Environment & Energy
Related: About this forumIt's the End of the World as They Know It
On one hand it's morbidly reassuring to know that the scientists are experiencing the same emotional reactions as so many of us civilians. On the other hand, they are having these responses to information visible just within their own silos of climate change research. Adding in the web of interactions that become visible in a cross-disciplinary synthesis makes the psychological well much deeper and darker.
Sometimes I envy the scientists for the knowledge boundaries imposed by their necessary specialization - I often feel that being a generalist with no academic allegiance puts my sanity at greater risk.
Its hardly surprising that researchers who spend their lives exploring the dire effects of climate change might experience emotional consequences from their work. Yet, increasingly, Cobb, Shukla, and others in the field have begun publicly discussing the psychological impact of contending with data pointing to a looming catastrophe, dealing with denialism and attacks on science, and observing government inaction in the face of climate change. Scientists are talking about an intense mix of emotions right now, says Christine Arena, executive producer of the docuseries Let Science Speak, which featured climate researchers speaking out against efforts to silence or ignore science. Theres deep grief and anxiety for whats being lost, followed by rage at continued political inaction, and finally hope that we can indeed solve this challenge. There are definitely tears and trembling voices. They know this deep truth: They are on the front lines of contending with the fear, anger, and perhaps even panic the rest of us will have to deal with.
While Americans feel an increasing alarm about climate change, according to a survey conducted by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, scientists have been coping with this troubling data for decadesand the grinding emotional effects from that research are another cost of global warming that the public has yet to fully confront. Before you ask, there is no scientific consensus regarding the impact of climate research on the scientists performing it. It hasnt been studied in a systematic way.
Put another way, climate scientists often resemble Sarah Connor of the Terminator franchise, who knows of a looming catastrophe but must struggle to function in a world that does not comprehend what is coming and, worse, largely ignores the warnings of those who do. An accurate representation of the Connor comparison, one scientist darkly notes, would have more crying and wine.
When she was a graduate student in 2010, Myhre recalls, she attended a summer program that included the worlds top scientists on climate modeling. One presented research on how increased CO2 levels posed frightening scenarios. She asked him how he was able to talk to nonscientists and communicate the implications of this work, which can be hard to understand. I dont talk to those people anymore, she remembers him replying. Fuck those people. After that, Myhre went to her hotel room and wept. As she saw it, his anger was driven by the fact that his expertisehis foresightwas not broadly recognized. People dont know what to do with their grief, and it is manifested in anger, she says.
dweller
(23,629 posts)posted at least 5 Yrs ago about the climate scientists leaving the US
and heading for higher grounds ..
canaries in coal mines
✌🏼️
hatrack
(59,584 posts)He moved to Denmark in 2013 and now works for the Geological Survey of Denmark.
Duppers
(28,120 posts)Has not cried themselves to sleep when realizing and accepting what's coming. It's a process of dealing, of making peace with the situation.
As with religion and political truths, most folks are just ostriches who'll kick like hell if you attempt to pull their heads out of the sand. "Fuck those people" is a good way to put it.
This topic was also just posted in GD: https://www.democraticunderground.com/100212261017