Farmers, ranchers and service providers face unique challenges in a changing climate, including emotional tolls of stress, anxiety, grief and trauma. American Farmland Trust hosted an online conversation for Mental Health Awareness Month which highlighted some of the climate-stress challenges faced by members of the ag community. A 2021 survey of young people ages 16 to 25 in 10 countries found that 59% of those who responded said they were “very or extremely” worried about climate change, while 84% said they were at least “moderately” worried.
More than 50% said they experienced strong, negative emotions about it, while three-fourths of respondents said they were frightened about the future. American Farmland Trust's Addie Candib, who moderated the conversation, said that climate-related stress can take a toll on farmers, ranchers and food producers, who are "intimately entangled with natural ecosystems and weather patterns." "They experience firsthand the impacts of a changing climate on those systems and may have deep connections to the land and places that are impacted by climate shifts and climate-related disaster," Candib said.
"As the agricultural sector specifically talks a lot about climate resilience and climate-resilient practices, it's key that we broaden our understanding to encompass the social and emotional elements of both community and individual resilience." ADVERTISEMENT Lian Zeitz works with the Climate Mental Health Network , which is a nonprofit .
