Dealing with climate anxiety and taking action on climate change

Question

Hi folks,

The initial jolt for me that started me on a journey to become vegan was reading about the climate crisis. Taking action by eating less meat helped me to loosen the knot in my stomach I felt whenever I read the latest news on climate - at least I was doing something about it, but I still feel helpless sometimes.

I'm keen to talk to others also in this boat. Are you vegetarian/vegan for the same reason? What else are you doing about climate change?

NancyDubois · Answer

Bonjour, je suis devenue végétalienne mais pas pour les mêmes raisons que toi. C'est plus pour le respect du vivant et à cause de toute cette barbarie et souffrance qu'endurent les animaux. Par contre, concernant le changement climatique j'ai rejoint Extinction Rebellion et je pratique donc la désobéissance civile non violente. J'ai également fait la demande pour rejoindre les activistes de Greenpeace. Je t'avoue que les dernières nouvelles du GIEC m'ont assommée et je suis de plus en plus pessimiste quand à la sauvegarde de l'humanité. Le fait de faire des actions et de rencontrer d'autres personnes ayant les mêmes préoccupations que moi m'aide beaucoup à gérer mon éco anxiété.
Peut-être y-a-t-il une locale XR près de chez toi ou d'un autre mouvement, essaie de te rapprocher d'eux et vois si ça te conviendrait de les rejoindre. Cela t'aidera peut-être avec l'anxiété climatique.
Belle soirée

totheloop · Answer

Hey there, I know you posted this a while ago. I went vegan for the same reason. The knot in my stomach is still there, but it does help to control what I can and to advocate for something that helps. Other than taking fewer flights, veganism is probably the easiest, least-expensive thing one can do for the climate, and unlike a lot of other changes, like buying an EV to replace your gas car, it's affordable for everybody.

The best piece of advice I have is to talk about how you feel (not so much about the problem itself, as that can lead to more stress), like you've done here, or a therapist if it gets to be too much. It gives me peace to take one day at a time and to remember that life's worth living no matter what. I try not to think as much about how frustrated I am at other people for not caring about/changing their ways/voting for climate action as much as I'd like, but I think a certain amount of this is human nature. If you feel like you're in a healthy place with this, or you just want to do something, donating/volunteering and direct action in your city with groups like XR like the other poster mentioned is fantastic. There are also sites like wren.co where you can pay to sequester carbon every month if you live in a country like the US that burns a lot of fossil fuels per capita. But, what we really need is governmental change...I suggest calling your politicians/representatives and demanding action as often as you can.

Finally, you're not alone at all. I hope you never feel alone in this, I know I do a lot. No matter what happens we'll support each other through it. Much love.

mread · Answer

Hi there, if you’re looking for a positive, uplifting, but proactive community with lots of resources to help you with veganic climate solutions, check out climatehealers.org. They have just launched an app called UnitedinHeart. They have many resources on their website and offer lots of webinars. 
Welcome to the evolution!

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