The XI Environmental Conference, organized jointly by Familia Torres, the University of Barcelona (UB) and the meteorologist Tomàs Molina, gathered on Wednesday, 7th June, in Barcelona, twelve experts and climate activists to talk about the effect of the ecosocial crisis we live in on the mental health and future of young people and how climate anxiety is generating protest actions by those who will have to live in a future with not very good prospects. A fact that can lead them to play an important role in its construction and in a necessary change and that, in fact, could turn the problem into part of the solution, driving them to act. About 150 people attended the conference in person and more than a hundred more followed it virtually via the UB's YouTube channel.
At the inauguration, Tomás Molina recalled the beginnings of the Environmental Conference, in 2012 with the objective to generate an academic, scientific and social debate, which focused on climate change, renewable energies, water, etc. throughout the years. Miguel A. Torres, president of Familia Torres, pointed out that, despite all the alerts and the clear emergency we are experiencing, "everything remains the same, there are no changes, there is no will to radically change the situation." Although more and more companies are committed to the environment, "six of the ten largest companies in the world are from the oil sector and it is very difficult to fight against this." "According to the journal Nature, we are exceeding all limits for the Earth to be habitable," Torres recalled, and if we do nothing that can lead us "to extinction." Quoting the famous activist Greta Thunberg, he concluded, "it's time to rebel."
Teresa Jordà, the Catalan minister for Climate Action, pointed out that eco-anxiety is not only a matter of young people but of all citizens, although "we talk very little" and "it requires courage". "For too many years we have thought that resources were infinite and that we could do everything, that everything was possible", and "progress has been made" in the change, but "not enough". "The debate on water uses has not yet been opened", and the sector that suffers almost all the consequences is the primary, growers and farmers, a very important sector for adaptation to climate change. From a social point of view, Jordà concluded, "we are advancing in the energy transition", but we must remember that "there is no revolution that does not leave many people behind" and, in this case, we should avoid it.
The rector of the UB, Joan Guàrdia, spoke of the response to the climate emergency as a collective cause that challenges everyone and leads us to act in the face of a challenge. And in recent years, this response has been growing and "there is no going back". This is, he said, "a great opportunity".
Anna Barnadas, Catalan secretary of Climate Action, biologist and teacher, said during her speech that we are "very reluctant to change" and, in addition, "we have made the economy the maximum pillar of our progress". We must not "save the planet", the planet will live, but be humble – and sincere – and "save the life of our human species". In addition, we must review society, its values and land everything with science and data. Thus, young people can become resilient, and become a relay that, in addition, he has remarked, should enter politics because it is the way to transform everything.
The clinical and scientific aspects of ecoanxiety
In a first block, ecoanxiety was approached from a clinical point of view, describing and analyzing what it is and why it occurs. In two consecutive speeches that complemented each other, Dr. Virginia Krieger, from the Faculty of Psychology of the UB, and Caroline Hickman, psychotherapist from the University of Bath (England) and co-author of the largest scientific study that has been published on this topic, analyzed this global problem that is increasingly prevalent among children and young people.
The anxiety of uncertainty in the future and the impossibility of controlling it, a common feeling in our society, makes young people perceive that they have no future, that humanity is condemned and that, moreover, governments do not respond properly.
Firstly, the experts proposed two different but complementary ways to deal with the problem. On the one hand, to observe the signs of the development of this anxiety and, from the immediate family and social environment, to promote ecological learning and the involvement of children and young people in actions in favor of the environment and sustainability, in addition to the development of strategies to improve emotional well-being. On the other, the governments of the world should respond clearly, protecting the mental health of their citizens by undertaking ethical and collective policies against climate change to reduce the stress they suffer and improve their vision of the future.
Climate activism as reaction and need
The second block of the Environmental Conference was opened by CSIC professor Fernando Valladares. After denouncing the impact of denialism, a minority that is linked to political, social, economic interests... he counterposed eco-anxiety, a reaction to a very serious situation that must be fought from the root, since it is a problem that can prevent action. And action, precisely, improves eco-anxiety, and activism is one of those therapeutic forms. One can also react with anger, a way to focus concern on a positive way and that can lead to more intense activism, which breaks inertia. This is what’s behind ‘Fridays for Future' or actions in art museums around the world. A social movement that "cannot be ignored and has great power." Connecting these two reactions is very important to be able to change things, it is "very healthy" for people and collectives, and a "virtuous circle” that could save us from the "cliff" towards which we are headed. That is why he invited the audience to reflect and act to achieve the rupture we need.
Then, Tomàs Molina and Carlota Bruna, dietitian-nutritionist and ambassador of the European Climate Pact, talked about climate anxiety. Based on a survey carried out during the conference, they pointed out how widespread this concern is in all age groups, which manifests itself as helplessness, anxiety and sadness, but also in anger and fear. An anguish about the future of humanity and about the course of life itself that is reinforced by a practically zero effect of public policies when it comes to calming it down with their actions.
The renowned German climate activist Luisa Neubauer, co-organizer of "Fridays for Future", also intervened with a small presentation entitled Why should you be a climate activist? Grown up in the nineties, a golden age where everything seemed possible, and nothing appeared to be a problem. However, she saw the situation worsening rapidly and governments doing almost nothing to remedy it. So, finally, she saw that she had the duty to act, and like her many young people, so that the changes are not only cosmetic but real and deep. A reaction against the future where we are going, but also towards inaction and sadness in the face of this dark horizon.
The final stretch of the Environmental Conference began with a round-table on actions initiated by young people to face this great crisis. From Greenpeace Spain, Dani Arenas wanted to break the "heroic vision" of climate activists and vindicate all the people behind and who make these actions possible. Everyone can do their bit. Elisabet Manich explained the genesis of the Citizens' Assembly for Climate in Barcelona and how they were organized to develop proposals for the institutions. Maria Serra, ambassador of the European Climate Pact, spoke of the duty to talk to everyone, to go everywhere, to get involved in the future of a world that we will all have to live in. "Ecoanxiety comes from not being inside the room" where decisions are made and you don't understand what they are doing, nor you can’t influence them. Finally, Beatriu Garcias, from End Fossil Occupy Barcelona, spoke of the movements born to turn this eco-anxiety into non-violent direct action to face the climate crisis and stated that the media do not give visibility to their actions, unless they resort to spectacular initiatives.
The Head of Communication of the Representation of the European Commission in Barcelona, Laura Rahola, spoke about the future of young people in Europe and what the EU institutions are doing. The reality is what it is, she admitted, but she pointed out that for four years climate change has been the "absolute priority" of the European Commission. This, however, will depend on the political options that govern the continent, and therefore citizen participation is necessary to continue and even accelerate the work that is underway.
Professor Teresa Sauras, from the Faculty of Biology of the UB and delegate of the rector for Sustainability, presented the conclusions of the Conference as a summary of all the speeches. The closing was made by the deputy vice-rector Ernest Abadal, Miguel A. Torres and Tomàs Molina. The XI Environmental Conference ended with a collective call to stop dependence on oil through t-shirts with the message "JUST STOP OIL" worn by some speakers, members of the advisory committee and attendees of the seminar.
The full video of the day is available on https://www.ub.edu/ubtv/video/xi-jornada-ambiental-2023
