Shaping the future of the arts therapies in a climate emergency

This article argues that nature-based therapies support the practitioner’s attunement and sensitivity to the environments they work in. This has the effect of enhancing a human to other-than-human understanding from an eco-psychological viewpoint. The authors describe environmental arts therapy as a particular ecological and nature-based approach that also places climate awareness within its creative and therapeutic development. The radical roots of art therapy in Britain are revisited as the authors consider the power of art to support change and to face climate injustice within a psychologically and socially/economically aware practice. The article concludes that the combined effect of working outdoors, engaging creatively with changing environments and viewing the arts therapies through an ecological and social justice lens frames the future of art therapy in a climate emergency.