A Guide to Eco-Anxiety by Anouchka Grose

Author:Anouchka Grose
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: BISAC: SCI092000
ISBN: 9781786784421
Publisher: Watkins Media
Published: 2020-06-08T16:00:00+00:00

6

BABIES, PARENTING AND CLIMATE CONVERSATIONS WITH CHILDREN

“Children are one third of our population and all of our future.”

Select Panel for the Promotion of Child Health, 1981

Children have to be at the heart of any discussion about the environment, because they are the ones in the firing line. If you have them, work with them or hang out with them, there’s the problem of what you can say to them about global heating. And if you don’t have them, but think you might possibly want them, there’s the question of whether it’s responsible to bring new people into a world that may be on the verge of catastrophe.

In this chapter, we’ll take a look at the thorny issue of being honest with children, at the same time as not overwhelming them with painful information. How can you find a middle ground, especially when you might be feeling panicked yourself? I’m afraid I’ll be completely overriding the opinions of people who think that telling children about climate change is a form of child abuse, as I find this completely idiotic.28 Children are going to hear about it one way or another, so you might as well give some thought to what you’re going to tell them when they ask. While this seems like a difficult subject, it’s probably slightly easier than the second topic – the ethics of procreation. And, of course, it’s not just a question of whether the world is safe enough, but also whether it needs more humans in it. In my work, I often meet people in their twenties and thirties who are struggling with these questions head-on, unsure whether it’s either safe or responsible to have a baby. On the bright side, there’s much more of a public debate about it these days – conversations don’t have to be limited to therapists’ offices for fear of people accusing you of being melodramatic. Still, contemporary discussions on the subject demonstrate that there are no easy answers, which leaves people faced with an emotionally super-charged choice. At least if you have a vague grip on the various angles, you might feel more able to make your own decision based on a mixture of reason and emotion.

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