Exploring the role of climate emotion tools in climate science learning with youth and Indigenous climate activists from Mexico

Abstract

One of the biggest problems faced by activists, youth, Indigenous people and other people at the forefront of climate impacts and the climate movement is inaction by governments and the majority of the world’s population. In response, there is a growing trend of introducing climate change education in different learning environments, from schools to universities to informal education in activism spaces, resulting in a wide range of climate-related emotions in learners. This study seeks to bridge the gap between research on climate education and climate emotions by exploring the possibilities and impacts of combining climate science education with peer-topeer tools that aim to enhance climate science learning and support the emotional resilience of youth and Indigenous climate activists. Deeply influenced by community-based participatory action research, this qualitative study consisted of semi-structured interviews with seven volunteer participants following a six-class online climate science course that was developed in collaboration with 12 potential course participants from two activist networks. The emotions tools were integrated into the classes, and participants found that these tools greatly benefit their lives, learning processes, and mental health, suggesting the importance of embedding socioemotional learning environments in both educational and activism contexts to foster community building and proactive engagement.