In this episode, we discuss the personal impact that climate change-fueled fires had on our guest and her young child. She also explains, from a therapist’s perspective, the steps parents (and others) can take to deal with the growing problem of climate anxiety in themselves and in their families. See below for links to many helpful resources we share.
Guest: Jennifer Silverstein, Licensed Clinical Social Worker
Great Guest Quote: “This is an existential worldwide problem. We're not going to solve it by ourselves and we need to work together, and…we really can't take care of our emotional well-being by ourselves, either.”
Keywords: #eco-anxiety,#climateanxiety,#eco-distress, #climatedistress, #childhoodmentalhealth,#parentmentalheath;#climatecrisis,#climateaction,#climatediscussions.#climatejustice
Host: Sean Mendelson
Transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1shFML82U17cndUeTwjPCbrjT_xd0ahiAUHFltT3oDmg/edit?usp=sharing
This episode’s recap blog post: coming soon
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Related Action Resources:
Jennifer Silverstein’s website: www.jennisilverstein.com
Climate Psychology Alliance North America’s Climate Aware Therapist Directory
Caroline Hickman’s study we referenced: Climate anxiety in children and young people and their beliefs about government responses to climate change: a global survey
Brief video on climate anxiety in families from NBC News: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dnu1xU9Qpzw
Climate Cafes: find one in your local area or online. Similar groups include the Collapse Club and Climate Awakening.
Climate Mental Health Network’s parent and caregiver resources
Good Grief Network: another excellent resource for parents
International Transformational Resilience Coalition: builds community-level capacity for mental wellness during the long climate emergency
Check out Episode 8 of Everyday Climate Champions for more information about how to have climate conversations with kids and adults
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Get in touch: crba.eccpodcast@gmail.com
Website: www.climaterealitybayarea.org/eccpodcast
The Climate Reality Project Bay Area Chapter catalyzes local solutions to the climate crisis in every corner of the San Francisco Bay Area. We work together to spark urgent action and rapid adoption of solutions to the climate crisis. As Climate Reality founder and Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore says, “Solving the climate crisis is within our grasp, but we need people like you to stand up and act.”
To learn more, visit: www.ClimateRealityBayArea.org
Podcast Production Team: Executive Producer/Editor: Dalya Massachi; Sound Designers/Engineer: Martin Sanchez; Co-Hosts/Researchers: Ellisa Feinstein, Isabella Genereaux, Sean Mendelson, Hasini Parepalli, Logo Designer: Gabriela Vargas