Says Mitzi Tan, 23, the Philippines. (This is an email I got from Avaaz.)
That’s the heartbreaking story one young person told us about how the climate crisis scares her. And she’s not alone.
Avaaz members just funded the biggest-ever survey on climate anxiety in children and young people — surveying 10,000 people in 10 countries around the world. In every country, it shows that anxiety about the planetary crisis is very high, and it’s not just because we’re witnessing devastating climate disasters, it’s also linked to governments consistently failing to take decisive, meaningful action to stop the crisis.
We can still stop runaway climate change. We know what’s needed, and what governments must do. But it will require bold political will and determination — and that’s been woefully missing. Yet things are moving, there is new momentum, and there’s still tons of space for radical, grounded hope.
Here’s what the study found:
45%Nearly half of global youth surveyed (45%) say climate anxiety is affecting their daily lives: how they play, eat, study, and sleep.
75%More than seven in ten (75%) believe “the future is frightening” — jumping to 81% of youth surveyed in Portugal and 92% in the Philippines.
58%58% said governments were “betraying me and/or future generations,” while 64% said their governments are not doing enough to avoid a climate catastrophe.
39%Almost four in ten youngsters (39%) said they are now hesitant about having children.
These results are scary, but psychologists say it’s not just affecting children. Climate anxiety is being felt by people of all ages, everywhere. (Emphases Avaaz’s.)
It reminds me of that time I told a class full of kindergarteners every day for a year that the Boogy Man was hiding in the closet planning to eat them. Those kids are now very jumpy, which proves that we need to do something about this Boogy Man problem, like yesterday. If we don’t address the Boogy issue soon he’ll eat us before we’ve all had a chance to get our 25th Covid booster shot.
