So eco-grief, if respected and managed properly (tips for that at the bottom of this newsletter), is both healthy and empowering. But when combined in healthy doses, and applied to an attitude of wanting to make change happen, it becomes a powerful fuel to kickstart some empowered action. Fear alone can push you into a paralyzed state.
#Climate optimism drivers
In his new book, Climate Cure, Jack Adam Weber talks about how fear and grief in combination are important drivers for action and positive change. You shouldn’t fear eco-grief because it’s actually a necessary tool in your toolbox as an empowered climate activist an essential part of what fuels your desire to make change and move forward into a new kind of world. It’s time we understand and accept that we are part of nature and that it’s impossible to escape what’s happening to the world. If ignored, you might lose yourself to similar car tantrums like the one I had with my hubby in San Francisco. Eco-grief is both necessary and unavoidable. To make it super simple - eco-grief is good, climate anxiety is bad.
Especially in the way we ought to think about and treat them.
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Is eco-grief and climate anxiety the same thing? They can seem similar, and some people might argue that they are, but I believe they differ gravely. It’s not until recent years that I’ve understood that it was grief for the world I was battling with this whole time. No one spoke of climate anxiety when I was younger and therefore, I was never given any help. Although it’s sad to know more people are suffering from mental illnesses as a result of climate change, I’m glad it’s being talked about. Terms like eco-grief and climate anxiety are becoming more and more common as big media, like The Guardian and NY Times, are covering the topic. We ARE nature and so, if nature is hurting, so are we. Some even argue (and I’m a personal supporter of this claim) that since we’re all interconnected - people, animals, microorganisms, plants - we can experience this pain even if we can’t see it with our own eyes. We’re losing our only home and that is both scary and painful. You don’t have to be a Birkenstock tree-hugger to experience this grief, nor do you have to be up close to the disaster. Have you felt it? The heart-wrecking pain of returning to a loved place only to learn that what was once lush and beautiful nature has turned into housing or a parking lot? Or the deep sense of loss when you learn that one football field of rainforest is cut down per second, carving a hole inside you with potential for depths you’re not sure you’ll ever get out of if you fall?Įco-grief - or climate grief, as also referred to - is the pain you experience as a result of our dying natural world. With the vast ocean in front of me and the crashing waves in my ears, my body calms. Without hesitation, I step out and walk to the shore, the darkness of the November night swallowing me as I step out of range of the headlights. He asks if we should circle the block a few times and I thankfully say yes, so we pass our home and keep driving down the southern border of Golden Gate Park until we end up at the ocean. I just knew that something was and whatever it was, I couldn’t hold it in anymore. What starts as a few silent tears down my cheeks soon unfolds into loud crying and I slam my hands in furious punches at the dashboard in front of me. It is not only better for the environment, but also surer and better in the long-run to invest on renewables.We were driving up Haight street after a Friday night in San Francisco’s the Mission district when, only a few blocks away from home, my bubble burst.
Moreover, people and firms in Europe are experiencing a dire energy crisis, which should teach them a lesson about energy autonomy and discourage them to keep importing the bulk of their energy from fossil fuels-rich countries. As we can see from the graph, renewable energy is becoming cheaper and cheaper, whereas fossil fuels technology, which has been for far longer in development, is not making much progress. With well-aligned incentives, it can drive society towards a better future. This is wonderful news for us, since we remember well the insight of another, more important (I’m sure Noah won’t keep a grudge for this) Smith: self-interest is what ultimately drives society. And here is what Smith was talking about: not only can we count on that wonderful share of scientists and activists who, despite adverse incentives, set themselves the objective of developing new technologies and improving existing ones, but now we can even count on people’s self-interest.
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