Latest news with #climateanxiety
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Kamala Harris' stepdaughter says she has 'climate anxiety'... but fans spot detail that lays bare her hypocrisy
Former Vice President Kamala Harris ' stepdaughter has been blasted online for complaining about her 'climate anxiety' while also still using plastic bags. Ella Emhoff, a 26-year-old model and designer, shared a 'little check-in' with her TikTok followers this week, reflecting on how the past four years - and her stepmother's election loss - have sharpened her focus on the world around her. Environmental change, she noted, stood out as a major driver of the grief and overwhelm she's been experiencing. 'I think everything with the environment is really... f***ing getting to me,' Emhoff said in her video. 'I experience a lot of climate anxiety,' she added with an uneasy laugh. 'Like I think a lot of us do.' But her comments sparked a wave of backlash and accusations of hypocrisy, as she had been seen happily holding a plastic bag just the day before - a detail made all the more striking given her stepmother's previous push to ban single-use plastics. Kamala Harris first endorsed banning plastic straws during her failed presidential campaign during a climate change town hall meeting with CNN in September 2019. 'I think we should, yes,' Harris said when asked if she supported the idea. Just hours before her serious sit-down update, Emhoff posted a TikTok visiting a California-based thrift store, waving a plastic bag in the air while posing in front of the store's sign (pictured) However, when she launched her own campaign in 2024, she reversed her position and quietly dropped the proposed ban. Then, in January, fans expressed outrage after spotting Harris and her husband carrying plastic bags during a grocery store trip - similarly, branding the pair as hypocrites. The plastic bag stood in contrast to what the American would have perceived her to be: an environmentalist, given California's 10-cent fine on single-use bags and the long-term impact on the environment that plastics may pose. Harris' shock decision to walk back her controversial position proved to be an attempt by her failed campaign to make the Dem candidate seem 'more practical' on a host of issues. On Friday, Emhoff's nearly seven-minute video updated her 53,000 TikTok followers on her life since Donald Trump's landslide victory over her stepmom. She voiced her 'disgust' over the current state of global affairs, specifically citing genocide, the erosion of rights, loss of healthcare, and a pervasive sense of fear surrounding affordability and the livelihoods of everyday Americans. Emhoff then shifted her focus to her profound anxiety about the changing climate, admitting that although it's no laughing matter, the gravity of it often leaves her with nothing but a nervous laugh. 'It's scary, it is,' she said directly to the camera lens. 'All of these things are happening - and besides the small things we can do, and pushing for change and fighting and protesting - it's really hard not to sit in those moments where it feels so heavy,' she added. However, just hours before her serious sit-down update, Emhoff posted a TikTok visiting Remainders, a California-based arts and crafts thrift store. In the opening seconds of the clip, the 26-year-old model was seen outside the Pasadena store, waving a plastic bag in the air while posing in front of the store's sign. The video then cut to the store's interior, revealing rows of boxes filled with vintage and heirloom trinkets, before transitioning to Emhoff back at home, ready to share her finds with her followers. Sitting on her bed with her small dog resting behind her, she proudly displayed two bags full of treasures - one stuffed inside a plastic 'Have A Nice Day' bag. Meanwhile, her dog sported a leash fitted with - of all things - a green plastic poop bag. While some praised her for thrifting her supplies instead of supporting big businesses, many online quickly called out what they saw as blatant hypocrisy given her professed climate anxiety. 'Look at allllll the plastic bags,' one comment read. 'In fact, didn't you call for banning single use plastic bags, or was that just for everyone else but you?' Another comment said: 'You should probably not support a store filled with excessive plastic bins as shelves. It might worsen your climate anxiety. Not surprised one bit by the hypocrisy. People like you are truly doing a great amount of damage to our country. It's dangerous.' 'PRAYING FOR YOU THAT THE FALSE CLIMATE NARRATIVE ISN'T OVERWHELMING YOU,' wrote a third. But this isn't the first time Emhoff has been seen using plastic bags so casually. Many viewers were quick to call out Harris's flip-flopping on plastic use - all while criticizing Emhoff over the frequent flights taken by her stepmother and father. 'Please stop having your father and step mom fly private everywhere,' one angered user wrote under the model's video. 'It's giving me terrible climate anxiety,' they added, using Emhoff's own words against her. 'If not for them flying as much as they do privately, I believe the average temperature would be one degree lower.' Last month, Emhoff also shared a video of her farmers market haul - one that didn't exactly shy away from plastic use. She showcased two plastic bottles of tomato juice, tomatoes nestled in a small blue plastic container, fruit being taken out of plastic bags, and tofu wrapped in a sealed plastic package. Last year, she shared an organization video on Instagram, showing large plastic bags filled with dozens of skeins of yarn, which she unpacked and neatly arranged on her wall.
Fox News
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Ella Emhoff shares climate anxiety concerns while using plastic bags in social media posts
Ella Emhoff, stepdaughter of former Vice President Kamala Harris, complained to her TikTok followers that she was struggling with "climate anxiety" — after showcasing a plastic bag or two online the day before. The 26-year-old model and designer posted a six-minute video Friday lamenting the "weight" of environmental concerns, but shared an Instagram clip on Thursday where she held a plastic bag on her bed at home, as well as outside a Pasadena thrift store. The juxtaposition drew some criticism online, with one follower accusing Emhoff of hypocrisy — a charge complicated further by Harris' own past calls to ban single-use plastics. In Friday's TikTok, Emhoff, who goes by the name of @smellaemhoff said: "I think everything with the environment is really f---ing getting to me, and it is — I experience a lot of climate anxiety, like all of us do." She added that while she tries to fight for change, "it's really hard not to sit in those moments where it just feels so heavy." The day before, Emhoff posted a different clip to her Instagram page. She can be seen sitting on her bed dressed in black jeans and a vest top with her dog running about next to her. Emhoff proudly shows off bundles of different colored yarn and fabric, in one part, a plastic bag. Emhoff's Instagram footage also shows her visiting Remainders, one of her favorite thrift stores in California. She's filmed outside holding another plastic bag and kicking up her leg, before heading inside and looking for items in plastic containers. While some followers cheered her thrifting trip, one criticized the plastic-heavy displays shown in the shop. "Should probably not support a store filled with excessive plastic bins as shelves," one follower wrote. "Not surprised one bit by the hypocrisy. People like you are truly doing a great amount of damage to our country. It's dangerous," they added. It's not the first time the Emhoffs have been spotted with plastic, despite the former VP herself once calling for bans on single-use plastics. In 2019, Harris said during a CNN town hall that "we do need to ban the plastic straws." By early 2024, however, her campaign shifted its position. In January, Harris and her husband, Doug Emhoff, were also photographed leaving a California store with groceries packed in a plastic bag. Harris is stepmother to Doug Emhoff's two kids, Ella and Cole, 30, who he shares with lawyer Kerstin Emhoff. Harris and Doug Emhoff met in 2013 on a blind date and married the following year. At the time, Ella was 15. She has since garnered attention for her political activism and reactions. Earlier this year, she complained about experiencing "a little trauma" on her way to vote for socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani in New York City's Democratic mayoral primary — held at the same polling place where she once cast a ballot for Harris, who lost the election in November 2024. Ella Emhoff did not respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
Globe and Mail
09-07-2025
- Climate
- Globe and Mail
How to talk to kids about climate change
The threat and realities of climate change are real and visceral – punishing heat waves, families displaced, towns destroyed by wildfires, dangerous smoke hanging over communities and flash floods that can be deadly and unpredictable. But how do you talk to kids to prepare them for the reality, without overwhelming or scaring them? Amberly McAteer is a contributing columnist for The Globe, who often writes about parenting. She joins the show to talk about the challenging conversations we're having with children and how climate change anxiety is influencing the way parents approach these talks. Questions? Comments? Ideas? E-mail us at thedecibel@
Forbes
28-06-2025
- Health
- Forbes
New Study Finds Women And Young People Hit Hardest By Climate Anxiety
A young woman holds a cardboard 'No nature, no future'. (Photo by Alain Pitton/NurPhoto via Getty ... More Images) I never quite believed climate anxiety was real until about a year ago when I spoke to a couple of young people who shared that they were unsure whether they wanted to have children in the future. Their reasoning was simple and complex to shake off: who wants to bring a child into a world of droughts, floods, and other extreme weather events linked to climate change? So, when I read about the finding of the new study published in the Journal of Global Environmental Change that such anxiety particularly impacts women and young people, it stirred my curiosity. Whether one believes in climate anxiety or not, it's hard to deny that more and more young people are experiencing it. Climate anxiety responds to an uncertain future where climate change threatens long-term survival. Just a few days ago, thousands of citizens from Tuvalu—a small island nation in the Pacific facing the risk of drowning due to rising sea levels—applied for a climate-linked visa ballot to move to Australia, showcasing just how real the situation is. The reality of climate anxiety is strongly supported by academic research. The new study released this week by psychologists is not the first to report investigating the impact of climate-related anxiety. There have been many more in the past, covering many countries. For example, a survey of over 4,000 students in Germany earlier this month found that more than 40% experienced high or extreme levels of climate anxiety. Another study by Yale University found that about 64% of respondents in the US were worried about climate change. However, the new research stands out—it is the first meta-analysis, combining results from 94 studies involving 170,747 adults across 27 countries. It also underscores that women and young people are especially likely to experience climate anxiety. These studies on climate anxiety raise a key question: What are we doing about this? The growing evidence suggests the urgent need to consider the mental health aspects of climate adaptation alongside the other dimensions. They also highlight that the mental health impacts of climate change deserve to be integrated into climate and health planning more holistically. Why Addressing Climate Anxiety Is Essential to Climate Adaptation Climate adaptation isn't just about helping biodiversity and ecosystems adjust to rising temperatures, protecting jobs, housing, or migration from low-lying areas. It also means offering psychological support for people suffering from climate anxiety—whether caused by economic losses, displacement, or anxiety about the future. The American Psychological Association recommends building psychologists' capacity to help individuals cope with and adapt to climate change as a key part of its action plan for psychologists. This recommendation is critical as the number of physiologists dealing with patients who have expressed these concerns is not tiny anymore. One survey from Germany shows that 72% of psychotherapists reported having patients who raised concerns about climate change during treatment, as evidenced by a nationwide survey of 573 professionals. Breaking The Silos Between Climate And Health The intersection of climate and health—both physical and mental—is still underexplored. Understanding the climate-health nexus means examining how climate change affects health and how health systems can support climate action. This integrated understanding of climate and health calls for sustainability professionals to pay closer attention to health outcomes and for health professionals to respond to the growing pressures that climate change places on healthcare systems. The US National Academy of Medicine has begun advancing this conversation. It has started convening climate and health professionals to co-develop a roadmap for transformative action toward achieving health for all at net zero emissions. Where Do We Go From Here? It is not surprising that young people are at the forefront of climate anxiety—they are the ones who will face the long-term consequences of today's decisions. Here are two keyways forward: Managing climate action is not just about managing natural or economic resources. It's also about safeguarding people's well-being. With 1.8 billion young people under 25 in the world now, climate anxiety cannot be ignored in strategies to cope with a future of living with climate change.
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.'
