Hosted by the Pulitzer Center and Climate Psychology Alliance North America
Earlier this spring, the U.S. Commerce Department cut $4 million in funding to a climate research center at Princeton University, saying the initiatives scare children. But experts say canceling support for one of the nation’s top climate research programs will not make young people less anxious about climate change—it will just give them less information about the threats they might face and their potential to find hope through solutions.
And young people are—in fact—focused on finding solutions. Despite climate doomerism, climate change is proving to be the world’s most powerful driver of innovation and progress, a transformation that one generation is leading. The “Climate Generation” born after 1989 is reshaping our understanding of work, culture, “progress,” human rights, and community.
Join the Climate Psychology Alliance North America and the Pulitzer Center to discuss ways to support the generation that is finding solutions after being born into crisis. Together, we’ll learn strategies to take action and defend climate education, brainstorming ways to build capacity for climate action, even when things feel overwhelming.
The event will begin with a short discussion among panelists on what it takes to defend climate research, support Gen Z in tackling climate issues, and the oversimplification of the term "climate anxiety." The conversation will then transition to small-group breakouts based on attendees’ interests.
Teachers, professors, editors, and all who work closely with Gen Z are encouraged to participate. Attendees should read “Climate Change Is Driving a Global Youth Revolution,” the first story in Stephanie Hanes’ Pulitzer Center-supported Climate Generation project beforehand. You’re also encouraged to submit your own questions and discussion topics ahead of time, either for breakout sessions or large group Q&A sessions.
If you have any questions about the format or its accessibility, please reach out to jgray@pulitzercenter.org before registering.
Panelists:
Rebecca Weston is a psychotherapist, photographer, and activist living in metro New York. In her clinical practice, Weston’s work is informed by the recognition that our senses of self, connection, and capacity are powerfully influenced by both internal and systemic aspects of our lives. She has expertise in attachment and trauma.
Grace Gibson-Snyder is a Yale College student and was a plaintiff in the landmark youth-led constitutional climate case Held v. State of Montana.
Stephanie Hanes coordinates environmental coverage at The Christian Science Monitor, where she is the lead climate writer. She has worked as a journalist for two decades, both in the U.S. and abroad. She is a multiple-time grant recipient from the Pulitzer Center and holds teaching positions at Yale University’s School of the Environment and the College of William & Mary.