Climate change and youth development: A view of an emerging field

Abstract

Climate change is a defining challenge of our time, and it disproportionally impacts young people. This poses a call to action for developmental science. How does climate change shape youth’s psychological development and well-being? Can we use our expertise to empower youth to cope with and help mitigate climate change? The emerging field of research on climate change and youth development addresses these timely questions. Here I provide a concise perspective on the field, highlighting lines of research and ideas, including our own, that have begun to develop in recent years. Climate change threatens our global society, which means that our research should be global as well. I call for coordinated, international, and cross-cultural investigation to address the big questions ahead of us and empower young people from across the globe to respond to the challenges of a warming world.