Some thoughts on climate change and staying positive

Nov 4, 2019 | 3 comments

It can be quite depressing, trying to keep up with what is going on in the world and at the same time it is rather important, to stay updated about what’s going on around us. Especially if you want to make a positive difference either quite simply and locally or maybe more on a global scale. The tough facts are important to face if we are to change and challenge the way we consume. I’m known to be very interested in living more simply and sustainably, so it might come as quite a chok to some of you that I’m not always fully updated on the ‘sustainability news’ of the world. And this is not because I’m not intersted or I just don’t care. Because staying in the loop especially in regards to climate change is somewhat of an important act for me and my content. Especially when it comes to sharing important and specific facts about sustainability for example. But the truth is I’m one of those people who are kind of “afraid” of the news. And I find myself getting easily overwhelmed by the stream of news and horrific facts we are exposed to every day. Like, I will legit get anxiety, a racing heart and start sweating if I try to keep up all the time.

Det kan være ret deprimerende, at følge med i hvad der sker i verden og samtidig er det jo enormt vigtigt, at holde sig orienteret om hvad der foregår omkring os. Især hvis man gerne vil være med til, at gøre en positiv forskel enten på et helt jordnært og simpelt plan i sine egne private omgivelser eller måske mere på verdensplan, hvis man er forholdsvis politisk aktiv. De hårde facts er vigtige at se i øjnene, hvis vi skal rykke vores grænser og udfordre os selv og vores forbrug. Nu er jeg jo super interesseret i at leve simpelt og mere bæredygtigt, så måske kommer det som et chok for nogle af jer, at jeg faktisk følger overraskende lidt med i hvad der sker i verden sådan generelt. Og det er ikke fordi jeg ikke er interesseret eller ikke forsøger at holde mig orienteret på nogen måde. Det er jo ret vigtigt at jeg følger med i især udviklingen af “climate change”, i forhold til det indhold jeg laver på mine kanaler. Ihvertfald når det kommer til deling af specifikke facts om bæredygtighed. Men faktisk er jeg én af dem der er lidt “bange” for nyheder og jeg bliver ganske enkelt hurtigt overvældet af nyhedsstrømmen. Sådan helt legit, så giver det mig faktisk angst, hjertebanken og koldsved, at følge med hele tiden.

Why does negative news dominate headlines?

According to Truth Theory there’s a rather simple reason why negative headlines are often those we will get exposed to the most every day. It’s because neurotically that’s just how our brain works; it will always notice threats and danger quicker because in that way we can protect ourselves from these. It’s sort of a defense mechanism, and this of course then works in favour of journalists and other public channels. So that might explain why we are easily drawn to the negative and dangerous events happening in the world, with the stream of news we are all exposed to – no matter if this stream comes from news channels, activists, influencers/social media or through your colleagues at work, it effects us either way and it tares on our defense mechanism. So maybe it’s not that strange that more and more people are suffering from anxiety and stress. Or that some people (like me) simply need some time away from the news stream sometimes, to keep a certain distance from the negative and seek the positive instead. Especially if you find yourself to be a rather sensitive soul already.

Ifølge Truth Theory er der en ganske simpel årsag til, at det er de negative overskrifter der får lov til, at dominere de nyheder vi bliver eksponeret for hver eneste dag. Det skyldes ganske enkelt at vi rent neurologisk er indrettet sådan, at vores hjerne altid vil lægge tydligere mærke til potentielle farer omkring os så vi kan forsvare os selv mod dem. Det er en slags beskyttelses-mekanisme, og det er jo et eller andet sted det journalister og andre nyhedssælgende medier ved. Vi er derfor helt naturligt draget af de negative og farlige begivenheder der foregår i verden, og med den nyhedsstrøm vi alle hver dag udsættes for – uanset om denne nyhedsstrøm kommer fra reelle nyhedskanaler, aktivister, influencers/sociale medier eller gennem arbejdskolleger – så påvirker det os og tærer på vores indre “forsvarsmekanisme”. Og så er det måske ikke så underligt, at mange mennsker i højere grad døjer både med stress og angst. Eller at nogle mennesker (som jeg selv) har brug for, at skærme sig lidt fra det negative og opsøge det positive. Især hvis man i forvejen er lidt en sensitiv sjæl.

Is criticism more effective than praising?

Let’s stick with the psychological theories for a moment, because I think they are rather interesting and important in the debate of negative/positive news. Winner of the nobel prize, psychologist Daniel Kahneman, investigated how the use of criticism versus the use of praising can affect our development and decisions as human beings. Through a study where he were to help training air force pilots, he discovered that most of the instructors were prone to find the use of criticism (which is negative) more effective for learning than praising (which is positive). But Kahneman’s study actually showed that both methods had the same effect. To back up this theory which is mentioned in THIS article, there was another study made where he investigated children with depression. The study showed that these children, through the simple, positive act of cuddling a cat for 20 minutes everyday, would improve their mental health significantly. So why not choose positive over negative if the result is just as good (maybe even better)?

Lad os lige blive lidt ved de psykologiske teorier, for jeg synes de er ret interessante i hele den her debat omkring positive/negative nyheder. Nobelprisvindende psykolog Daniel Kahneman undersøgte for år tilbage, hvordan brugen af kritik versus brugen af ros påvirker vores måde at udvikle os og tage beslutninger på. Gennem et forløb hvor han skulle hjælpe med at træne piloter, opdagede han at mange af instruktørerne mente, at hård kritik (der jo er negativt stemt) var mere effektivt for indlæringen end (positiv) ros. Men studiet skulle faktisk vise, at begge metoder stort set var lige effektive. For at bakke denne teori op nævnes der i DENNE artikel også et andet studie, hvor man undersøgte børn med depression. Studiet viste bl.a. at disse børn gennem den simple, positive handling, at kæle og kramme en blød kat ca. 20 minutter hver dag, fik det væsentligt bedre. Så hvorfor ikke vælge det positive over det negative, hvis resultatet blive ligeså godt (måske endda bedre)?

There’s no doubt that I have a huge respect for those people, who constantly raise the bar for example when it comes to climate change, and it’s important that there are people like this that have the guts to go out into the world, and face the battles others might not have the courage to. It’s people like these that have the power to truly change the world and the way we live, no doubt about it. These people make real and important headlines too. The world needs the people who dare to bring us the tough facts, so we can change. When all this is said though, my content is meant to be a place for people to escape, a place to breathe – even when speaking climate change – a place I might need myself to be able to breathe in my own daily battle trying to live more sustainably. To keep up my spirit, to dare to live sustainably even if that means I make mistakes along the way too. Here’s a rather suitable quote from @manifestationbabe

“I am allowed to be BOTH a work in progress AND help others grow at the same time. I refuse to wait until I believe I’m perfect or someone else has deemed me worthy of impacting others. I am unapologetically accepting a life of massive growth & improvement.”

Your mood will effect your surroundings. It might be a bit cliché but ‘smile and the world smiles back’, isn’t that what they say? That doesn’t mean I never have PMS or never get annoyed by people in traffic after a long and tiring day of work. But in the bigger picture I choose to stay positive because that is a form of mental sustainability to me. It helps me keep up my spirit and find the strength to keep trying, even when I fail or when the whole climate change battle becomes a little too overwhelming. That might be naive to some people; to me it’s a way to survive.

Or rather a way to live, actually.

Der er ingen tvivl om, at jeg ser sindssygt meget op til de mennesker der konstant sætter barren endnu højere i forhold til fx climate change, og det er vigtigt der findes mennesker som tør drage ud i verden, og se udfordringer og konsekvenser i øjnene. Det er mennesker som disse der har magten til, at ændre verden og den måde vi lever på, ingen tvivl om dét. Det er mennesker som disse der trækker vigtige headlines, og der er virkelig brug for dem der bringer de hårde facts på bordet. Når det så er sagt, så skal mit content være et åndehul – selv når vi snakker klima – et sted jeg selv kunne have brug for at komme og “trække vejret”, i min egen daglige kamp for at leve mere bæredygtigt. For at turde leve mere bæredygtigt og opretholde energien til det, også selvom det betyder jeg ikke er perfekt og somme tider begår fejl. Måske er det naivt og ineffektivt (ineffektivt, fordi det måske teoretisk set ikke når ud til nær så mange mennsker), at jeg overordnet set forsøger at holde de positive vibes på mine kanaler – selv når det kommer til noget så alarmerende som tilstanden af vores klima. Her kommer et passende quote fra @manifestationbabe:

“I am allowed to be BOTH a work in progress AND help others grow at the same time. I refuse to wait until I believe I’m perfect or someone else has deemed me worthy of impacting others. I am unapologetically accepting a life of massive growth & improvement.”

Humør smitter af på omgivelserne. Det er måske lidt kliché, men smil smitter, er det ikke det man siger? Det betyder ikke, at jeg aldrig har PMS eller aldrig bliver irriteret på folk i trafikken efter en lang arbejdsdag. Men i grove træk vælger jeg, at forblive positiv fordi det for mig på en måde fungerer som “mental” bæredygtighed. Det hjælper til at holde mig oppe, og blive ved med at prøve igen og igen, selv når jeg træder ved siden af eller når hele climate change debatten ser allermest håbløs ud. Nogen vil kalde det naivt; men for mig er det en måde at overleve på.

Eller måske bare en måde at leve på, faktisk.

3 Comments

  1. Magdalena

    I feel totally the same way. I just can’t read all the news and be an activist because I would go crazy then or I would commit a suicide 😉 I try to live a humble, sustainable life and make changes that will be good for the environment and myself but I cannot compromise my mental health. I struggle with the anxiety on a daily basis and what I really need to do is to take of myself first.

    Reply
  2. Kameela

    The negative news can be totally overwhelming but behind the scenes there’s ordinary people who are trying to stsy positive are not actively ‘activists’making small changes for a more sustsainable future but of course this does not grab the headlines. I am doing the best I can to reduce my impact on the environment and that is enough for me to stay positive and stay hopeful

    Reply
  3. Heidi

    I had two periods of depression in my life. This is long ago. Since that I can’t read newspapers, sometimes I can’t even watch news on TV. It’s very important to care for yourself. Don’t have a bad consciense. Not everyone can be a climate activiste. Know I cuddle my cat what makes me so happy!!!

    Reply

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