Understanding eco-anxiety and Promoting Eco- Generativity: Building a Positive Narrative for Sustainability [BIP]

Course description

The climate crisis is one of the most pressing and complex challenges facing younger generations today, with increasingly evident impacts on health. Extreme weather events, loss of biodiversity, and growing uncertainty about the future contribute to emotional distress, often difficult to manage. In this context, a growing interest has emerged in the field of Climate Psychology, a branch of psychology that explores the emotional, cognitive, and social processes underpinning the ecological and climate crisis, as well as our responses and adaptation strategies. Among the most relevant psychological phenomena is eco-anxiety, defined by the American Psychological Association as “the chronic fear of environmental cataclysm that results from observing the seemingly irrevocable impact of climate change and the associated concern for one’s future and that of next generations”. Eco-anxiety has been shown to significantly impact psychological well-being, with reference to young people. A global survey published in The Lancet Planetary Health (2021) revealed that 60% of respondents aged 16–25 reported being very worried about climate change, and nearly half stated that these concerns negatively affect their daily functioning.

This project seeks to address this psychosocial and educational challenge by promoting an innovative and proactive perspective focused on eco-generativity, nurturing positive psychological resources that can foster sustainable behavior, a sense of agency, and constructive, hopeful narratives about the future.

Students will learn to design interventions and strategies that promote eco-generativity and psychological well-being in the context of climate change. They will understand and address the cognitive and social impacts of eco-anxiety, while exploring ways to foster constructive and sustainable behaviours. The course gives them the knowledge and skills to develop educational, community-based, and experiential solutions that strengthen individual and collective resilience, encourage climate-oriented actions, and support mental health in response to environmental challenges.