“The enormous transformations to our planet from climate change can have powerful effects on our emotions, making us grieve what is lost,” states Panu Pihkala, adjunct professor of environmental theology at the University Helsinki, and an expert in eco-anxiety. Complex emotional responses come up in response to the climate crisis. Allowing oneself the time to truly feel and work through one’s emotional responses is essential in preventing burnout. Through our Climate Courage Workshops, we seek to provide emotional support, resources, tools, and community support.

The purpose of the Climate Courage Workshops is multifold: 

(1) To create a space which supports young climate leaders to lean into their feelings about the climate crisis and to make room for the safe expression of these feelings. Increasing one’s capacity to bear witness to the difficulties we are facing and sharing our experiences with the support of others through community increases emotional resilience. Feelings naturally flow and change, and expressing them supports that natural movement.

(2) To assist young climate leaders in the creation of a self-care plan to sustain them for the long-term. The leaders will identify their strengths and weaknesses in their care for themselves, and create a plan for addressing the areas of self-care which they identify as areas needing focus for long-term sustainability in climate work.

(3) To support young climate leaders in creating a vision for themselves as resilient leaders in their communities. Youth climate leaders will identify specific ways that the principle of standing for a sustainable, just and fulfilling future could operate in their lives as a leader within their community.