Not so Gloomy: The Danger of Climate Doomism

Not so Gloomy: The Danger of Climate Doomism

4/26/24
Carys Sherrer (Hebron High School)

In 2023, the UN found that climate litigation has more than doubled since 2017, showcasing an increase in international concern regarding the environment. While fewer seem to be able to deny climate change, a growing number have fallen to climate doomism. Climate doomism is the idea that humanity is past the point of reversing climate change,  and that ultimately our species is simply on the path of extinction. Put simply: we’re doing too little too late, so why bother?

However, this oversimplification of climate change as an unsolvable problem is a dangerous mindset. Especially when scientists and environmental experts alike debunked the myth of climate doomism. Climate expert from the University of Pennsylvania, Michael Mann, says we can compare the climate crisis to a downward highway. If we miss an exit it’s not the end of the world, but we want to take the earliest exit possible before we’re completely off course. Later, Mann would also describe how today’s youth didn’t experience events such as the water pollution in Cuyahoga River, power plant emissions causing acid rain, and the massive hole in the ozone layer. All crises have catastrophic impacts whether on a local or global scale, but they all share one thing in common. They were all solved by policy. From the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, or the Montreal Protocol (to learn more about the ozone layer check out our other blog here!) each problem was met with comprehensive legislation backed from scientific research. Despite scientists such as Stanford engineering professor and renewable energy expert Mark Jacobson unanimously saying 100% renewable energy is possible, why does America’s youth still doubt the viability of such solutions? 

The simple answer is it’s a sentiment shared by experts. Tennessee-based sustainability scientist Alaina Wood says climate doomism is especially prevalent in young people. Activists are often scared themselves and, in a world where fear sells, it’s easy to produce content that over-inflates scientific research. Social media platforms where extremely short videos with hot-button words see the most views are a breeding ground for doom-inducing misinformation. Youth soak in this content and can easily develop a pessimistic outlook. Both Wood and Mann say this can lead to inaction, climate doomism’s uglier cousin. Why bother trying if nothing’s going to change? It doesn’t matter if research says there’s still time and resources to stay under 1.5°C. When mainstream media, whether on social media or the printed press, values the sales in grim tales, oversimplification, and distractions over presenting the more flexible reality it’s difficult to feel motivated to try. The belief that change is impossible has already locked in and it causes us to overlook past success and steps that can be taken now. 

However, as youth, we have to recognize that change is possible. We just have to be willing to stand together for tomorrow, and not give up on the facts. While it’s easy to get washed up in pessimistic outlooks born from misinformation and anxiety, reversing the worst effects of climate change is possible with directed action, continued research, and scientifically supported policies. We’ve done it before, and we can do it again. It’s not too late for solutions, and it’s certainly not too late for an end to climate doom.

Carys Sherer is a high school junior. She is co-founder and co-executive director of DFW Gen Green. Passionate about policy and law, she has interned with a congressional office and runs a political and legal media platform for youth called The Next Voter. She is an active member of the Citizen's Climate Lobby National Youth Action Team and a policy fellow at the Institute for Youth in Policy.