Moving Through Ecological Distress
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"Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted."
~ Matthew 5:4 |
facing the crisis--and the feelings
The impact of climate change on the environment is becoming a lived experience for people all over the world. And as more of us experience extreme weather events, deforestation, species extinctions, and other ecological degradation, the emotional toll of climate change will continue to grow.
For some, ecological distress manifests as an abiding sense of grief--for all that has been lost in the natural world, and for the toll we humans have taken on our beautiful planet. For others, especially younger people, climate distress shows up as depression, anxiety, anger and despair over a changing and uncertain future. These feelings stem not just from our heartbreak for the planet and ecosystem loss, but from doubts about our own place as humans on this planet. We observe just how much of our ordinary sustenance, transportation, clothing and shelter negatively impacts the environment. Facing the true scope of this crisis raises painful moral questions and a reexamination of the very foundations of our long-standing beliefs and commitments.
And behind all of these difficult feelings and questions, rarely named but driving many of the forces now dividing us from one another, is this feeling: fear. And questions we hardly dare ask--especially those of us with more years ahead in our lives than be hind us: What does all of this mean for our lives and futures, and for all we have known? Will we have children and families and secure homes of our own? Will we even still have some way to live?
In Facing the Crisis, What Is It Ours to Do?
As Friends, we have a long history of reaching out to those who are suffering. The climate crisis is presenting us with another opportunity to lovingly accompany one another and those in our community in the midst of ecological grief and suffering. The resources linked below will help you and your Meeting community, but also offer an opportunity for your Meeting to help others in your larger community face climate distress with an open heart, mind and spirit. Everything on this website is intended in some way to help us help each other as Friends and in the broader community to cope with an uncertain future, and to see and make the most of opportunities arising now on all sides. As the writer James Baldwin noted in a 1962 article in the New York Times, "Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced."
Eco-Grief Worship Sharing
Several members of the Unity with Nature Committee have been trained in a model of peer support in a group setting for people grappling with a changing climate, and offered its first eco-grief worship sharing group in partnership with Quaker Earthcare Witness in 2022. If you are interested in receiving a notice of our next eco-grief group or you would like to know more about how to bring this ministry to your Meeting, complete the form, below.
We have felt led to do this work partly from our own needs for such sharing, benefiting from it greatly, and seeing how many others have need of it. We've also realized that if we are to confront what we must in this crisis, and to act faithfully in service of a livable future, we need to get as fully grounded as we can, and that dealing honestly with our feelings, with others able to share them, and to bear them, in a space carefully shaped to bring us through, is where we needed to start.
If you are interested in receiving a notice of our next eco-grief group or would like to know more about the experience, or to explore bringing this ministry to your Meeting, please reach out to us with the form, below.
For some, ecological distress manifests as an abiding sense of grief--for all that has been lost in the natural world, and for the toll we humans have taken on our beautiful planet. For others, especially younger people, climate distress shows up as depression, anxiety, anger and despair over a changing and uncertain future. These feelings stem not just from our heartbreak for the planet and ecosystem loss, but from doubts about our own place as humans on this planet. We observe just how much of our ordinary sustenance, transportation, clothing and shelter negatively impacts the environment. Facing the true scope of this crisis raises painful moral questions and a reexamination of the very foundations of our long-standing beliefs and commitments.
And behind all of these difficult feelings and questions, rarely named but driving many of the forces now dividing us from one another, is this feeling: fear. And questions we hardly dare ask--especially those of us with more years ahead in our lives than be hind us: What does all of this mean for our lives and futures, and for all we have known? Will we have children and families and secure homes of our own? Will we even still have some way to live?
In Facing the Crisis, What Is It Ours to Do?
As Friends, we have a long history of reaching out to those who are suffering. The climate crisis is presenting us with another opportunity to lovingly accompany one another and those in our community in the midst of ecological grief and suffering. The resources linked below will help you and your Meeting community, but also offer an opportunity for your Meeting to help others in your larger community face climate distress with an open heart, mind and spirit. Everything on this website is intended in some way to help us help each other as Friends and in the broader community to cope with an uncertain future, and to see and make the most of opportunities arising now on all sides. As the writer James Baldwin noted in a 1962 article in the New York Times, "Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced."
Eco-Grief Worship Sharing
Several members of the Unity with Nature Committee have been trained in a model of peer support in a group setting for people grappling with a changing climate, and offered its first eco-grief worship sharing group in partnership with Quaker Earthcare Witness in 2022. If you are interested in receiving a notice of our next eco-grief group or you would like to know more about how to bring this ministry to your Meeting, complete the form, below.
We have felt led to do this work partly from our own needs for such sharing, benefiting from it greatly, and seeing how many others have need of it. We've also realized that if we are to confront what we must in this crisis, and to act faithfully in service of a livable future, we need to get as fully grounded as we can, and that dealing honestly with our feelings, with others able to share them, and to bear them, in a space carefully shaped to bring us through, is where we needed to start.
If you are interested in receiving a notice of our next eco-grief group or would like to know more about the experience, or to explore bringing this ministry to your Meeting, please reach out to us with the form, below.
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Active Hope by Joanna Macy and Chris Johnstone is a classic and much beloved book among climate activists and the climate concerned. Practicing active hope allows us to strengthen our capacity to face the climate crisis and respond with unexpected resilience and creative power. The authors of this invaluable resource have created a free, video-based online course designed to "nourish our capacity to make a difference in the world." Don't overlook this amazing resource. It is available now and you can start at any time -- just click on the heart below.
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