2024 Major Achievements

Our Voice in the Public Domain

  • Numerous interviews with journalists, including National Public Radio (NPR), Nature Magazine, Inside Climate News, Axios and many local news outlets, radio, podcast, and TV interviews and international news outlets

    • Estimated reach: several million viewers

Professional and General Education:  

  • Ecopsychepedia: CPA helped to formally launch and fiscally sponsors this work

    • Go-to source for information on how human activity has caused the climate crisis, on how the crisis is now, in turn, affecting us – and, critically, on what we can do about it.

  • Presentations to numerous professional groups, academic institutions, webinars, courses.  Estimated reach: ten thousand

  • Presentations to public and lay audiences. Estimated reach: one thousand

  • Curriculum development for health/mental health professionals and psychiatrists across all levels, under development. Early development of a postgraduate mental health subspecialty program

  • Developed a Slide Deck Repository resource for CPA members  

  • Teaching in courses for health professionals and psychiatric trainees at all levels.

  • Columns in trade journals: Psychiatric Times, Psychiatry News

  • Active leaders have developed peer reviewed articles and book chapters including: 

    • Climate Change & Youth Mental Health by Elizabeth Haase, Kelsey Hudson

    • Climate and Your Mind edited by Lise Van Susteren, MD, free digital online book

Policy Change

  • Testified as expert witness and participation with “Our Children’s Trust” representing young people in various legal suits against government entities for adverse impacts of climate change on youth mental health. 

    • Contributed amicus briefs for many of these cases

  • Educate and advocate for State government to include assessment of climate mental health vulnerabilities, needs and development of readiness and response in their state climate.

  • Continued to provide testimony to various governmental agencies including Environmental Protection Agency on mental health impacts of air pollution and other climate change impacts and state legislative bills, heat exposure OSHA standards being developed for outdoor and indoor workers. 

  • Endorsed the Resolution on Children’s Health and Extreme Weather by US Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan.

  • Submission of testimony on important policy issues & signed onto over 25 letters to government officials, public policy makers, and other stakeholders on climate health/mental health issues.

Patient Care:

  • Creation of patient and public resources focused on children/youth and climate, and coping with climate distress

  • Expanded national directory of Climate Aware Therapists in collaboration with Climate Psychology Alliance.

  • Provided trainings for Climate Aware Therapists in collaboration with Climate Psychology Alliance-North America.

American Psychiatric Association:

  • Chairpersonship and membership on the APA Committee on Climate Change and Mental Health as well as leadership on the Climate Change and Mental Health Caucus. 

  • Presented at APA meetings.

  • Authored and promoted several Assembly Action Papers

  • Advocacy for climate leaders for APA elections/leadership

Early Career Network:

  • 40+ active Early Career Network members, contributing time, talent, and energy to CPA Working Group efforts and other projects like Social Media and Ecopsychopedia

  • Stimulating variety of monthly meetings with presentations/discussions open to all interested clinicians 

  • Training ECN members to present and lead discussions about climate mental health in our Speakers’ Bureau 

  • Host a Speakers’ Circle meeting every 3 months for CPA members to debrief the latest public speaking engagements and hone our climate communication skills  

  • Mentorship of medical students, residents and ECP

  • Production of a ECN specific newsletter to share climate psychiatry related events and opportunities

Social Media: 

  • Creation of Climate Psychiatry Alliance Youtube Account with over 15 video resources available and growing

  • Launched the Climate Psychiatry Alliance Podcast - Listen Here! Hosted by Mario Nájera

  • Expanded CPA reach by connecting with members on LinkedIn

  • Collaboration with American Psychiatric Association on Instagram short form videos on climate and mental health education, attracting more that 5,700 views on our latest post. See a sample short form video 

Alliances:

  • Developed and continued growth to our alliance/partner program 

  • Strengthened our continued collaboration with Climate Psychology Alliance, North America and Climate Psychology Alliance, UK on major projects

  • Leadership and significant input on mental health impacts to Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health

  • Participation in American Lung Assoc. Healthy Partners

  • Expand international alliances 

  • Support BIPOC programs 

Membership & Community Engagement:  

  • New membership growth (average 14 month); current membership over 1,300

  • Hosted 8 events including Book Clubs, Journal Clubs, and Poetry Nights

    • Over 100 members attended these community events

  • Collaborate on expanded voting projects to engage public and patients to vote and identifying voting as a climate action. Held a Voter Engagement event with the Environmental Voter Project

  • Developed local networks within the CPA membership, including Midwest and Southeast Regional Hubs