Estimated reading time: 8 minutes
Climate anxiety: Fear for the future
Many children today are grappling with climate anxiety – an intense worry about climate change and its future impacts. It’s been described as a “chronic fear of environmental doom”. Climate anxiety isn’t a clinical disorder, but it can seriously affect kids’ well-being. Young people with these worries often experience symptoms like persistent sadness, trouble sleeping and nightmares, difficulty concentrating, or even panic attacks related to climate news. According to 2021 global study published in The Lancet, more than 45% of young people said their climate-related feelings negatively affect their daily life. In a 2020 BBC Newsround survey, 20% of children reported climate-related nightmares, and many youths felt they could not trust adults to protect them from this threat. In short, climate change is weighing on kids’ minds and mental health.
Why are children anxious?
In climate change, children see a very real threat to their future. They are growing up with news of record-breaking hurricanes, wildfires, and floods, and they understand that human-driven climate change is behind many of these disasters. Young people know they will live through the coming decades when climate impacts could worsen, so the crisis feels personal and urgent. They often imagine worst-case scenarios for their adulthood – from flooded cities to widespread extinctions – which naturally feeds their anxiety. A recent U.S. survey of young people (ages 16–25), revealed that nearly 60% were extremely worried about climate change’s impact on people.
Another driver of children’s climate anxiety is a sense of powerlessness and betrayal when they perceive adults aren’t taking action. Kids are taught about the problem but see insufficient solutions, leading to frustration and anger.
Many feel that governments and companies have let the crisis spiral out of control. They also feel unfairly burdened – they didn’t create climate change, but they will have to deal with its fallout. As the young climate activist Greta Thunberg put it, they are fighting because they “want a future”.
The U.S. feels the heat
It’s important to stress that kids’ climate fears are rooted in reality: climate change is happening, and its effects are increasingly visible, especially in the United States. Scientific agencies agree that human activities (like burning fossil fuels) are warming the planet, and American children, too, are now living with the consequences. The U.S. has seen a sharp rise in extreme weather disasters in recent years. For example, 2023 set a record with 28 separate billion-dollar weather and climate disasters in the country – the most ever in a single year. (The previous record was 22 disasters in 2020.) These included destructive hurricanes, floods, wildfires, severe storms, and heat waves. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. now averages about 20 billion-dollar disasters each year – more than double the rate decades ago. Scientists warn that such extremes will continue to worsen as the planet warms .
Kids don’t have to look far to see climate change effects. They have watched stronger hurricanes level communities, wildfires turn skies orange, and once-in-a-century floods happening far more often. When the local news shows their town breaking heat records or dealing with water shortages, it’s clear that climate change is not just a distant problem. This daily reality reinforces young people’s worries – it’s hard to tell a child to stay calm about climate change when they can literally see it unfolding around them.
U.S. climate policy shifts
Climate anxiety in young Americans is also influenced by what leaders are (or aren’t) doing about the problem. In the past few years, U.S. climate policy has seesawed – moving forward under one administration, then backtracking under the next – and kids have been watching.
Under President Joe Biden (2021–2024), the U.S. rejoined the Paris climate agreement on his first day in office, re-committing the U.S. to international climate cooperation. His team set ambitious targets for cutting greenhouse emissions and rolled out policies to promote clean energy and reduce fossil fuel use. In 2022, Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) – a landmark law investing about $369 billion in climate and clean energy initiatives, the largest such investment in U.S. history. The IRA and related actions (like boosting electric vehicle incentives and green infrastructure) signaled to young people that the government was taking the climate crisis seriously.
Under President Donald Trump (starting 2025), however, many of those climate measures have been rolled back or reversed. Upon taking office, Trump moved to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement again and even declared an “energy emergency” to expand oil, gas, and coal extraction.
His administration halted or scaled down numerous Biden-era climate programs. For instance, he froze funds for clean energy projects and EV infrastructure that had been approved under the IRA. Federal agencies were directed to loosen climate-related regulations, and proposals aimed at cutting greenhouse emissions (such as stricter power plant rules) were put on hold or canceled.
The government’s focus has now shifted away from climate action toward maximizing fossil fuel development. This sharp policy U-turn – essentially a climate policy retreat – has not been lost on the younger generation.
The rise of youth-led climate action
Faced with anxiety and frustration, many young people are channeling their feelings into activism and legal action. Rather than giving in to despair, kids and teens are organizing and speaking out, pushing adults to do more.
One prominent example is the Fridays for Future youth movement. Starting in 2018, students around the world – including thousands across U.S. cities – began walking out of classes on Fridays to demand climate action. In 2019, millions of students worldwide participated in coordinated climate strikes, bringing attention to the urgency of the crisis. This unprecedented youth activism showed that while kids may feel anxious, they are also willing to fight for their future. Joining together in protests gave many young participants a sense of empowerment and solidarity, which can help counteract feelings of helplessness.
Young Americans are also pursuing change through the courts. Youth climate lawsuits have emerged as a new avenue for activism. In 2023, a group of 16 youths sued the state of Montana, arguing that the state’s pro-fossil-fuel policies violated their constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment. In a historic decision, the court sided with the youth plaintiffs – ruling that Montana must consider climate impacts and protect the plaintiffs’ rights. In the words of 18-year-old plaintiff Rikki Held, it was “a victory for every young person whose future is threatened by climate change.”
This win – the first of its kind in the U.S. – has inspired similar legal challenges in other states. The rise of these lawsuits shows how determined young people are to hold leaders accountable. Taking action, whether by protesting or suing, also offers a constructive outlet for their climate anxiety: it transforms fear into purpose and pressures adults to take the issue as seriously as youth do.
Helping children find hope
Even as youth activism grows, not every child will march or file a lawsuit. Many are simply trying to cope with their climate anxiety day to day. Parents, teachers, and other adults can help by providing support and guidance. Experts recommend a few key strategies:
- Listen and validate: Encourage children to talk about their climate fears, and really listen. Let them know their feelings are understandable and that it’s okay to care about these issues. Avoid dismissive comments like “It’ll be fine” – that can make kids feel more alone. Instead, say things like, “I know this is scary, and I’m here with you.” Feeling heard can greatly ease a child’s anxiety.
- Provide perspective and hope: Yes, climate change is serious – but there are also people working on solutions. Share age-appropriate information about what’s being done (e.g. new renewable energy projects, international agreements, local conservation efforts) so kids see that progress is possible. Emphasize that many scientists, leaders, and ordinary citizens are fighting climate change, and victories do happen. This balanced perspective can replace some fear with optimism.
- Empower them to act: Taking action can transform anxiety into empowerment. Support kids in doing something positive, whether it’s organizing a recycling drive at school, planting trees, writing to elected officials, or just helping you save energy at home. Such activities give children a sense of control and accomplishment. Adults can join in these efforts too, so kids see that everyone has a role in solutions. Even small actions (like reducing food waste or biking instead of driving) can make a child feel like they’re part of the solution rather than just a victim of the problem.
- Encourage time in nature: Spending time outdoors is a natural stress reliever. Playing at the park, hiking, gardening, or observing local wildlife can help anxious kids reconnect with the beauty of the world they’re trying to save. Time in green spaces has been shown to lower anxiety and improve mood. It also reminds children what they love about the Earth, reinforcing that there’s something tangible and positive they’re working to protect – not just an abstract crisis.
- Seek support if needed: If a child’s eco-anxiety is overwhelming their daily life – for example, causing constant sleeplessness, sadness, or withdrawal – consider getting professional help. Therapists (including those knowledgeable about climate anxiety) can teach coping skills and provide reassurance. Sometimes just a few conversations with a counselor can help a young person feel less alone with their fears. There’s no shame in this; it’s about giving them tools to manage big feelings.
In the end, by helping kids find hope and demanding real climate action, we can help ensure the next generation grows up resilient and ready to solve the challenges they will face.