Members of ACP-UK’s Climate Action Network will be joining various other health professionals for the ‘Unite to Survive’ protest in Abingdon Street Gardens, London, on 21 to 24 April 2023. This protest is calling for urgent political action to address the climate and ecological emergencies. The protest is a non-disruptive protest and ACP-UK will be supporting other groups of health professionals as part of ‘the planetary health hub’ (www.planetaryhealthhub.co.uk). It will include talks from various health professionals, including Dr Chris Johnstone, whose seminal work on ‘active hope’ has supported many people to manage overwhelming feelings related to the climate emergency. ACP-UK members, including Dr Lucy Johnstone and Annie Mitchell, will also be speaking about a non-patholoising approach to making sense of reactions to climate breakdown. You can make a difference by joining us in London this April. Please contact us at [email protected].  

Why is it important for psychologists to engage with the climate & ecological crises?
In 2022, ACP-UK released a statement recognising the importance of climate activism. This statement lays out the need for clinical psychologists to engage with the climate and ecological emergencies because: 

1. They have been identified as posing the biggest threat to human health worldwide by the World Health Organisation and 200 leading health journals; this includes threats to mental health  
2. They intersect with all social justice issues.  Peoples in nations least responsible for harms to the planet already enduring acute effects that cannot be adapted to;  
3. Clinical psychologists are well placed to support people to process the complex and overwhelming thoughts and feelings that come with facing existential threats.  

More recently the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has warned that the Paris agreement thresholds will be breached if emissions do not peak by 2025. Most models have us passing 1.5C warming within the next decade. This will see activation of various tipping points resulting in rapid escalations in heating and the collapse of multiple ecosystems.  

The UK government’s own information on the health impacts of the climate emergency recognises the serious threats to physical and mental health. However, it has failed to develop policies that will enable us to meet emission reduction targets that had already been deemed inadequate. 

As scientist practitioners we cannot ignore the evidence. Our professional ethics instil in us the importance of promoting and protecting our service users, addressing risks and escalating our reporting of risk where necessary.  

Clinical psychologists hold trusted positions within society and there is evidence indicating that the status afforded to protestors impacts upon how messages about the risks of climate breakdown are heard. ACP-UK members will be present because evidence indicates that non-violent protests have never failed to bring about rapid urgent change when 3.5% of a population provides their support. Although climate protests have not come close to reaching this number yet, the window for action is rapidly closing, and we recognise how powerful it could be if everyone recognising the urgency of our predicament took to the streets.  

Although the protest does have links with Extinction Rebellion, the event is calling for various groups, professional bodies and stakeholders to be represented. The call is for people to unite and no affiliation with Extinction Rebellion is required. Various groups and organisations, including Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace, will be represented at the protest. We also think it is important for members to be aware that Extinction Rebellion has announced this year that they have ceased causing disruption to the general public. They have recognised that such tactics are divisive at a time we need more people to join together.  

You can make a difference by being part of the protest in London. Please contact us as at [email protected] if you are interested in joining us. Please also see our Network page and resources list for information on other ways clinical psychologists can use their skills to support mitigation and adaptation during the unprecedented times we find ourselves in: https://acpuk.org.uk/member-network/climate-action-network/