Grant: Doctoral Research Award: Canada Graduate Scholarships

Climate change and extreme weather events can significantly affect our mental health and wellbeing. Some individuals and communities are particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate events. For example, some Indigenous populations live in geographies at higher risk for climate events, and youth experience these events in critical periods of development. As climate change evolves, its impact on mental wellbeing may also evolve, and potentially worsen. It is therefore increasingly important to find ways to mitigate and address these impacts. We will use various data sources and methods to assess the relationship between climate events and mental health. We will also improve and use tools that collect additional information from the public and decision-makers relevant to climate-related changes in mental health. This information will help us understand how the public, and specifically vulnerable groups, are affected by climate distress and what we can do to address these risks. Overall, this research will provide evidence to inform new initiatives that can help protect the wellbeing of people affected by climate change.