Latest news with #LauraRobinson
CTV News
25-07-2025
- Sport
- CTV News
Quebec sexual violence advocates shocked by ruling in Hockey Canada trial
Following the judgement that acquitted 5 national junior hockey players of sexual assault, people who work with victims of say the judgment is upsetting After five national junior hockey players were acquitted of sexual assault, people who work with victims of sexual violence say the judgement is extremely upsetting and may do more harm in the future. Supporters of the complainant known as E.M. stood outside the London, Ontario courthouse Thursday. Melanie Lemay, co-founder of Québec contre les violences sexuelles (Quebec against sexual violence), said she was there in spirit. 'No matter what happened yesterday, I believe E.M. And a lot of people do. And we need to do better to protect young women,' said Lemay. Justice Maria Carroccia said she didn't find the complainant's evidence to be credible or reliable. Author and director Lea Clermont-Dion was sexually assaulted when she was a minor. She says the judgement was too harsh. 'It was really difficult to hear those words, because I've got the impression that the verdict will reinforce myths and stereotypes that continue to be reinforced in society about the victim blaming,' said Clermont-Dion. Author of Crossing the Line: Sexual Assault in Canada's National Sport, Laura Robinson says she understands why there had to be an acquittal. Beyond reasonable doubt is what's needed, but says she was 'shocked' by the judge's remarks. 'When you understand where traumatized victims are coming from, you know, that they have, discrepancies in how they account things,' she told CTV News. Advocates say the high profile nature, and not guilty verdicts, will discourage survivors from coming forward. A report released last year found just six per cent of sexual assaults are reported to police. 'We don't need to be discouraged. People believe you, and it's not because they don't go to trial that doesn't validate what you've been going through,' said Lemay, who is a survivor herself. And if a case reaches trial, Clermont-Dion says E.M.'s seven days of cross examination are enough to dissuade anyone. 'I had a cross-examination of two days and a half and it was absolutely difficult. So we have to think about those way of doing things. We can improve it. We can change things so that the confidence towards did justice system is improve[d],' she said. Clermont-Dion and Lemay have done consent workshops with the QMJHL and Montreal Canadiens, respectively. But add more needs to be done to change hockey culture. 'So we still need to think, on the wider spectrum, on the how do we teach consent to younger generations because we don't have this discussion with them,' said Lemay.
CTV News
21-07-2025
- Sport
- CTV News
Olympian Penny Oleksiak notified of violating anti-doping rules
Watch Sports journalist Laura Robinson says Oleksiak is a top tier athlete and explains why it's unusual for her to miss three whereabout tests.
Al Arabiya
25-06-2025
- Health
- Al Arabiya
The emotional toll of climate change is broad-ranging, especially for young people
Anxiety, grief, anger, fear, helplessness. The emotional toll of climate change is broad-ranging, especially for young people. Many worry about what the future holds, and a daily grind of climate anxiety and distress can lead to sleeplessness, an inability to focus, and worse. Some young people wonder whether it's moral to bring children into the world. Many people grieve for the natural world. Activists, climate psychologists, and others in the fight against climate change have a range of ways to build resilience and help manage emotions. Some ideas: Get active in your community. Feeling isolated? Find ways to connect with like-minded people and help nature, said climate psychologist Laura Robinson in Ann Arbor, Michigan. 'There are many ways to get involved.' Work locally to convince more residents to give up grass lawns and increase biodiversity with native plants, for instance. Help establish new green spaces, join projects to protect water, develop wildlife corridors, or decrease pesticide use to save frogs, insects, and birds. Work to get the word out on turning down nighttime lighting to help birds and lightning bugs. 'I see people struggling with these emotions across the age range,' said Robinson. 'I have parents who are themselves really struggling with their own feelings and really worried about their children in the future.' Make a positivity sandwich. Climate news and the onslaught of disaster and mayhem in general has become heavy and overwhelming for many with the rise of social media and mobile phone use. Try scheduling breaks from notifications on your phone or stepping back from the news cycle in other ways. Consider the idea of a 'positivity sandwich,' where you begin with a good piece of news followed by a harder tidbit, then finish with a second feel-good story. Model behaviors for your kids. Phoebe Yu, 39, gave up a cushy job in health technology to work on an MBA with a focus on sustainability. She started a business selling sponges made from the luffa gourd. And she does it all while raising her 6-year-old son with her husband in Fremont, California. 'I am generally a very happy person, and I'm very optimistic. And I'm still that, but sometimes it becomes very difficult to manage. Like what will happen and thinking about the long term,' she said. 'At points I've regretted bringing a child into this world knowing how things could get much, much worse.' Part of managing her own emotions is trying to model sustainable behaviors for her son while educating him on the importance of helping the environment. The family drives an electric vehicle. They don't eat meat and have encouraged extended family to do the same. They recycle, compost, and limit travel by air. 'I try to explain things to my son so he can at least have some understanding of how the world and the ecosystem works as a whole,' Yu said. 'I do think kids are able to absorb that and turn that into some level of action.' Remember: We're all connected. Britnee Reid teaches middle school science for Gaston Virtual Academy, a K–12 virtual public school based in Gastonia, North Carolina. Reid participated in a pilot project for a free teacher toolkit on climate put together by the National Environmental Education Foundation and the Climate Mental Health Network, a collective of community advocates working on the emotional impacts of climate change. The kit is full of ways to help teachers support students' mental health and manage their own climate-related emotions. One of the exercises involves students documenting their interactions with the natural world in an environmental timeline. Laying it all out often stirs action, Reid said. 'They can be anxious, they can be angry, they can feel fearful, but they're like these go-getters of 'I'm going to make the change in this world.' There's kind of two truths at once where they feel scared, but they also feel like, 'you know, I can do something about this,'' she said. The timelines, Reid said, provided some good, rich conversations. Find the words to express your feelings. Psychotherapist Patricia Hasbach, just outside of Eugene, Oregon, has written several books on eco-psychology and eco-therapy and has taught graduate students on those topics. 'We incorporate nature into the healing process,' she said. 'And we address a person's relationship with the natural world. Certainly with climate change, eco-therapy has a huge role to play.' One of her most important missions is helping people find their words to talk about climate change in pursuit of resilience. 'There have been some studies done that show an increased number of young people reporting concern, like eighty-four percent of young people in the US reporting concern about climate change, but only like fifty-nine percent of them think that other people are as concerned as they are,' Hasbach said. That, she said, contributes to inaction and feelings of anxiety, depression, or isolation. You're not one. You're many. Climate scientist Kate Marvel, a physicist and author of the new book 'Human Nature: Nine Ways to Feel About our Changing Planet,' urges people to think differently about their place in preserving the environment. 'A lot of times the anxiety and the hopelessness comes from a feeling of powerlessness. And I don't think any of us is powerless,' she said. 'I think collectively we're incredibly powerful,' Marvel said. 'The atmosphere cares about what all of us together are doing, and I think you can have much more impact if you think of yourself as part of the collective.'
The Independent
25-06-2025
- Health
- The Independent
The emotional toll of climate change is broad-ranging, especially for young people
Anxiety, grief, anger, fear, helplessness. The emotional toll of climate change is broad-ranging, especially for young people. Many worry about what the future holds, and a daily grind of climate anxiety and distress can lead to sleeplessness, an inability to focus and worse. Some young people wonder whether it's moral to bring children into the world. Many people grieve for the natural world. Activists, climate psychologists and others in the fight against climate change have a range of ways to build resilience and help manage emotions. Some ideas: Get active in your community Feeling isolated? Find ways to connect with like-minded people and help nature, said climate psychologist Laura Robinson in Ann Arbor, Michigan. There are many ways to get involved. Work locally to convince more residents to give up grass lawns and increase biodiversity with native plants, for instance. Help establish new green spaces, join projects to protect water, develop wildlife corridors, or decrease pesticide use to save frogs, insects and birds. Work to get the word out on turning down nighttime lighting to help birds and lightning bugs. 'I see people struggling with these emotions across the age range,' said Robinson. 'I have parents who are themselves really struggling with their own feelings and really worried about their children in the future.' Make a positivity sandwich Climate news and the onslaught of disaster and mayhem in general has become heavy and overwhelming for many with the rise of social media and mobile phone use. Try scheduling breaks from notifications on your phone or stepping back from the news cycle in other ways. Consider the idea of a 'positivity sandwich,' where you begin with a good piece of news, followed by a harder tidbit, then finish with a second feel-good story. Model behaviors for your kids Phoebe Yu, 39, gave up a cushy job in health technology to work on an MBA with a focus on sustainability. She started a business selling sponges made from the luffa gourd. And she does it all while raising her 6-year-old son with her husband in Fremont, California. 'I am generally a very happy person and I'm very optimistic. And I'm still that, but sometimes it becomes very difficult to manage. Like, what will happen and thinking about the long term,' she said. 'At points, I've regretted bringing a child into this world, knowing how things could get much, much worse.' Part of managing her own emotions is trying to model sustainable behaviors for her son while educating him on the importance of helping the environment. The family drives an electric vehicle. They don't eat meat and have encouraged extended family to do the same. They recycle, compost and limit travel by air. 'I try to explain things to my son so he can at least have some understanding of how the world and the ecosystem works as a whole,' Yu said. 'I do think kids are able to absorb that and turn that into some level of action.' Remember: We're all connected Britnee Reid teaches middle school science for Gaston Virtual Academy, a K-12 virtual public school based in Gastonia, North Carolina. Reid participated in a pilot project for a free teacher tool kit on climate put together by the National Environmental Education Foundation and the Climate Mental Health Network, a collective of community advocates working on the emotional impacts of climate change. The kit is full of ways to help teachers support students' mental health and manage their own climate-related emotions. One of the exercises involves students documenting their interactions with the natural world in an environmental timeline. Laying it all out often stirs action, Reid said. 'They can be anxious, they can be angry, they can feel fearful, but they're like these go-getters of, 'I'm going to make the change in this world.' There's kind of two truths at once where they feel scared but they also feel like, you know, I can do something about this,' she said. 'The timelines," Reid said, "provided some good, rich conversations.' Find the words to express your feelings Psychotherapist Patricia Hasbach, just outside of Eugene, Oregon, has written several books on eco-psychology and eco-therapy and has taught graduate students on those topics. 'We incorporate nature into the healing process,' she said. 'And we address a person's relationship with the natural world. Certainly with climate change, eco-therapy has a huge role to play.' One of her most important missions is helping people find their words to talk about climate change in pursuit of resilience. 'There have been some studies done that show an increased number of young people reporting concern, like 84% of young people in the U.S. reporting concern about climate change, but only like 59% of them think that other people are as concerned as they are,' Hasbach said. That, she said, contributes to inaction and feelings of anxiety, depression or isolation. You're not one. You're many Climate scientist Kate Marvel, a physicist and author of the new book 'Human Nature: Nine Ways to Feel About our Changing Planet,' urges people to think differently about their place in preserving the environment. 'A lot of times, the anxiety and the hopelessness comes from a feeling of powerlessness. And I don't think any of us is powerless,' she said. 'I think collectively, we're incredibly powerful," Marvel said. "The atmosphere cares about what all of us together are doing, and I think you can have much more impact if you think of yourself as part of the collective.'
Euronews
25-06-2025
- Health
- Euronews
Here's how to manage climate change anxiety
Anxiety, grief, anger, fear, helplessness. The emotional toll of climate change is broad-ranging, especially for young people. Many worry about what the future holds, and a daily grind of climate anxiety and distress can lead to sleeplessness, an inability to focus, and worse. Some young people wonder whether it's moral to bring children into the world. Many people grieve for the natural world. Activists, climate psychologists, and others in the fight against climate change have a range of ways to build resilience and help manage emotions. Some ideas: Get active in your community Feeling isolated? Find ways to connect with like-minded people and help nature, said US-based climate psychologist Laura Robinson. Work locally to convince more residents to give up grass lawns and increase biodiversity with native plants, for instance. Help establish new green spaces, join projects to protect water, develop wildlife corridors, or decrease pesticide use to save frogs, insects, and birds. Work to get the word out on turning down nighttime lighting to help birds and lightning bugs. 'I see people struggling with these emotions across the age range,' said Robinson. 'I have parents who are themselves really struggling with their own feelings and really worried about their children in the future'. Consider the idea of a 'positivity sandwich,' where you begin with a good piece of news, followed by a harder tidbit, then finish with a second feel-good story. Model behaviours for your kids Phoebe Yu, 39, gave up a cushy job in health technology to work on an MBA with a focus on sustainability. She started a business selling sponges made from the luffa gourd. And she does it all while raising her 6-year-old son with her husband in California. 'I am generally a very happy person and I'm very optimistic… but sometimes it becomes very difficult to manage,' she said. Part of managing her own emotions is trying to model sustainable behaviours for her son while educating him on the importance of helping the environment. The family drives an electric vehicle. They don't eat meat and have encouraged extended family to do the same. They recycle, compost, and limit travel by air. 'I try to explain things to my son so he can at least have some understanding of how the world and the ecosystem works as a whole,' Yu said. 'I do think kids are able to absorb that and turn that into some level of action'. Remember: We're all connected Britnee Reid teaches middle school science at a virtual public school in the US. Reid participated in a pilot project for a free teacher toolkit on climate put together by nongovernmental organisations that work on the emotional impacts of climate change. The kit is full of ways to help teachers support students' mental health and manage their own climate-related emotions. One of the exercises involves students documenting their interactions with the natural world in an environmental timeline. Laying it all out often stirs action, Reid said. 'They can be anxious, they can be angry, they can feel fearful, but they're like these go-getters of, 'I'm going to make the change in this world,'' she said. You're not one. You're many Climate scientist Kate Marvel, a physicist and author of the new book 'Human Nature: Nine Ways to Feel About our Changing Planet,' urges people to think differently about their place in preserving the environment. 'A lot of times, the anxiety and the hopelessness come from a feeling of powerlessness. And I don't think any of us [are] powerless,' she said. 'Collectively, we're incredibly powerful,' Marvel said.** 'I think you can have much more impact if you think of yourself as part of the collective'.
