Young people are often positioned as the emerging leaders of society’s response to climate change. Yet many young people feel distress about climate change and uncertainty about how to meaningfully contribute to climate action. Few studies interrogate the multiple and interrelated influences in young people’s everyday lives that provoke this dispiriting position. To better understand these contextual factors and their interplay, I employ a social-ecological systems perspective to examine how adolescents at a regional Australian high school make sense of climate change and their agency to respond. Focus group discussions (involving 37 participants across 7 focus groups) revealed that despite a deep desire to contribute to meaningful action, young people encountered layers of obstruction to realising a positive sense of agency. Limited dialogue about climate change yielded a perception that ‘no-one cares’ about the issue, which functioned as a powerful disincentive to act and contributed to a sense of powerlessness. At the same time, participants identified what helped them to navigate climate-induced challenges, supporting their agency and emotional wellbeing. From these findings, I identify key factors influencing the participants’ perceptions of agency, and distil some broader implications for policy and practice in the context of climate change education in Australia.

Biography: Tanja Russell is a PhD Candidate at the Crawford School of Public Policy. Her research focuses on the role of educational experiences in empowering young people to take meaningful climate action.

RSVP is essential as we have limited seating. Please email: rebecca.blackburn@anu.edu.au or Hannah.Feldman@anu.edu.au  

Thank you to ICEDS for supporting the Society and Climate Change Seminar Series.