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Emerging Producer's Guide
Coping with the Climate Crisis
Young people have contributed the least to the crisis but stand to suffer the most.
Eco-Anxiety
Eco-anxiety is more common than you might think. It is the anxiety, grief and loss that we feel related to climate change, environmental degradation, overpopulation and other environmental challenges. 78% of young people in Canada report that Climate Change impacts their mental health (Climate Anxiety in Canadians, Galway & Field, 2023).
Eco-anxiety can be a concern for content creators especially if their content has a climate theme or message. Filmmakers may also encounter this in the communities they interact with, who may themselves be dealing with climate grief, the trauma of natural disasters, and grief over land loss.
Eco-Anxiety is an understandable and normal reaction to experiencing, witnessing, or even just hearing about climate change. Some of the resistance to climate action that you may encounter, may have roots in climate anxiety.
Read about: the signs of eco-anxiety
Eco-anxiety can be a concern for content creators especially if their content has a climate theme or message. Filmmakers may also encounter this in the communities they interact with, who may themselves be dealing with climate grief, the trauma of natural disasters, and grief over land loss.
Eco-Anxiety is an understandable and normal reaction to experiencing, witnessing, or even just hearing about climate change. Some of the resistance to climate action that you may encounter, may have roots in climate anxiety.
Read about: the signs of eco-anxiety
Action is the antidote to anxiety.
The scope of climate change can leave people feeling helpless and that their actions are little more than a drop in the ocean. However, as a storyteller, you possess an extraordinary gift and opportunity: a unique voice and a platform for action that can create waves of positive change. Action is a powerful catalyst for hope and empowerment.
Through your creative expression, you can not only address your own eco-anxiety but also transform it into a driving force for good. Every narrative you craft, every scene you shoot, and every message you share contributes to a collective effort, fostering a sense of agency and connection. This active engagement combats feelings of isolation and despair, replacing them with a powerful sense of purpose and community.
Through your creative expression, you can not only address your own eco-anxiety but also transform it into a driving force for good. Every narrative you craft, every scene you shoot, and every message you share contributes to a collective effort, fostering a sense of agency and connection. This active engagement combats feelings of isolation and despair, replacing them with a powerful sense of purpose and community.
Wellness Tips
Taking care of ourselves is taking care of the planet. Wellness needs to be integrated and understood as a core part of climate work, especially for those who are working in climate fields or on climate content.
Here are some wellness tips to help understand and manage eco-anxiety:
Here are some wellness tips to help understand and manage eco-anxiety:
- Give yourself a Break. Being steeped in climate information, and even ‘doomscrolling’ sessions can set off our flight-or-flight responses and encourage us to be in a state of ‘urgency’ at all times which can compound stress. This is not sustainable! Give yourself permission to turn-off and take a break from climate-related information.
- Talk about it. You are not alone. Conversation with others about how you’re feeling is not just good for you, it’s also probably really good for the other person who may be feeling similarly. Conversation and connection is also good for the planet as it can help normalize conversations about climate change. As a content creator, consider whether your story will spark climate anxiety, and if so, how can you help your audience process the information and emotions in a healthy way?
- Take Time to process: Sometimes coping is about distractions and thinking about other things, but it’s also important that we don’t deny that our feelings are valid and give them the time and space to be processed for what they are. Recognize that climate anxiety is real and we need to take the time to process what we’re feeling in mind and body.
- Share Hope: Climate anxiety can lead to hopelessness. If you come across good news, or an opportunity for action, share it with others, including those in your crew, your networks, and, if possible, with your audience.
More resources
- Eco-Anxiety & How to Cope / Anxiety Canada
- Mental Health Resources / Documentary Organization of Canada
- Mental Health Commission of Canada
- Watch: The Magnitude of All Things
- Climate Anxiety can feel Isolating / Canadian Climate Institute
- Tips for Staying Action Oriented and Prepared - Government of BC
Further reading
Together, we can build a resilient motion picture industry and move the world towards a more sustainable future.
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Producing for the Planet is headquartered in British Columbia, Canada and we acknowledge that we operate on the unceded, traditional and ancestral territories of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh(Tsleil-Waututh), q̓ʷɑ:n̓ƛ̓ən̓ (Kwantlen), q̓ic̓əy̓ (Katzie), Máthxwi (Matsqui), and se'mya'me (Semiahmoo) Nations.
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