What keeps you awake at night? Perhaps it’s the threat of coronavirus. When I was a teenager, it was the threat of nuclear armageddon that made me anxious.
These days it’s ‘eco-anxiety’ that’s likely to be a worry, especially for children and young people. Eco-anxiety is the chronic fear of environmental doom; it’s not a medical diagnosis, but according to the British Medical Journal, reported in the Guardian, recognition of eco-anxiety and its complex psychological effects is increasing, as is its disproportionate impact on children and young people. According to the same report, a 2020 survey of child psychiatrists in England showed that more than half (57%) are seeing children and young people distressed about the climate crisis and the state of the environment.
Mental wellbeing
There are plenty of other studies which show that spending time in nature – whether it’s a beach, a forest, or just your local park or garden – is good for people’s mental wellbeing. We all experienced something of this during the Covid lockdowns. This should come as no surprise to Christians; although humans are uniquely made in the image of God, we are still part of creation, made to thrive through living harmoniously with and in the rest of creation.
