Anxious Earth, Anxious Minds: Climate Crisis & Mental Health with Dr Emma Lawrance

In this episode of The Happier Life Project, we explore the powerful connection between climate and mental health, examining how the climate crisis impacts our emotional well-being and the vital role a healthy planet plays in maintaining our mental health. Terms like ‘eco-anxiety,’ ‘environmental doom,’ ‘ecological grief,’ and ‘eco-guilt’ capture the psychological toll that environmental degradation and climate change are having on individuals and communities worldwide. This is why caring for the climate is so deeply intertwined with caring for our own mental health and the well-being of our communities.

Dr Emma Lawrance leads the Climate Cares Centre, where she collaborates with diverse experts to explore the connections between climate change and mental health, including through the Connecting Climate Minds global initiative. As the Mental Health Innovations Fellow at the Institute of Global Health Innovation, Emma directs the mental health strategy, focusing on digital mental health support and the Climate Cares program. With degrees in physics, chemistry, science communications, and neuroscience, Emma is passionate about the outdoors, especially in her native Adelaide Hills.

This conversation emphasizes the urgent need to protect our planet - not just for its sake, but for the essential role it plays in protecting our well-being. Dr Emma joins host Gabby to explore the emotional challenges of navigating a changing world. Together, they discuss how we can better educate ourselves and offer compassion to those affected.

Tune in to discover the deep connection between a healthy planet and a healthy mind, and the small, meaningful actions we can take to help slow the climate crisis, and foster healing for the Earth... and therefore ourselves.

To download the My Possible Self app: https://mypossibleself.app.link/podcast
To follow My Possible Self on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mypossibleself
Connecting Climate Minds Global Online Hub: hub.connectingclimateminds.org
Climate Cares Twitter: @ClimateCares
Climate Cares LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/climate-cares-imperial-college-london/
Climate Cares website: https://www.imperial.ac.uk/climate-cares/
Dr Emma Twitter: @Emma_L_Lawrance
Dr Emma LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emma-lawrance-5a93b468/