Supporting children and youth in the face of climate change

Key Takeaways

• Today’s children and adolescents will be exposed to more extreme weather events across their lifetime than previous generations.
• When thinking about climate change, most young people experience negative emotions, such as worry, sadness, powerlessness, or anger.
• Some young people experience mental health problems that are caused or worsened by climate change, especially anxiety disorders, depression, or post-traumatic stress.
• Caregivers, as trusted sources, can play a crucial role in countering misinformation and ensuring that their children have access to honest and reliable information on climate change and its solutions.
• Caregivers can help their children cope and engage with climate change by conveying agency and hope, rather than “doom and gloom”.

This blog post is based on research originally published in Thomaes, S. (2025), Climate change and youth development: A view of an emerging field. International Journal of Behavioral Development

Climate change impacts the lives and futures of today’s youth

Due to our changing climate, today’s children and adolescents are set to live lives shaped by unprecedented environmental challenges. They will suffer more extreme heat waves, droughts, wildfires, floods, and other climate impacts than their parents’ and grandparents’ generations did. 

The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) predicted in 2021 that practically all children would experience at least one of those types of climate impacts in their lifetimes. UNICEF further estimated that one billion children, nearly half of the world’s population of children, would grow up in countries (mainly developing countries) where they face extremely high risk from the changing climate. 

Not only are these children at risk of being exposed to multiple climate impacts as they develop, but they are also vulnerable to such impacts because of uncertain access to services, such as health care and clean water, in times of crisis. 

Clearly, climate change poses a major public health challenge for youth around the world. In a recent article, I reviewed emerging scientific evidence of how climate change shapes young people’s psychological development and well-being, and the implications of those findings for caregivers. 

Psychological impacts of climate change

Climate change affects the psychological well-being and mental health of young people. In a comprehensive survey study on the impact of climate change, researchers studied 10,000 16- to 25-year-olds living in a diverse array of environments across 10 countries and six continents. Nearly 85% of youth said they were at least “moderately” (if not “very” or “extremely”) worried about climate change. 

Some 45% of the young people said their concerns about climate change had interfered with their daily lives and functioning, and many held pessimistic beliefs about the future.

Youth in the study also reported feeling sadness, anger, and powerlessness about climate change. Some 45% of the young people said their concerns about climate change had interfered with their daily lives and functioning, and many held pessimistic beliefs about the future (e.g., 75% said they thought the future was frightening). 

Climate change and youth’s mental health

Such responses to the reality of climate change are understandable and rational. At the same time, while we do not know the exact numbers, some percentage of youth experience mental health problems that are caused or worsened by climate change – problems such as disturbed sleep, obsessive thinking, anxiety disorders, depression, or post-traumatic stress. 

Climate change may contribute to such disturbances in youth’s mental health in at least three ways: 

• Direct effects occur when young people personally experience extreme weather-related events – such as storms or floods – that are disturbing or poignant. 

• Indirect effects occur when societal consequences of climate change – such as forced displacement or famine – affect youth. 

• Vicarious effects occur when climate change triggers youth’s feelings of existential threat – the sense that the future is uncertain or grim. 

Talking with young people about climate change

What can caregivers do to help young people cope with these stresses, navigate the realities of climate change, and protect their mental health while preparing for a challenging future?

Fostering youth’s open but critical consumption of information about climate change 

It is important for caregivers (along with teachers and other professionals working with youth) to raise awareness of climate change and help young people obtain reliable and honest information on climate change and ways to address it. 

This is especially important since young people are at risk of being exposed to misinformation (e.g., claims that nothing can be done to mitigate climate catastrophe, that climate change is a hoax, or that its impacts are exaggerated), especially on social media. For some youth, such misinformation can contribute to disruptively high anxiety; for others, it can encourage skepticism about the severity of threats from climate change. 

Caregivers can also help children interpret and contextualize extreme weather events. For example, they could explain that it is often hard to be sure if single extreme weather events (e.g., the heavy rains that led to the flash floods in Texas in the summer of 2025) are caused by climate change, but that we do know that climate change makes such heavy rains increasingly common and that globally, floods kill thousands of people and cause millions to flee each year. 

Using facts to foster hope

It is particularly challenging for caregivers (and all of us) to communicate about climate change in a way that empowers children, rather than numbing or paralyzing them. Intuitively, adults may be inclined to emphasize the climate catastrophes that will occur if we fail to take action now, which may inadvertently fuel a sense of doom and gloom in children. 

Although such messages may be factually correct, they likely are ineffective in helping young people cope and supporting their engagement in actions to reduce climate impacts. To achieve that goal, research suggests, caregivers need to talk to children in way that allows them to experience a sense of agency or hope. 

Caregivers could emphasize that it is still possible to slow climate change with collective, collaborative action.

Hopeful messages about climate can and should be based on scientific facts and realistic analysis rather than being overly naïve or utopian. For example, caregivers could emphasize that it is still possible to slow climate change with collective, collaborative action. They could point out that there is reason for optimism because we know exactly what is needed to help address the effects of climate change: For example, reducing global greenhouse gas emissions will be hard, but at least we know what to do. 

Leveraging benefits of environmental activism and alignment with youth values

Young people are not responsible for climate change, nor can they be responsible for solving the problems associated with climate change. Still, many young people, especially adolescents, are driven to do what they can do to contribute to mitigating climate change. 

Through activism, young people can find like-minded peers and work collaboratively toward a meaningful goal. Such engagement can counter feelings of hopelessness or powerlessness, providing individual health benefits as well as broader environmental and social benefits. 

Caregivers can foster such engagement in young people by tapping into personal values and preferences and typical youth tendencies. As caregivers of teenagers know all too well, most youth prefer thinking for themselves and creating their own solutions rather than being told what to do. Encouraging young people by gently offering resources and allowing room for self-direction can be effective. 

Focusing on the personal benefits of climate responsible behaviors

Caregivers can also point out that while protecting the climate can sometimes be costly (e.g., giving up a habit of buying affordable, trendy clothes from a fast fashion brand), it can have personal benefits. For example, caregivers can focus on conveying how climate-responsible behaviors are aligned with young people’s personal values and priorities. 

Most adolescents care about establishing autonomy and being respected by their peers. Accordingly, an engaging message for them is that climate protection is for independent-minded people who are mature enough to stand up for what they believe in, challenge authorities that fail to take action, or act on the concerns of young generations. 

Conclusion

Today’s children and adolescents are coming of age in a world that is threatened by climate change. Depending on where they live, youth may be encountering significant threats right now, but these threats are looming for nearly everyone around the globe. It can be hard for young people to understand, cope with, and act on climate change. 

Caregivers can support their children by raising awareness of climate change; providing access to reliable information; fostering agency and hope; and framing climate protection as independent, socially responsible behavior.