About the survey
How does climate change impact mental health?
Canada is already experiencing climate change. Indeed, Canada’s climate is warming two time faster than the global average and more than three times faster in Northern Canada.
A growing body of research examines how climate change impacts mental health. Extreme weather and climate events, such as flooding or wildfires, can be traumatic and can lead to anxiety, depression, and other immediate and long-lasting mental health outcomes. Exposure to longer-term changes, such as sea-level rise and sea ice loss, can disrupt cultural identities and livelihoods, leading to feelings of grief and loss. People can also experience mental health impacts from vicariously experiencing climate change, including having family and friends impacted by climate change or seeing climate change impacts on the news.
We know that climate change impacts mental health, but we do not know how common this is in Canada.
What research questions will the survey help us answer?
The survey will answer several research questions, including:
How does climate change affect mental health across Canada?
To what extent does climate change impact mental health in Canada?
How common are these impacts? What proportion of the population has experienced climate change impacts on mental health?
How will the survey work?
We will randomly select people in Canada to participate. Participants will be recruited by either an addressed letter or by a telephone call.
We will use online and telephone questionnaires to interview at least 3,575 participants in English, French, and Inuktitut between April 2022 and March 2023.
Why does the survey matter?
Examining national trends and differences across geographic regions and demographic groups will be a valuable contribution to Canadian and international research. Results of this work can inform national and international climate assessments and policy to respond to, and mitigate, the mental health impacts of climate change.
