Dept. of Psychology Seminar Series: Climate Change and Mental Health

Climate Change and Mental Health

Climate change is the biggest modern threat to human health here and in every country. It is not ‘collateral damage’ but the most serious outcome of climate change-related harm to humanity. Not necessarily instantly, but increasing over time, inexorably, climate change will impinge on human health unequally within and between countries. There will be many obvious direct effects on health (such as, from heat, dust and water-borne disease). More subtly, there will be a pernicious effect on mental health. These effects will primarily eventuate indirectly, through damage to local economies & communities and, therefore, harm to families and individuals. This will happen everywhere but will be especially marked in rural and remote and vulnerable communities. For example, weather-related disasters, such as droughts and floods, will increase in frequency, duration and intensity, affecting rural production and Aboriginal land uses.

In terms of government policy responses, of course we need to be sensible about how our mitigation and adaptation decisions will impact on our economy and on those of developing countries. But balancing the biosphere is, ultimately, more important than balancing the budget – the latter will be of no consequence if we are dead. Mental health problems are among the most dangerous impacts of climate change on health, primarily because of what they do to people’s ability to cope. (They also affect physical health; for example, long-term, chronic psychological distress is related to the development of cardio-vascular disease.) With so little research into the impact of climate change on mental health, there is an urgent need to create an evidence base that can help inform future policies and programs.

In amongst the gloom surrounding climate change, there is, perhaps, a pearl in the oyster, a precious opportunity that may have passed unnoticed. People here and around the world might just see climate change as sufficiently important to motivate them to take group- or community-based collective action to prepare for its consequences. If successful, such action would promote wide-scale community-building and renewed connectedness, as well as providing vital environmental co-benefits. Both are wonderfully beneficial for health, especially for mental health.

Thursday 29 October, 3 - 4.30pm
Psychology Link Building, Room 150

Speaker Bio
Helen L Berry MA BSc BAppPsych PhD MPHAA is a psychiatric epidemiologist investigating social capital and mental health and their shared associations with selected contemporary issues in health and wellbeing. Recently, this work has expanded to place these issues in a context of climate change, particularly its impacts in rural and remote locations. Her work involves the use of advanced statistical modelling techniques to analyse large representative datasets and evaluate mental health interventions. With a previous career in executive public and non-profit administration, she has a particular interest in the applications of her research findings to Australian public policy and intervention design. A/Prof Berry has active collaborations on social capital and mental health with Australian, state and local government agencies, a wide range of universities, and in Vietnam.

Posted 16 October 2009