. By reading or listening to stories of how others are integrating these tough feelings into their lived experiences and harnessing them for deeper meaning and action, we come to feel less alone and perhaps inspired and energized. Keeping up to date on the latest research about the psychological impacts of climate can also be useful and encouraging. Here are two rich storehouses of resources.

Eco-Anxious Stories

This site serves as a welcoming and calming online realm, aimed at people who feel alone in their climate fears. It uses the power of stories to relieve that sense of isolation.

Gen Dread

This newsletter, authored by Dr. Britt Wray-who investigates to connection between climate change and mental health at Stanford and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine-shares nuanced perspectives on the emotional and psychological impacts of the climate crisis. It regularly explores tools for coping with eco-distress, the intersection of eco-anxiety and grief with social inequality, and new research and practices that are emerging from climate psychology and emotionally intelligent change-making.

Whatever path you choose to engage with climate emotions - one of the above or something else entirely - remember that feeling our feelings is part of climate work. To have our eyes wide open to both destruction and possibility takes courage.

May we be fueled by ferocious love for all we can save.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Resources for working with climate emotions - The All We Can Save Project

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
the All We Can Save project x Gen Dread As Susi Moser writes in All We Can Save, "Burnt-out people aren't equipped to serve a burning planet ... [so] the well-being of our hearts and souls must be reestablished to their rightful place as relevant, essential."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What is climate change? A really simple guide

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Human activities are causing world temperatures to rise, posing serious threats to people and nature.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
New continuous reaction process can help turn plant waste into sustainable aviation fuel

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Scientists successfully tested a new way to produce sustainable jet fuel from lignin-based agricultural waste. The team’s research demonstrated a continuous process that directly converts lignin polymers, one of the chief components of plant cells, into a form of jet fuel that could help improve performance of sustainably produced aviation fuels.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Extreme heat impacts daily routines and travel patterns

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A new study reveals that extreme heat significantly affects daily activities, leading people to reduce outdoor time and alter transportation choices. Vulnerable groups, such as low-income individuals without cars, face greater risks, as they are less able to avoid dangerous conditions. The study calls for targeted policy interventions, including shaded public spaces, heat day declarations and urban design improvements, to mitigate the impact of rising temperatures, particularly on the most vulnerable populations.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Positive environmental stories from 2024 so far

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Climate anxiety is very real, but these good news stories from 2024 prove there is hope for our planet.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The UK is done with coal. How’s the rest of the world doing?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The country’s final coal-fired power plant just shut down, marking a major milestone for the notoriously polluting fossil fuel.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Sustainable fashion ‘a win for the wallet and planet’

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
From biological dyes to ‘circular’ blazers, businesses are making clothing more eco-friendly.

# data[].attributes.attachment_caption
IEA report explain how our emissions increased in 2023

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
IEA report explain how our emissions increased in 2023 // The Week in Sustainability