The Youth Role in Creating a Healthy Future for the Earth: An Examination of the Link between Collective Action for the Environment and the Emotional Health of Children

摘要

This paper presents conclusions based on informal observation, interviews with individual youngsters over several years, and polls of hundreds of boys and girls 10 to 18 years of age conducted at the 1993 first National Youth Environmental Summit. . As children learn about environmental hazards and threats to the Earth's ecosystems, they often react with fear and despair. However, children become less fearful and more hopeful by taking action to address environmental hazards, preserve resources, and protect the health of global and local ecosystems. They gain confidence in their ability to create a healthier environment through managing and minimizing environmental health hazards and through control of their future environment. No clinical or empirical studies were conducted. To support our conclusion, we have presented case histories that are repre-sentative of the experiences reported by hundreds of boys and girls polled.