Ecological Emotions and Environmental Education: Voices of Youth in a Mediterranean Region

Irida Tsevreni (), Anna Maria Kali and Fotini Bonoti
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Irida Tsevreni: Department of Early Childhood Education, University of Thessaly, Argonafton & Filellinon, 38221 Volos, Greece
Anna Maria Kali: Department of Early Childhood Education, University of Thessaly, Argonafton & Filellinon, 38221 Volos, Greece
Fotini Bonoti: Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Thessaly, Argonafton 1C, 42132 Trikala, Greece

Societies, 2025, vol. 15, issue 8, 1-15

Abstract: This study examines climate anxiety and perceptions regarding the future among Generation Z youth living in a Mediterranean region vulnerable to climate-related natural disasters. It also explores their perceptions of the content and effectiveness of environmental education. A quantitative survey based on an online questionnaire was conducted with 93 undergraduate students and future environmental education teachers in Greece. We investigated their ecological emotions, thoughts about the future, and their ideas on the orientation of environmental education content. The results reveal (a) a high level of climate anxiety among participants, (b) pessimistic ideas about the future, and (c) the need for a holistic pedagogical approach to environmental education theory and praxis.

Keywords: ecological emotions; climate anxiety; solastalgia; climate crisis; environmental education; Generation Z (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A13 A14 P P0 P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 Z1 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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