Research

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MA Thesis, University of Victoria, School of Environmental Studies, Forthcoming (May 2025) 

As anthropogenic climate change advances, young people globally are experiencing

alarmingly high rates of climate distress, including climate anxiety and ecological grief.

Emerging data demonstrating the disproportionate psychological burden on young people and its

wide-ranging impacts underscores the urgency to provide appropriate and accessible mental

health supports. Given participatory arts’ track record in promoting psychosocial benefits, this research explores 1) can visual artmaking and dialoguing help young people process climate anxiety and related eco-emotions? If so, how? And 2) in what ways might this arts-based approach help youth generate active hope, if at all? I investigate these questions through the design, piloting and evaluation of three visual artmaking and dialogue sessions with youth ages 17 – 21 in Victoria BC. As a Youth Participatory Action and Arts-based Research study participants contributed directly to theorization through interviews, original artwork and artist statements exploring climate anxiety and their visions for a climate resilient future. The sessions were found to support emotional processing through providing a dedicated time and resources to engage with climate emotions, a co-created safe space for youth, intentional prompts, and the interplay between individual and collective components. Participants reported an array of intersecting outcomes, including helping them identify specific thoughts and feelings, express emotions beyond words, release and transform so-called ‘negative’ emotions and foster feelings of pride and empowerment. The findings point towards the vital need for youth-led spaces in which they feel safe to express a wide palette of emotions about the climate crisis without expectation of resolution. Their visions of the future suggest that participants’ hope is gleaned from real-world examples of resilient human and more-than human systems and fueled by their commitment to protect and strengthen them. Ultimately this research emphasizes valuing both ‘negative’ and ‘positive’ climate emotions, the arts, and community as rich sources of wisdom and motivation to address the climate crisis.

Commissioned by the city of Victoria's Climate Adaptation team and the Community Social Planning Council of Greater Victoria, the purpose of this guide is to review existing climate adaptation plans to a) identify gaps in addressing the needs of vulnerable populations, and b) identify best practices of integrating dimensions of equity in climate adaptions plans at the municipal level. The research questions include: 1. How can equity be effectively embedded in municipal climate adaptation planning and implementation? 2. How can best practices from other jurisdictions be replicated or tailored for the city of Victoria? Read here 

Commissioned by Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada and co-authored with Youth Climate Lab colleagues. Published October 2022 on the Youth Climate Toolbox. 

Commissioned by the International Development Research Centre, conducted by Youth Climate Lab in partnership with the Green Africa Youth Organization, and co-authored with Paluck Kohli from the Centre for Social Innovation. Published November 2021 on the Youth Climate Toolbox.

Research report for the 2020-2021 Canadian Council for Youth Prosperity (CCYP) Fellowship. Published May 2021, read here. 

Op-ed written for the The Nova Scotia Advocate, published on January 25th, 2021. Read here.