Peer-reviewed article
Investigating perspectives and emotions on climate change among children and adolescents in San Cristóbal, Galápagos
Victoria Moffitt, Kelly Penelope Kennedy, Ayla Malefakis, Jennifer A. Pinto‐Martin ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-sonnet-5-5This study interviewed 30 children and adolescents on San Cristóbal Island in the Galápagos about what they think and feel about climate change. Participants also drew what they expect the island to look like in 100 years. The researchers identified themes including a personal connection with nature, anger and frustration, and sadness and loss. The authors say the findings can inform efforts to build emotional resilience and to address gaps in knowledge about climate change.
Key points
- An estimated one billion children live at extremely high risk of adverse effects from climate change.
- Most studies on children's emotions about climate change have been done in the Global North.
- The study used semi-structured qualitative interviews with 30 children and adolescents, plus drawings of the island in 100 years.
- Major themes were personal identification with nature, anger and frustration, and sadness and loss.
- The findings are meant to inform resilience interventions and educational initiatives to address knowledge gaps.
Limitations
The abstract describes a small qualitative sample of 30 children from one island, so the findings cannot be generalised or used to measure how common these feelings are. It does not report mental health outcomes or test any intervention.
Abstract
An estimated one billion children live at extremely high risk of adverse effects from climate change. Even when children are not exposed to direct physical impacts, the existential threat of climate change can have a psychological impact by creating a stressor that exacerbates underlying mental health disorders or contributes to the development of new disorders. Children and adolescents worldwide are experiencing high rates of fear and worry related to climate change, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Despite this disparate impact, most studies on this topic have been conducted in the Global North. The Galápagos Islands are part of a medium-income nation and will face stark impacts of climate change in the coming decades. Currently, it is unknown how the threat of climate change is affecting the mental health of the children living in the islands. To address this gap, we conducted semi-structured, qualitative interviews with children and adolescents on the island of San Cristóbal to determine their thoughts, perspectives, and understanding of climate change ( N = 30). These interviews also required participants to draw what they expect the island to look like in 100 years. We identified major themes from the interview transcripts and drawings, including the children’s personal identification with nature, feelings of anger and frustration, and feelings of sadness and loss regarding climate change. The findings from this study will inform interventions to promote emotional resilience among the children in San Cristóbal, as well as educational initiatives to address knowledge gaps.