Episode 102: Can Talking About Climate Change Reduce Anxiety?
In this episode of Citizens’ Climate Radio, co-hosts Peterson Toscano and Elise Silvestri dive into the pressing issue of climate anxiety with Kate Schapira.
Kate Schapira is a writer, educator, and climate listener based in Providence, Rhode Island. Since 2014, she has operated the Climate Anxiety Counseling Booth, a public listening project where she invites people to share their climate concerns, anxieties, and hopes. Her deep engagement with these conversations has informed her approach to climate action—centering community, emotional resilience, and meaningful steps toward change.
Kate shares her decade-long journey of listening to people’s climate worries, how she transformed these conversations into actionable climate engagement, and the insights she presents in her book, “Lessons from the Climate Anxiety Counseling Booth: How to Live With Care and Purpose in an Endangered World,” where she explores how individuals and communities can navigate climate anxiety through connection and activism.
She also teaches writing at Brown University and works with organizations such as Alliance to Mobilize Our Resistance (AMOR) and the People’s Port Authority Movement. Find more about Kate’s work at kateschapira.com.
This episode also features an inspiring good news story: a group of students in Tucson, Arizona, successfully passed a climate action resolution for their school district, securing funding for sustainability initiatives and setting an example for youth-led climate action.
Learn how listening, storytelling, and collective action transform climate despair into meaningful change.
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Production Team:
- Written and produced by Peterson Toscano and Elise Silvestri
- Music is provided by epidemicsound.com and Elise Silvestri
Introduction
Peterson Toscano: Welcome to Citizens Climate Radio, your climate change podcast! We highlight people’s stories, celebrate successes, and share strategies for effective climate communication. I’m your host, Peterson Toscano, and this is Episode 102, airing on Friday, March 14, 2025.
Joining me today is Elise Silvestri, who has been working on Citizens Climate Radio since September 2024. This is her first time co-hosting. Welcome, Elise!
Elise Silvestri: Hi, Peterson! It’s great to be here.
Peterson Toscano: You’ve worked hard on this episode. What do we have for listeners today?
Elise Silvestri: We have an incredible segment with Kate Schapira, an expert on climate anxiety and ways to reduce it. We’ll also share a good news story about students leading a climate action resolution in their school district.
Peterson Toscano: That’s right! Kate’s expertise helps people manage climate anxiety instead of causing it—which we all need.
Behind the Scenes: Elise’s Journey with Podcasting
Peterson Toscano: Elise, you’ve been with us since September. What have you learned so far?
Elise Silvestri: I had no idea how much work goes into producing a podcast! I thought I’d be doing simple audio cleanup, but editing is a much bigger process. I’ve learned so much about pacing an episode and making it engaging.
Peterson Toscano: You’re also great at editing down long interviews while keeping the essential parts. It’s nice to have a partner to help “kill my darlings” when cutting material is tough.
Kate Schapira: Climate Anxiety Counseling and Action
Elise Silvestri: What emotions come up for you when you think about climate change? Maybe you feel nervous about extreme weather events or the uncertainty of the future.
Peterson Toscano: That’s why today’s guest, Kate Schapira, is so valuable. She has spent over a decade listening to people’s climate worries at her Climate Anxiety Counseling Booth in Providence, Rhode Island.
Elise Silvestri: Kate’s experience led her to write Lessons from the Climate Anxiety Counseling Booth: How to Live With Care and Purpose in an Endangered World. In it, she offers actionable steps for finding joy in the climate movement and imagining a livable future.
Peterson Toscano: What makes Kate’s perspective unique is that she has been listening to people long before climate anxiety was widely recognized. She learned from her community how to navigate big emotions and find peace through collective action.
How the Climate Anxiety Counseling Booth Began
Kate Schapira: I was between meetings one day when I read an article about coral reef collapse. The language was harsh: “too late,” “cannot be restored,” and “irreversible damage.” It hit me hard—I started sobbing.
At the time, people still talked about climate change as a slow, distant process. But here was proof that real damage was already happening.
When I tried discussing it with others in 2013, many dismissed my reaction:
“You’re overreacting.”
“Have you considered therapy?”
I started wondering: Does anyone else feel this way?
Then, inspiration struck. My husband is a cartoonist, and we own collections of Charles Schulz’s Peanuts comics. I saw Lucy Van Pelt’s classic “Psychiatric Help, 5 Cents” booth, and a thought clicked:
“What if I set up a Climate Anxiety Counseling Booth?”
So, in 2014, I built a small plywood table, painted a “Climate Anxiety Counseling—5 Cents” sign, got a city permit, and set it up outside the Providence bus station. I had no idea what to expect.
To my surprise, people stopped to talk—right away. I stayed out there almost daily for two months, just listening.
Climate Anxiety and Economic Injustice
One conversation that stuck with me was a young father who couldn’t take his son swimming because he worked too much. He also couldn’t afford air conditioning, making their apartment unbearably hot at night.
I think about them often—how climate anxiety isn’t just about the future. For many, it’s already happening right now, especially for those facing economic injustice.
Some say, “Climate anxiety is for privileged people.” But if you fear worsening conditions, struggle to keep your family safe, or worry about affording relief from extreme heat, that is still climate anxiety.
From Listening to Action
The second year, I expanded the booth to farmers’ markets. One day, a visitor told me about a campaign to stop a liquefied natural gas plant in a working-class neighborhood. I attended their meeting that night.
That moment changed my life. I joined community climate action, working with activists to stop pollution projects harming low-income communities.
At the booth, many people would ask:
“I’m just one person. What can I do?”
That sense of isolation is deliberate—fossil fuel companies push individual responsibility narratives (“just reduce your carbon footprint”) to distract from their systemic harm.
But the real solution? Collective action. Working with others to create change feels empowering instead of overwhelming.
Lessons from the Climate Anxiety Counseling Booth
As I continued listening, I realized the booth was great for emotional relief, but it wasn’t enough for collective action.
That’s why I wrote Lessons from the Climate Anxiety Counseling Booth. The book explores:
✔ Stories of people transforming their lives in response to climate change
✔ How to take action, no matter your circumstances
✔ Exercises to build resilience and connection
One of my favorite takeaways:
No one does anything alone.
We eat food others grow.
We learn from teachers and elders.
Even the most “self-made” person relies on community.
The best way to relieve climate anxiety? Join forces with others.
Good News: Tucson Students Lead Climate Action!
Elise Silvestri: Our good news story today comes from Tucson, Arizona, where students in the Tucson Unified School District pushed for a climate action resolution.
Their resolution includes:
✅ Electrifying school buses
✅ Upgrading buildings for energy efficiency
✅ Incorporating climate education
✅ Preparing for extreme heat
These students researched for 16 months, fought for funding, and won! The plan will save the school district $4.7 million per year.
Even better? The resolution is public, so other districts can use it as a model.
Closing Thoughts
Peterson Toscano: If you have good climate news to share, leave us a voicemail at +1-619-512-9646.
Elise Silvestri: I think we should start a listening booth ourselves!
Peterson Toscano: A podcast is a listening booth!
Thank you for joining us for Episode 102 of Citizens Climate Radio!
📢 Subscribe and find full show notes at cclusa.org/radio
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🎶 Music by Elise Silvestri & EpidemicSound.com
