{"id":3885,"date":"2024-06-03T13:34:57","date_gmt":"2024-06-03T13:34:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.imperial.ac.uk\/ighi\/?p=3885"},"modified":"2024-06-03T13:34:57","modified_gmt":"2024-06-03T13:34:57","slug":"childrens-mental-health-must-be-prioritised-at-the-first-childrens-dialogue-at-the-un-climate-negotiations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.imperial.ac.uk\/ighi\/2024\/06\/03\/childrens-mental-health-must-be-prioritised-at-the-first-childrens-dialogue-at-the-un-climate-negotiations\/","title":{"rendered":"Children\u2019s mental health must be prioritised at the first Children\u2019s Dialogue at the UN Climate Negotiations"},"content":{"rendered":"

This blog post is written by Dr Alessandro Massazza, United for Global Mental Health, and Dr Omnia El Omrani, Climate Cares Centre, Imperial College London.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Girls
Credit: Moniruzzaman Sazal\/ Climate Visuals<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

No country is <\/span>sufficiently protecting<\/span><\/a> children and young people\u2019s health, <\/span>their environment and their futures<\/span>. Young people under 24 make up 41% of all people alive today. Among them, 89% live in <\/span>low- and middle-income countries<\/span><\/a> that are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. According to <\/span>Save the Children<\/span><\/a>, a child born in 2020 will be exposed to seven times the number of heatwaves as their grandparents, even if the emission reduction targets set by the 2015 Paris Agreement are met.<\/span><\/p>\n

As a result, children\u2019s physical and mental health is being disproportionately affected by climate change. The <\/span>2022 IPCC report<\/span><\/a> indicated there is very high confidence that climate change has already negatively impacted mental health globally, with children and young people identified as populations at higher risk.<\/span><\/p>\n

Extreme weather events can negatively impact children\u2019s mental health by exposing them to potentially traumatic events such as the death of loved ones and serious injury, as well as by negatively impacting determinants of mental health such as increasing levels of food insecurity, causing family separation during crises, increasing the risk of violence against children, or leading to school closures. In Australia, a recent <\/span>UNICEF report <\/span><\/a>highlighted that more than 1.4 million Australian children and young people experience at least one climate disaster or extreme weather event every year. That is equivalent to one in six children, and that number is on the rise.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Increasing global temperatures and extreme heat are also impacting children\u2019s mental health as more and more children are being exposed to <\/span>extreme temperatures<\/span><\/a>. Extreme heat exposes children to chronic levels of stress, disrupting sleep and increasing domestic violence. The perinatal period is particularly affected by extreme heat resulting in obstetric complications, and potentially impacting <\/span>children\u2019s emotional and cognitive development<\/span><\/a>. For example, In recent months, multiple countries from South Sudan to the Philippines were forced to impose school closures due to extreme temperatures, with potential negative consequences on the mental health of children.<\/span><\/p>\n

Finally, children\u2019s mental health and wellbeing are being negatively affected as young generations grapple with the perception of climate change as an existential threat. Children around the world have been found to be experiencing a range of uncomfortable emotions concerning climate change variously described as climate anxiety, climate distress, or eco-anxiety. <\/span>One study<\/span><\/a> of 10,000 children and young people across 10 countries found that 59% of participants were very or extremely worried about climate change and 45% of participants reported that their feelings about climate change negatively affected their daily life and functioning. Although these reactions may be experienced as distressing and may act as a stressor that can worsen mental health, it\u2019s important to highlight that in most cases they are adaptive responses to climate change and should not in themselves be pathologized.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Children
Credit: Abir Abdullah \/ Climate Visuals Countdown<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Given the growing evidence on the impacts of climate change on children\u2019s mental health, it is paramount that mental health is prioritised in discussions on children and climate change. For the first time, the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has been tasked with holding an expert dialogue on the disproportionate impacts of climate change on children to identify appropriate child-responsive policy solutions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The <\/span>Climate Cares Centre<\/span><\/a> at Imperial College London has joined forces with <\/span>United for Global Mental Health<\/span><\/a> with support from partners of the <\/span>Global Mental Health Action Network<\/span><\/a> from Brazil and Azerbaijan, to call for children\u2019s mental health to be central in this dialogue.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

You can find the full submission linked on this page<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Recommendations<\/h3>\n

As part of this submission, we make a specific set of recommendations across three areas including <\/span>mental health support for children in the context of climate adaptation, integration of mental health into the \u200b\u200bGlasgow Work Programme on Action for Climate Empowerment (ACE), and ensuring the meaningful participation of children in the expert dialogue.<\/b><\/p>\n