“Is it OK to still have children?” That’s the question posed by US congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez last year during an Instagram livestream, addressing one of the most contentious issues around climate change: procreation. Campaigns such as BirthStrike and Population Matters have popularised the conversation. Meanwhile births in the UK have decreased by 9.9 per cent since 2012.

This is the world our children are growing up in. A world that is contemplating whether it is ethical to raise children due to the impending threat of climate change. Children are bombarded with the devastation of flash floods, wildfires and droughts; they’re at the environmental protests, campaigning against deforestation and the mass extinction of species. They’re being told by Greta Thunberg that they’re not too small to make a difference while simultaneously fighting the feeling their actions are not enough.

Having just become a mother myself, I am aware of my responsibility in educating my daughter about climate change. However, I also ask myself, by doing so am I stealing her childhood? When I consider the growing trend of eco-anxiety, I fear I might be.

Psychotherapist and teaching fellow at the University of Bath, Caroline Hickman, revealed the Climate Psychology Alliance has been “inundated” with requests for support to deal with eco-anxiety. Particularly prevalent in young people, eco-anxiety is a rational response to the climate crisis; it’s an accumulation of feeling powerless in the face of an inevitability beyond our individual control. But how do we address it?

Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Show all 20 1 /20 Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures California In this decade, humans have become ever more aware of climate change. Calls for leaders to act echo around the globe as the signs of a changing climate become ever more difficult to ignore Getty Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Athens, Greece Fierce wildfires have flared up in numerous countries. The damage being caused is unprecedented: 103 people were killed in wildfires last year in California, one of the places best prepared, best equipped to fight such blazes in the world AFP/Getty Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Redding, California Entire towns have been razed. The towns of Redding and Paradise in California were all but eliminated in the 2018 season AP Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Athens, Greece While wildfires in Greece (pictured), Australia, Indonesia and many other countries have wrought chaos to infrastructure, economies and cost lives AFP/Getty Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Carlisle, England In Britain, flooding has become commonplace. Extreme downpours in Carlisle in the winter of 2015 saw the previous record flood level being eclipsed by two feet AFP/Getty Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Hebden Bridge, England Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire has flooded repeatedly in the past decade, with the worst coming on Christmas Day 2015. Toby Smith of Climate Visuals, an organisation focused on improving how climate change is depicted in the media, says: "Extreme weather and flooding, has and will become more frequent due to climate change. An increase in the severity and distribution of press images, reports and media coverage across the nation has localised the issue. It has raised our emotions, perception and personalised the effects and hazards of climate change." Getty Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Somerset, England Out west in Somerset, floods in 2013 led to entire villages being cut off and isolated for weeks Getty Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Dumfries, Scotland "In summer 2012, intense rain flooded over 8000 properties. In 2013, storms and coastal surges combined catastrophically with elevated sea levels whilst December 2015, was the wettest month ever recorded. Major flooding events continued through the decade with the UK government declaring flooding as one of the nation's major threats in 2017," says Mr Smith of Climate Visuals Getty Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures London, England Weather has been more extreme in Britain in recent years. The 'Beast from the East' which arrived in February 2018 brought extraordinarily cold temperatures and high snowfall. Central London (pictured), where the city bustle tends to mean that snow doesn't even settle, was covered in inches of snow for day PA Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures London, England Months after the cold snap, a heatwave struck Britain, rendering the normally plush green of England's parks in Summer a parched brown for weeks AFP/Getty Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures New South Wales, Australia Worsening droughts in many countries have been disastrous for crop yields and have threatened livestock. In Australia, where a brutal drought persisted for months last year, farmers have suffered from mental health problems because of the threat to their livelihood Reuters Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Tonle Sap, Cambodia Even dedicated climate skeptic Jeremy Clarkson has come to recognise the threat of climate change after visiting the Tonle Sap lake system in Cambodia. Over a million people rely on the water of Tonle Sap for work and sustinence but, as Mr Clarkson witnessed, a drought has severley depleted the water level Carlo Frem/Amazon Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Addis Ababa, Ethiopia In reaction to these harbingers of climate obliteration, some humans have taken measures to counter the impending disaster. Ethiopia recently planted a reported 350 million trees in a single day AFP/Getty Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Morocco Morocco has undertaken the most ambitious solar power scheme in the world, recently completing a solar plant the size of San Francisco AFP/Getty Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures London, England Electric cars are taking off as a viable alternative to fossil fuel burning vehicles and major cities across the world are adding charging points to accomodate AFP/Getty Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Purmerend, The Netherlands Cities around the world are embracing cycling too, as a clean (and healthy) mode of transport. The Netherlands continues to lead the way with bikes far outnumbering people Jeroen Much/Andras Schuh Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Xiamen, China Cycling infrastructure is taking over cities the world over, in the hope of reducing society's dependency on polluting vehicles Ma Weiwei Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Chennai, India Despite positive steps being taken, humans continue to have a wildly adverse effect on the climate. There have been numerous major oil spills this decade, the most notable being the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 AFP/Getty Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures Amazon rainforest, Brazil More recently, large swathes of the Amazon rainforest were set alight by people to clear land for agriculture AFP/Getty Climate change: Decade's defining issue in pictures California This decade may have seen horrors but it has led to an understanding that the next decade must see change if human life is to continue Getty

I believe we must start with schools. Education about climate change is imperative. Children need to be informed, now more than ever, about what climate change is and how their actions can make a difference. But so too must schools ensure the energy around combatting climate change is channelled in a healthy and constructive way. As teachers, we need to empower students to understand their own agency and highlight what they can do to make a positive change, no matter how big or small.

We must go beyond learning about the environmental crisis and highlight the good that people around the world are doing. Schools need to teach their pupils about the positive environmental news.

Discuss what the Ocean Cleanup project is doing to remove plastic waste from our oceans; highlight the mass global tree-planting schemes pledged by all political parties; and marvel at how the rise of cyclists in London hit an all-time high in 2018. We should be talking about the innovations that have emerged in the face of the climate crisis and the subjects or projects students can enrol on to pursue a career in these fields.

We need to be open about what eco-anxiety is and teach students that they are not alone in this feeling. By normalising the discussion, we can start proactively working towards making positive change, together, whether that’s choosing to reduce consumption of animal produce, opting to walk instead of being driven or buy less fast fashion. These actions alone will feel inadequate. These actions collectively will feel like they’re making an impact.

That’s why at Blackheath High School GDST we are celebrating our 140th anniversary this year by committing to 12 months of environmental pledges – 140 of them.

We’ll reduce the amount of waste the school produces, audit the use of single-use plastic and maximise opportunities for reuse and recycling. We’ll add the study of our oceans to the curriculum and get our students out into nature to teach them about how to protect it. We will encourage our students to be conscious about the environment and feel pride and happiness with every positive change, safe in the knowledge that they are contributing to something bigger.

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And while this “year of promise” will take place in 2020, our aim is to create a longer lasting, more permanent behaviour change across the school community.

Climate change is frightening. We all have a role to play in protecting our planet. We cannot continue sheltering students from a crisis they are very much aware of. But, perhaps more importantly, we can’t let our children be consumed by eco-anxiety. Knowledge is power and schools have a responsibility to educate the next generation as to how they can make a positive difference. For the benefit of both our children and our planet.