Climate Change, Mental Health and Psychological Wellbeing by Stefania Maggi

• Hybrid
  event

• 482, MacOdrum Library, Carleton University

• 1125 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, ON, K1S 5B6

• Zoom
  meeting link

Abstract:
Climate change represents a critical threat to environmental stability and physical health, while also acting as a significant risk multiplier for mental health and psychological wellbeing. The pervasive and escalating nature of its impacts exacerbates mental health risks across diverse populations, establishing it as one of the foremost public health challenges of our time. When examined through an equity-focused lens, it is evident that climate change disproportionately burdens specific societal sectors. This disparity arises from the intersection of climate impacts with key social determinants of health, which compound the severity of its consequences.

This presentation will elucidate the multifaceted pathways through which climate change adversely affects mental health. It will distinguish between acute, clinically diagnosable conditions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depression, linked to extreme weather events, and the more chronic, insidious psychological effects associated with the all-encompassing ecological crisis. A key focus will be the characterization of eco-anxiety, a complex psychological response stemming from awareness of environmental degradation and concern for the future.

Moving beyond establishing these associations, the presentation will advocate for a solution-oriented framework informed by developmental sciences and positive psychology. It will explore adaptive strategies designed to support psychological flourishing with a particular emphasis on managing eco-anxiety. These strategies include cultivating a deeper connection with oneself, others and the natural world.

Biography:
Dr. Maggi is a researcher, educator, and a children’s rights advocate. She has been a faculty member at Carleton University since 2007 where she is cross appointed with the Childhood and Youth Studies program and the Department of Psychology. 

She teaches courses on the psychology of climate change, children’s rights, nature connection, and research methods. Her research, teaching, and advocacy are devoted to the mental health impacts of climate change on children and youth, green guidance; climate change education; and immersive technologies as tools to support meaningful engagement with climate action. 

Dr. Maggi is the Interim Director at the  Landon Pearson Centre for the Study of Childhood and Children’s Rights ; the founder of Mochi4ThePlanet  , a youth-centered intergenerational initiative promoting mental health and children’s rights in the context of the climate crisis; and The Luna Moth Circle, an intergenerational network of scholars, community groups, and youth organizations dedicated to advancing climate change education, and mental health expertise.