How to talk to children & teens about the climate crisis

Children and teenagers are worried about their future — they see and hear worrying stories about climate change. How should we respond? DCAN recently hosted a panel session to tackle these important issues.  Child psychologist, Professor Ann Sanson was joined by two local school students, Lumina and Thomas, who provided a lively discussion on how we can best support our young people in these uncertain times. 

Lumina and Thomas were very impressive in their knowledge about climate change and their advice to us on what we can do to help. They spoke about the skills they have gained from being involved in environmental and climate change actions and the variety of ways they have discovered to put "their voice out there" - from small, local actions to involvement in much bigger events like the School Strike4Climate

They reflected that their friends already have information from social media about climate change which is causing stress and anxiety. Lumina and Thomas encouraged us as parents, grandparents, guardians and teachers to fully engage with young people in discussions about climate change and, most importantly, to talk with them about the solutions. We can empower young people through giving them the information they need and by helping them to find ways to take positive actions in line with their concerns. 

For Lumina and Thomas, taking action has been the best antidote to their fear and anxiety - a lesson we can all benefit from. 

The slides from Professor Sansons' presentation are available through this link and you can find additional resources here.

  • Karen Large
    published this page in News 2021-05-26 15:05:56 +1000

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