State of Emergency: The Psychological Impact of Climate Change on African American Youth

The adverse effects of climate change disproportionately impact marginalized and vulnerable populations, specifically African American youth. Children are often dependent on others to provide their basic needs and often incur undue stress from the worsening environmental conditions caused by climate change. These changes in the environment also lead to significant impacts on both the physical and mental health of minority children. African American youth are more likely to live in neighborhoods and environments where they have a higher likelihood of experiencing the negative impacts of a changing climate. This manuscript proposes supportive community-based interventions and introduces advocacy strategies for supporting the health and well-being of African American youth. The community interventions will be focused on ways to improve mental health while increasing environmental education for minority youth. Advocacy strategies will involve innovative ways social workers and public health workers can combat the growing climate concerns to support healthy youth development.