'The slide into climate despair occurs when the conviction sets in that... no, we won't make it'

LeMonde

4 days ago

The summer of 2025 has already broken temperature records in many European countries. Heatwaves, megafires, floods, and other extreme weather events have followed one another, each setting new records in their respective categories. With each passing year, it has become increasingly tangible what climate disruption means.
This reality should naturally push politicians and citizens to action. Yet, it is rarely the case. For the "why-bother-about-climate" crowd – citizens, decision-makers, and politicians alike – it is, instead, yet another excuse for inaction: "It's too late, everything is already lost, so if it's lost, why deprive yourself or change your habits?"
In a global domino effect, these battalions of resignation have grown, acting as de facto allies of climate skeptics and swelling the ranks of the pro-inaction lobby. It is therefore crucial to understand the roots of this way of thinking and to show that it is misguided.
Every gain is worth pursuing
Eco-anxiety is based on a combination of specific factors: awareness of the importance of the ecological problem, coupled with a sense of personal powerlessness, which the multiplication of crises and the inadequate political and civic response can sometimes turn into pathological anxiety.
The question that obsesses those with climate anxiety is whether we can make it. Will we meet the targets? Targets for emissions reduction, for levels of warming, for developing solutions...? The slide into climate despair happens quickly once the conviction sets in that "no, we won't make it." At that point, lacking an alternative perspective, it is tempting to turn despair into a kind of blasé resignation, which is easier to live with.
This whole line of reasoning needs to be challenged. If the answer is hopelessness, it is because the question is wrong. Why should the fight against climate change be the only public policy whose value is measured solely by its ability to meet its targets? Do we stop working as soon as it is clear that economic targets will not be met? Do we stop obeying traffic laws when we realize that road safety targets will not be achieved? For the vast majority of citizens, the answer is obviously no. Everyone understands that what matters is a progressive and collective approach, and that targets, even if only partially reached, already constitute progress.