The Climate-Anxious Creative: How to Keep Showing Up
- Jennifer Boyer
- Jul 31
- 3 min read
Because your art—and your heart—still matter.
Climate change is no longer a distant warning. It's here. It's personal. And for many of us—especially those tuned into creativity, sensitivity, and connection—it's paralyzing.
Maybe you’re a songwriter who can’t stop thinking about wildfires. Maybe you're a designer wondering if the industry you're in is contributing to the problem. Maybe you're just a human artist, trying to figure out how to keep creating when the world is literally on fire.
If that’s you, you’re not alone—and you’re not powerless.
Here’s how to keep showing up as a climate-anxious creative without burning out or checking out.
🌱 Name It: Eco-Anxiety Is Real
Eco-anxiety isn’t weakness—it’s a normal response to an overwhelming crisis. It shows you care.
According to the American Psychological Association, eco-anxiety is a growing mental health condition, especially among creatives, empaths, and younger generations. It’s often accompanied by:
Guilt about consumption
Fear about the future
Feeling frozen or helpless
Questioning whether your work matters
Naming this for what it is gives you a place to start.
🎨 Use Your Medium As Medicine
Your art is a lifeline. Not just for others—for you.
Write the climate grief.
Sing the protest.
Paint the paradox of loving a world in danger.
Document the beauty that still exists.
Build the future you want to see.
Expression is activism. Expression is healing.
You don’t need to make overtly “climate-focused” work to contribute. You just need to stay connected.
🛠 Rethink What “Action” Means
Not everyone is meant to chain themselves to pipelines or speak on world stages.
Maybe your action is:
Hosting a local art show to raise funds for mutual aid
Printing your merch on eco-friendly materials
Starting a garden
Doing one less tour and offering a virtual show instead
Talking to your audience about environmental justice
Just… not giving up
Micro-actions matter. Especially when sustained.
(If you’re interested in learning about things like planned obsolescence, check out our blog post on it here)
💚 Find Your People
Climate grief is heavier when carried alone.
Surround yourself with other creatives, activists, and community-minded souls who:
Get your values
Let you be honest about your anxiety
Remind you that you’re not crazy
Help you imagine better worlds
Look into groups like:
Local mutual aid groups or permaculture collectives
🧠 Give Yourself Permission to Rest
You do not need to earn rest by saving the world.
Burnout helps no one. In fact, rest is a radical act in a culture that profits off exhaustion and distraction. Rest helps your nervous system re-regulate. It reconnects you with your purpose.
Some days, showing up means not showing up to the protest, the gig, or the screen.
That's okay.
📓 Resources to Support You
All We Can Save (Ayana Elizabeth Johnson & Katharine Wilkinson)
The Future Is Not Lost podcast
The Intersectional Environmentalist by Leah Thomas
Our blog post discussing the intersection of mental health and activism (and some yoga poses to support you)
Our eco-conscious Create With Impact Tote, Journal, and Water Bottle for on-the-go connection
🌊 You Are Not Alone in This
If you’ve ever whispered, What’s the point?, you’re not broken—you’re awake.
But you’re also creative. And that means you’re powerful.
You can imagine new worlds, build new systems, and inspire new responses. Not all at once, and not alone—but piece by piece. Line by line. Song by song.
The point isn’t to fix everything.The point is to keep showing up anyway.
Because this world needs your vision more than ever.
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