Alternative Food Practices as Pathways to Cope with Climate Distress

Laurence Ammann-Lanthier (), Katie Hayes and Iain J. Davidson-Hunt
Additional contact information
Laurence Ammann-Lanthier: Natural Resources Institute, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2M6, Canada
Katie Hayes: Independent Researcher, Washington, DC 20002, USA
Iain J. Davidson-Hunt: Natural Resources Institute, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2M6, Canada

IJERPH, 2024, vol. 21, issue 4, 1-16

Abstract: Experiences of distress and challenging emotions in response to the climate crisis are increasingly common, particularly among young adults. These experiences can include challenging emotions caused by the harmful environmental impacts of conventional food systems, as their contributions to greenhouse gas emissions have become more widely known. While recent studies have examined various experiences of climate distress, the interaction between climate distress and food practice remains poorly understood. In this research, we turn to this intersection by examining the experiences of climate distress of young adults who have alternative food practices, and the interaction between their climate distress and their alternative food practices. Guided by an exploratory, single case study research approach, this research draws from 20 semi-structured interviews conducted with young adults located in urban centres in the Southeastern Prairie Region of Canada. Thematic analysis of the findings reveals that participants experience a variety of climate emotions and a personal responsibility to act in response to the climate crisis. The findings suggest that because of their ability to facilitate a meaningful and practical environmental impact, alternative food practices represent significant climate actions and may be pathways to facilitate coping or managing climate distress among young adults. Results demonstrate the psychological impacts of the climate crisis on young adults, highlighting the need for action on climate change and climate distress. Increasing the accessibility of alternative food practices may support young adults in coping with challenging climate emotions.

Keywords: climate distress; coping; alternative food practices; young adults; climate change; Canada (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/21/4/488/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/21/4/488/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:21:y:2024:i:4:p:488-:d:1376925

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().