Between the Future and Present: How Activists in the Youth Climate Strike Experience Everyday Life

In the face of the escalating climate crisis, it becomes increasingly important to understand not only young activists’ strategies of action but also their imagined futures and how these visions shape their everyday lives. This article draws on the concept of imagined futures (Cuzzocrea & Mandich, 2015) to analyze how young people affiliated with the Youth Climate Strike (Młodzieżowy Strajk Klimatyczny, MSK) in Poland envision the future—and how these imaginaries influence their emotions, decisions, and forms of engagement. Based on qualitative analysis, the study reveals that visions of the future—both dystopian and utopian—strongly affect young people's mental well-being, sense of meaning, agency, and belonging. For some, hope for systemic transformation translates into concrete life choices and daily practices: pursuing education, engaging in grassroots initiatives, anti-consumption, or peer-led climate education. Others struggle with a paralyzing absence of future imaginaries, leading to existential stagnation, burnout, and difficulties in long-term planning. The article shows that the future is not merely an abstract horizon but a lived category—negotiated daily through fear, fatigue, hope, and the search for meaning.