As climate change accelerates, so does the mental distress it causes. In this episode, we interview Dr. Elizabeth Marks and Dr. Kris De Meyer to explore the critical intersection between mental health and climate change. We discuss eco-anxiety - the difficult emotions caused by direct or indirect exposure to climate change - and consider to what extent such emotions should be considered a clinical disorder. We also explore the unequal burden of climate change across populations and how fear-based climate messaging can be unhelpful. The episode goes on to suggest strategies for addressing both climate change and mental health, such as the benefits of 'action-based storytelling’ and the potential of individual agency and collective action to confront these challenges in an uncertain and changing world. 00:00 Introduction 02:00 What is eco-anxiety? 04:54 Inequalities in impact of climate change 07:25 Media messaging around climate change 12:04 What can we do in response to climate change? 19:42 ConclusionDr. Elizabeth MarksSenior Lecturer, Department of Psychology, University of Bath Deputy Director, Bath Centre for Mindfulness and Community https://researchportal.bath.ac.uk/en/persons/elizabeth-marksDr. Kris De Meyer Research Fellow, King’s College London Department of Neuroimaging Visiting Lecturer, King’s College London, Department of Geographyhttps://www.kcl.ac.uk/people/kris-de-meyerDirector, University College London Climate Action Unit https://www.ucl.ac.uk/climate-action-unit/how-we-workProduction creditsThis podcast was produced by a group of PhD students from UCL. Huge thanks from the Mental Elf to the podcast team (in alphabetical order):Alex Martin, PhD student, University College London https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexmartin111/Annabelle Olsson, PhD student, University College London https://www.linkedin.com/in/annabelle-eveline-olsson-806b2214a/Jasmine Lee (Presenter), PhD student, University College London https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasmineleecy/Jehanita Jesuthasan, PhD student, University College Londonhttps://linkedin.com/in/jehanita-jesuthasan-0321851a3Oliwia Stecko, PhD student, University College London https://www.linkedin.com/in/oliwia-steckoRitika Chokhani, PhD student, University College Londonhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/ritika-chokhani Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.