Climate Change Resource Center

Last updated May 2025

 

* indicates particularly high-yield reviews and white papers and/or seminal research.

• Acheson, R. (2023). Research digest : Mental health implications of climate change for children and young people. Journal of Child Psychotherapy, 49(1), 149‑160.
• Akkaya-Kalayci, T., Vyssoki, B., Winkler, D., Willeit, M., Kapusta, N. D., Dorffner, G., & Özlü-Erkilic, Z. (2017). The effect of seasonal changes and climatic factors on suicide attempts of young people. BMC Psychiatry, 17(1), 365. doi:10.1186/s12888-017-1532-7 
• Augustinavicius JL, Lowe SR, Massazza A et al. Global climate change and trauma: An International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies Briefing Paper. 2021. Retrieved from: trauma. 
• Baker, C., Clayton, S., & Bragg, E. (2021). Educating for resilience: parent and teacher perceptions of children’s emotional needs in response to climate change. Environmental Education Research, 27(5), 687-705. doi:10.1080/13504622.2020.1828288 
• Barkin, J. L., Philipsborn, R. P., Curry, C. L., Upadhyay, S., Geller, P. A., Pardon, M., Dimmock, J., Bridges, C. C., Sikes, C. A., Kondracki, A. J., & Buoli, M. (2024). Climate Change is an Emerging Threat to Perinatal Mental Health. Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association, 30(3), 683‑689. https://doi.org/10.1177/10783903221139831
• Benoit, L., R. Lowe, S., Thomas, I., Amsalem, D., & Martin, A. (2025). Climate change hopefulness, anxiety, and behavioral intentions among adolescents : Randomized controlled trial of a brief “selfie” video intervention. Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health, 19(1), 13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13034-025-00872-x
• Benoit, L., Thomas, I., & Martin, A. (2022). Review : Ecological awareness, anxiety, and actions among youth and their parents – a qualitative study of newspaper narratives. Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 27(1), 47‑58. https://doi.org/10.1111/camh.12514
• Bolek, M., Dobrzeniecki, K., Błaszczyszyn, K., Hopej, N., Muc, K., & Turek, K. (2024). The impact of climate change on mental health of children and adolescents. Quality in Sport, 16, 52387‑52387. https://doi.org/10.12775/QS.2024.16.52387
• Brophy, H., Olson, J., & Paul, P. (2023). Eco-anxiety in youth : An integrative literature review. International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, 32(3), 633‑661. https://doi.org/10.1111/inm.13099
• Burke, S. E. L., Sanson, A. V., & Van Hoorn, J. (2018). The Psychological Effects of Climate Change on Children. Current Psychiatry Reports, 20(5), 35. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-018-0896-9
• Chalupka, S., Anderko, L., & Pennea, E. (2020). Climate Change, Climate Justice, and Children’s Mental Health : A Generation at Risk? Environmental Justice, 13(1), 10‑14.
• Clayton S, Manning CM, Speiser M, Hill AN. Mental Health and Our Changing Climate: Impacts, Inequities, Responses. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association, and ecoAmerica. 2021. Retrieved from: https://ecoamerica.org/mental-health-and-our-changing-climate-2021-edition/
• *Clayton, S., Manning, C. M., Hill, A. N., & Speiser, M. (2023). Mental Health and Our Changing Climate: Children and Youth Report 2023. Retrieved from: https://ecoamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Children-and-Youth-Report-2023.pdf
• Clemens, V., von Hirschhausen, E., & Fegert, J. M. (2022). Report of the intergovernmental panel on climate change : Implications for the mental health policy of children and adolescents in Europe—a scoping review. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 31(5), 701‑713. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-020-01615-3
• Dean, J. G., & Stain, H. J. (2010). Mental health impact for adolescents living with prolonged drought. Australian Journal of Rural Health, 18(1), 32‑37. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1440-1584.2009.01107.x
• Devonald, M., Vintges, J., & Jones, N. (2022). Supporting adolescent mental health in humanitarian settings : To what extent do interventions consider climate change and its intersectional impacts? Intervention Journal of Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Conflict Affected Areas, 20(1), 81. https://doi.org/10.4103/intv.intv_31_21
• Ediz, Ç., & Yanik, D. (2023). The effects of climate change awareness on mental health : Comparison of climate anxiety and hopelessness levels in Turkish youth. International Journal of Social Psychiatry, 69(8), 2157‑2166. https://doi.org/10.1177/00207640231206060
• Gislason, M. K., Kennedy, A. M., & Witham, S. M. (2021). The Interplay between Social and Ecological Determinants of Mental Health for Children and Youth in the Climate Crisis. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(9), Article 9. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18094573
• Godden, N. J., Farrant, B. M., Yallup Farrant, J., Heyink, E., Carot Collins, E., Burgemeister, B., Tabeshfar, M., Barrow, J., West, M., Kieft, J., Rothwell, M., Leviston, Z., Bailey, S., Blaise, M., & Cooper, T. (2021). Climate change, activism, and supporting the mental health of children and young people : Perspectives from Western Australia. Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health, 57(11), 1759‑1764. https://doi.org/10.1111/jpc.15649
• Gunasiri, H., Wang, Y., Watkins, E.-M., Capetola, T., Henderson-Wilson, C., & Patrick, R. (2022). Hope, Coping and Eco-Anxiety : Young People’s Mental Health in a Climate-Impacted Australia. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(9), Article 9. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19095528
• *Hickman C, Marks E, Pihkala P, et al. Climate anxiety in children and young people and their beliefs about government responses to climate change: a global survey. Lancet Planet Heal. 2021;5(12):e863-e873. 
• Karaliuniene, R., Campana, A. M., Ori, D., De Filippis, R., Shoib, S., Saeed, F., Mohammed, M., Handuleh, J., Ransing, R., Codati, A., … Pereira-Sanchez V. (2022). Effects of the global ecological crisis on the mental health of children and adolescents : an international perspective. Psychiatria Danubina, 34(2), 296‑298. https://doi.org/10.24869/psyd.2022.296
• Kousky, C. (2016). Impacts of Natural Disasters on Children. The Future of Children, 26(1), 73-92. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/43755231 
• Lass-Hennemann, J., Sopp, M. R., Ruf, N., Equit, M., Schäfer, S. K., Wirth, B. E., & Michael, T. (2024). Generation climate crisis, COVID-19, and Russia–Ukraine-War : Global crises and mental health in adolescents. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 33(7), 2203‑2216. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-023-02300-x
• Léger-Goodes, T., Malboeuf-Hurtubise, C., Mastine, T., Généreux, M., Paradis, P.-O., & Camden, C. (2022). Eco-anxiety in children : A scoping review of the mental health impacts of the awareness of climate change. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.872544
• Leonhardt, M., Granrud, M. D., Bonsaksen, T., & Lien, L. (2022). Associations between Mental Health, Lifestyle Factors and Worries about Climate Change in Norwegian Adolescents. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(19), Article 19. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191912826
• *Lewandowski RE, Clayton SD, Olbrich L, et al. Climate emotions, thoughts, and plans among US adolescents and young adults: a cross-sectional descriptive survey and analysis by political party identification and self-reported exposure to severe weather events. The Lancet Planetary health. 2024;8(11):e879-e893. doi:10.1016/S2542-5196(24)00229-8
• Lykins, A. D., Parsons, M., Craig, B. M., Cosh, S. M., Hine, D. W., & Murray, C. (2023). Australian Youth Mental Health and Climate Change Concern After the Black Summer Bushfires. EcoHealth, 20(1), 3‑8. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10393-023-01630-1
• Ma, T., Moore, J., & Cleary, A. (2022). Climate change impacts on the mental health and wellbeing of young people : A scoping review of risk and protective factors. Social Science & Medicine, 301, 114888. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.114888
• Martin, G., Reilly, K. C., & Gilliland, J. A. (2020). Impact of awareness and concerns of climate change on children’s mental health : A scoping review protocol. JBI Evidence Synthesis, 18(3), 516. https://doi.org/10.11124/JBISRIR-D-19-00253
• Martin, G., Reilly, K., Everitt, H., & Gilliland, J. A. (2022). Review : The impact of climate change awareness on children’s mental well-being and negative emotions – a scoping review. Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 27(1), 59‑72. https://doi.org/10.1111/camh.12525
• McNamara, M., Barondeau, J., & Brown, J. (2024). Mental Health, Climate Change, and Bodily Autonomy : An Analysis of Adolescent Health Policy in the Post-Pandemic Climate. Pediatric Clinics, 71(4), 729‑744. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pcl.2024.05.004
• Middleton, J., Cunsolo, A., Jones-Bitton, A., Wright, C. J., & Harper, S. L. (2020). Indigenous mental health in a changing climate : A systematic scoping review of the global literature. Environmental Research Letters, 15(5), 053001. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ab68a9
• Ndetei, D. M., Wasserman, D., Mutiso, V., Shanley, J. R., Musyimi, C., Nyamai, P., Munyua, T., Swahn, M. H., Weisz, J. R., Osborn, T. L., Bhui, K., Johnson, N. E., Pihkala, P., Memiah, P., Gilbert, S., Javed, A., & Sourander, A. (2024). The perceived impact of climate change on mental health and suicidality in Kenyan high school students. BMC Psychiatry, 24(1), 117. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-024-05568-8
• Newport, C., Tiatia-Siau, J., Aimiti Ma’ia’i, Kd., Underhill-Sem, Y., & Woodward, A. (2024). Anchored in pacific protocols – climate change, mental health and wellbeing. Climate and Development, 16(6), 540‑550. https://doi.org/10.1080/17565529.2023.2255563
• Ogunbode, C. A., Pallesen, S., Böhm, G., Doran, R., Bhullar, N., Aquino, S., Marot, T., Schermer, J. A., Wlodarczyk, A., Lu, S., Jiang, F., Salmela-Aro, K., Hanss, D., Maran, D. A., Ardi, R., Chegeni, R., Tahir, H., Ghanbarian, E., Park, J., … Lomas, M. J. (2023). Negative emotions about climate change are related to insomnia symptoms and mental health : Cross-sectional evidence from 25 countries. Current Psychology, 42(2), 845‑854.
• Ojala, M. (2022). Commentary : Climate change worry among adolescents—on the importance of going beyond the constructive–unconstructive dichotomy to explore coping efforts—a commentary on Sciberras and Fernando (2021). Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 27(1), 89‑91.
• Ojala, M., & Bengtsson, H. (2019). Young People’s Coping Strategies Concerning Climate Change: Relations to Perceived Communication With Parents and Friends and Proenvironmental Behavior. Environment and Behavior, 51(8), 907-935. doi:10.1177/0013916518763894 
• Ojala, M. (2015). Hope in the Face of Climate Change: Associations With Environmental Engagement and Student Perceptions of Teachers’ Emotion Communication Style and Future Orientation. The Journal of Environmental Education, 46(3), 133-148. doi:10.1080/00958964.2015.1021662 
• Ojala, M. (2012). How do children cope with global climate change? Coping strategies, engagement, and well-being. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 32(3), 225-233. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2012.02.004 
• Parnes, M. F., Amort, B., Calderon-Smith, C., Chambers, E. C., & Musicaro, R. (2024). Child and Adolescent Engagement with Climate Change on Social Media and Impacts on Mental Health : A Narrative Review. Current Pediatrics Reports, 12(4), 158‑167. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40124-024-00331-9
• Parry, S., McCarthy, S. R., & Clark, J. (2022). Young people’s engagement with climate change issues through digital media – a content analysis. Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 27(1), 30‑38. https://doi.org/10.1111/camh.12532
• Patel, S. S., Robb, K., Pluff, C., Maldonado, E., Tatar, G., & Williams, T. (2021). Elevating Mental Health Disparities and Building Psychosocial Resilience among BIPOC Children and Youth to Broaden the Climate and Health Discourse. Journal of Applied Research on Children, 12(1).
• *Perera F, Nadeau K. Climate Change, Fossil-Fuel Pollution, and Children’s Health. N Engl J Med. 2022;386(24):2303-2314.  
• Pinsky E, Guerrero APS, Livingston R. Our House Is on Fire: Child and Adolescent Psychiatrists in the Era of the Climate Crisis. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2020 May;59(5):580-582. doi: 10.1016/j.jaac.2020.01.016. PMID: 32340687.
• Ramadan, R., Randell, A., Lavoie, S., Gao, C. X., Manrique, P. C., Anderson, R., McDowell, C., & Zbukvic, I. (2023). Empirical evidence for climate concerns, negative emotions and climate-related mental ill-health in young people : A scoping review. Early Intervention in Psychiatry, 17(6), 537‑563. https://doi.org/10.1111/eip.13374
• Rother, H.-A., Etzel, R. A., Shelton, M., Paulson, J. A., Hayward, R. A., & Theron, L. C. (2020). Impact of Extreme Weather Events on Sub-Saharan African Child and Adolescent Mental Health : A Protocol for a Systematic Review. Atmosphere, 11(5), Article 5. https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos11050493
• Rother, H.-A., Hayward, R. A., Paulson, J. A., Etzel, R. A., Shelton, M., & Theron, L. C. (2022). Impact of extreme weather events on Sub-Saharan African child and adolescent mental health : The implications of a systematic review of sparse research findings✰. The Journal of Climate Change and Health, 5, 100087. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joclim.2021.100087
• Rothschild, J., & Haase, E. (2023). Women’s mental health and climate change Part II : Socioeconomic stresses of climate change and eco-anxiety for women and their children. International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics, 160(2), 414‑420. https://doi.org/10.1002/ijgo.14514
• Sanson, A., & Dubicka, B. (2022). Editorial : The climate and ecological mental health emergency – evidence and action. Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 27(1), 1‑3.
• *Schwartz SEO, Benoit L, Clayton S, Parnes MF, Swenson L, Lowe SR. Climate change anxiety and mental health: Environmental activism as buffer. Curr Psychol. 2022 Feb 28:1-14. doi: 10.1007/s12144-022-02735-6. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 35250241; PMCID: PMC8883014. 
• Sciberras, E., & Fernando, J. W. (2022). Climate change-related worry among Australian adolescents : An eight-year longitudinal study. Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 27(1), 22‑29. https://doi.org/10.1111/camh.12521
• *Shaligram D, Acquaye A, Wortzel JR, DeJong SM. Climate Mental Health Disparities: A Biopsychosociocultural Perspective. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2025 Feb 18:S0890-8567(25)00084-X. doi: 10.1016/j.jaac.2024.12.011. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 3997
• Sharpe, I., & Davison, C. M. (2022). A Scoping Review of Climate Change, Climate-Related Disasters, and Mental Disorders among Children in Low- and Middle-Income Countries. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(5), Article 5. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19052896
• Sheu, J. C., Torres, M. I. M., Gordon, M. R., Nguyen, P. T., & Coverdale, J. H. (2021). Potential Impact of Climate Change on Human Trafficking : A Narrative Review. The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 209(5), 324. https://doi.org/10.1097/NMD.0000000000001312
• Thomas, I., Martin, A., Wicker, A., & Benoit, L. (2022). Understanding youths’ concerns about climate change: a binational qualitative study of ecological burden and resilience. Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health, 16(1), 110. 
• Singh, G., Xue, S., & Poukhovski-Sheremetyev, F. (2022). Climate emergency, young people and mental health : Time for justice and health professional action. BMJ Paediatrics Open, 6(1), e001375. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjpo-2021-001375
• Trombley, J. (2023). Fine particulate matter exposure and pediatric mental health outcomes : An integrative review. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 55(5), 977‑1007. https://doi.org/10.1111/jnu.12888
• van Nieuwenhuizen, A., Hudson, K., Chen, X., & Hwong, A. R. (2021). The Effects of Climate Change on Child and Adolescent Mental Health : Clinical Considerations. Current Psychiatry Reports, 23(12), 88. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-021-01296-y
• Vergunst, F., & Berry, H. (2021). Mental health and climate change – a developmental life course perspective. European Psychiatry, 64(S1), S231‑S232.
• Vergunst, F., & Berry, H. L. (2021). Climate Change and Children’s Mental Health: A Developmental Perspective. Clinical Psychological Science, 10(4), 767-785. doi:10.1177/21677026211040787 
• Wall, E., & Eapen, V. (2025). Nurturing tomorrow : Mental health effect on children and youth due to climate change. Australian Journal of General Practice, 54(1), 51‑55.
• *Wortzel JD, Denga VS, Angrish J, et al. Pediatric climate distress: A scoping review and clinical resource. The Journal of Climate Change and Health. 2024;20:100349. doi:10.1016/J.JOCLIM.2024.100349
• Wortzel JR, Guerrero APS, Aggarwal R, Coverdale J, Brenner AM. Climate Change and the Professional Obligation to Socialize Physicians and Trainees into an Environmentally Sustainable Medical Culture. Acad Psychiatry. 2022 Oct;46(5):556-561. 
• Wortzel, J. R., Lee, J., Benoit, L., Rubano, A., & Pinsky, E. G. (2022). Perspectives on Climate Change and Pediatric Mental Health: a Qualitative Analysis of Interviews with Researchers in the Field. Academic Psychiatry, 46(5), 562-568.
• Xu, Y., Wheeler, S. A., & Zuo, A. (2018). Will boys’ mental health fare worse under a hotter climate in Australia? Population and Environment, 40(2), 158‑181. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11111-018-0306-6
• Yu, W., & Weitzman, M. (2022). Climate Change, Air Pollution, and Children’s Mental Health. Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.58464/2155-5834.1491

 

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