Preventing and Healing Climate Traumas: A Guide to Building Resilience and Hope in Communities

The UN IPCC's latest climate report emphasizes the need for a public health and prevention science approach to addressing mental health and psycho-social-spiritual problems caused by climate change. The book offers hope, inspiration, and a positive path forward to those affected by disasters, intersectional traumas, and eco-grief. It challenges the current thinking and approaches in mental health and disaster management and provides a practical guide for organizing community-based initiatives to prevent and heal traumas and promote wellness and resilience.

Format: Hardback
Length: 242 pages
Publication date: 30 March 2023
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

The latest United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) climate report, released on August 9, paints a stark picture of a civilization-altering event that is currently underway. This report emphasizes the profound impact that climate change-related disasters, emergencies, and toxic stresses are having on the mental health and psycho-social-spiritual well-being of individuals across North America, the European Union, and the world. It is estimated that billions of people are already facing severe mental health and psycho-social-spiritual challenges, and this number is expected to rise in the near future as the consequences of climate change intensify.

Furthermore, the report recognizes the additional trauma experienced by millions of individuals who are dealing with intersectional traumas, vicarious (or secondary) trauma, and eco-grief (or eco-anxiety). These individuals are either directly impacted by climate change-related disasters or are concerned about the future impacts on their children and themselves. The book aims to address this pressing issue by challenging the dominant thinking and approaches in the mental health, disaster management, and human services fields.

The current emphasis on individually-focused clinical treatment, disaster mental health, and direct service programs, which are crisis and illness-oriented rather than wellness and resilience-focused, is deemed inadequate in addressing the deep-rooted traumas caused by climate change. The book proposes a transformative alternative: a public health and prevention science approach to organizing community-based, culturally-tailored, population-level wellness and resilience-building initiatives.

By adopting this approach, communities can develop the necessary skills and resources to prevent and heal individual and collective traumas caused by climate change. The book provides a practical how-to guide for civic, community, and government leaders who are eager to organize, fund, facilitate, evaluate, and continually improve community-based mental wellness and resilience initiatives. It outlines key strategies and approaches that can be implemented to ensure the success of these initiatives, including building partnerships, developing culturally sensitive programs, and utilizing evidence-based practices.

The book also emphasizes the importance of addressing the systemic factors that contribute to climate change, such as inequality, poverty, and environmental degradation. It argues that addressing these underlying issues is crucial in creating a more resilient and sustainable society that can withstand the impacts of climate change.

In conclusion, the book offers a timely and essential contribution to the field of mental health and climate change. It provides hope, inspiration, and a positive path forward for individuals and communities who are grappling with the profound impacts of climate change. By adopting a public health and prevention science approach, we can work towards building a more resilient and sustainable future for all.

Weight: 384g
Dimension: 179 x 263 x 16 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781032200217