Young Canadians seem more anxious than ever about the future of the planet, to the point that more than a third of them are now reluctant to have children, a new study reveals.
A little less than half of the thousand young Canadians aged 16 to 25 interviewed by researchers at Ontario’s Lakehead University believe that there is no more hope for humanity. Three-quarters of them consider the future to be frightening and believe that their elders have not taken enough care of the planet.
Asked about the Canadian government’s response to the climate crisis, around 70% of young people said they were “angry” or felt “abandoned”. Eight out of ten young people said that climate change has an impact on their mental health.
“It’s critical to recognize that young Canadians are feeling distress and mental health consequences because adults, policymakers, and governments have failed to adequately address the climate crisis,” write the authors of the report. study.
The data also shows that “young people feel helpless and betrayed and do not feel cared for, valued or protected when it comes to climate change and Canada’s response,” they add.
For example, two-thirds of young Canadians said they do not discuss the climate crisis with those around them, or feel they are not taken seriously when they do.
“It’s very concerning,” said one of the research authors, Lindsay Galway, a professor in Lakehead’s Department of Health Sciences. In our study, we argue that [ces sentiments] stem from the climate crisis itself, but also from the absence of urgent, transformative interventions, especially from the government. »
Young people, she adds, feel that the government is not listening to them, and the mechanisms that would allow them to influence their future (such as the right to vote, in some cases) are beyond their control. control.
Young people today are much more visible than they were in the past, mainly because they are much better informed, recalled Jalila Jbilou, associate professor at the School of Psychology at the University of Moncton.
“Recognition of their right to speak is much more important than before,” she said.
Also positive
But the news isn’t just bad: half of young Canadians believe they can be part of the solution on an individual level, and 71% of them believe that it is possible to act by joining forces.
Engaging in climate action, and particularly collective action, “can help people deal with difficult emotions and their climate anxiety,” the researchers say.
However, it is important to qualify the results of this survey, believes Ms.me Jbilou, since some questions offered only “yes”, “no” or “I don’t want to answer” as answer options. A young person could therefore only say he was worried, or not, about his future, without specifying.
That being said, she continues, citing young environmental activist Greta Thunberg as an example, young people can also be agents of change.
“It is thanks to these young people that things are changing and that we are seeing an awareness of the environment,” she said. It’s wonderful to see young people, even if they are anxious, worrying about their future. »
The fact that one in two young people is aware that they can have an impact at the individual level is “fundamental”, she believes, “because it teaches us that we can have an effect at our level”.
Mme Jbilou also points out that the anxiety of young people in the face of climate change is only one of the stresses present in their lives.
“Currently, we observe a certain general anxiety, whether it is associated with the climatic conditions or the living conditions, with professional hope, she said. There is also a social and even personal disengagement with regard to life as a couple. Couples are much less stable, and many young people live alone. So there is a certain direction that is not favorable and that is probably exacerbated by all that we hear about climate change. »
Faced with the data of the new study, it is essential to allow young people to express freely and without judgment what they feel, believes Lindsay Galway.
“Many young people don’t realize how common it is. Many suffer in silence with these powerful emotions. They don’t have anyone to talk to about it, and that’s a problem,” she said.
The findings of this survey were published by the Journal of Climate Change and Health.