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Fear-based approaches can dominate climate change communication.

Inducing fear can lead to mental health problems and can inhibit action.

Positive and constructive communication supports action and mental health.

A new study examines climate change messaging, indicating how fear-based approaches harm mental health while positive approaches can better engage people for action. Without questioning the quick, major changes humanity is forcing on the climate with enormous impacts, the study’s results challenge negative framings of “climate crisis,” “climate emergency,” “climate breakdown,” and similar phrases. Instead, climate change communication should support mental health for supporting action.

This new paper was published earlier this month in the journal Sustainable Development and was led by Zhaohui Su from Nanjing, China’s Southeast University. Seventeen other authors from eight countries contributed.

They summarized and analyzed published work from the past five years alongside continuing research, focusing on English-language work covering climate change and mental health. The authors identified three patterns emphasizing communication and messaging based on fear.

First, reporting typically highlights negative impacts from climate change. These negative impacts are indisputably real. They do not indicate the entire range of ongoing and expected climate change impacts, nor do they necessarily highlight action that........

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