Hello, Eco Anxiety

Eco-Anxiety refers to a fear of environmental damage or ecological disaster. This is undoubtedly heightened over recent times as we fear reaching a ‘tipping point’ of no-return from the damage as humans we have caused to our beautiful world.

With our digital lives never on pause, there is a constant stream of information never far away from our fingertips. Whilst I would love to believe that all of your digital worlds consist of climate activists and positive news, the reality is that click-bait news articles would rather grab our attentions with urgent messages of the end of the world! Whilst a hard-hitting reality check of the state of our environment can be a call to action, to constantly view these messaged may be doing us more harm than good.

During these lockdowns I have found myself with a strange eco-anxiety FOMO manifesting because I feel like I should be out on the streets fighting climate change, planting trees, or volunteering on a conservation project. Anything that could tangibly make a small difference for the fight to save our planet. After many a therapy hour discussing eco-anxiety and an underlying, ongoing existential crisis I thought I’d share my eco-anxiety advice. I am certainly not an expert, but have some free advice that I paid for 😉

As a lover of lists, I truly believe a good list if the first step to solving your problems. Begin by writing out steps that you would take in a non-lockdown or an ideal world and then have a think about what can be done online or remotely. Top tip: make point 1 on your list, cross it off and feel like a boss. 💃

For example, a list that looked like this:

1. Volunteer for a conservation project
2. Litter pick
3. Hanging out with friends to talk about climate change
4. Plant some trees
5. Attend a large climate event (such as Climate Reality Leadership Corps)
6. Attend a climate strike
   
   

Could be reconsidered as

1. See if any conservation projects/environmental charities need any remote volunteers
2. Re-check your recycling/composting habits in your household
3. Find an online group to talk about climate issues- some cities have Facebook groups where you can meet like-minded individuals who you could talk to virtually
4. If you have a garden or a sunny windowsill you could try growing your own plants and herbs? Alternatively you could support a tree-growing effort such as ‘What On Earth’s grove
5. Have a peak online for climate seminars, climate focused digital performances or workshops. LinkedIn and Eventbrite are tip-top platforms to search for ‘environment’ or ‘climate change’ to see what you can find.
6. Find a digital climate strike (such as the one For Your World held online in August)

The first list relies on the tangible experiences, and a sense of community which emerges from being around a group of people. The longer lockdown continues, the more I find myself craving these experiences; craving being around my friend and family or other like-minded individuals. However, if lockdown has shown me anything it is that wonderful communities exist online where you can connect with people from all around the world, and find a different sense of support. Since a lot of people find comfort from knowing that they are not alone with their emotions this could be an ideal way to ease some of your climate anxiety.

My next top tip refers back to the constant stream of information available at our fingertips. If you use social media follow accounts that support climate activism and curate yourself a feed that reflects the changes people are making across the world. Try and follow accounts of people and organisations from all countries, classes, race, gender and sexuality for an insight into what people are doing for the environment that reflects all of humanity. You may find inspiration for some at-home habits you can pick up to support the environment or some organisations and initiatives to support from home.

Take this time to further educate yourself. Whether you love film, tv or books there is a myriad of environmental information you can find away from social media. Broaden your knowledge of climate change, what can be done to combat it, the stories of those being affected by it and the hope we have for creating change. From the likes of David Attenborough’s ‘A life on our planet’ available on Netflix to the book ‘Waste: One Woman’s Fight Against America’s Dirty Secret by Catherine Coleman Flowers, I’m sure you can find something that suits your likes. Education is power, the more we know the more we can take action on.

My last tip is inspired by Pro Ski Mountaineer and climate speaker Caroline Gleich’s latest reel on Instagram. We can make swaps to the products we consume, change our lifestyle to be plant-based and grow our on vegetables but what the environment needs to heal is institutional change. Make sure you’re registered vote, vote in all of your elections and pressure your MPs to support green initiatives. Sign petitions that exist for the benefit of the planet. As always, raise your voice. Use that voice to share your experience with others and ease your eco-anxiety by taking charge of your climate experience. Tell your story and implore your friends and family to support you.

Peace and Love,

P xo