Following Dr. John Richmond’s recent announcement of receiving a networking grant from the Academy of Medical Sciences (UK), the Workshop Conference entitled “Advancing Mental Health Preparedness, Response, and Resilience to Climate and Weather Extremes” planned for July 23-25, 2024, took place at the University of Alberta, in Edmonton, Alberta.

Beginning with a heartfelt Indigenous Land Acknowledgements led by Hannah Bayne (Graduate Student, University of Alberta), Dr. John Richmond (Senior Researcher, Policy Insights Forum, and Network Founder and Program Director, University of Sheffield) then opened the Workshop Conference by providing an overview of the Network, which was established last year. He discussed how the Network's work has shaped the focus of this year's theme on the mental health impacts of climate change.

Dr. Sherilee Harper (Professor, University of Alberta) provided an opening statement, drawing from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), to anchor our discussions on recognizing climate change is a human health crisis. IPCC, described as the “Atlas of Human Suffering” (quote by António Guterres) paints a picture of how climate change has already had severe and widespread mental health impacts. Sherilee also pointed out the subtle mental health effects of climate change-related content on social media, even when not directly experienced.

Next, Breanne Aylward (PhD Candidate, University of Alberta) provided a comprehensive summary of the literature on mental health impacts of climate change. She identified several research gaps which this network could use as a foundation, including:

·     Delayed long-term mental health impacts are not well understood.

·     Effects of compound, cascading, and repeating events.

·     Need for effective preparedness and response measures.

·     Development of indicators to monitor mental health impacts.

‍

Dr. Courtney Howard (Emergency Physician, Yellowknife, and Vice Chair, Global Climate and Health Alliance), spoke about the lived experiences of climate change disasters. She reflected on the quote how “Grieving is a hard sell” in relation to Mental Health concerns arising from Ecological Anxiety and Ecological Grief.

Next, leveraging from the extensive expertise present, the Workshop Conference participants were divided into small groups for discussions using a deliberative dialogue approach. This method served as a knowledge mobilization and data generation strategy to answer four specific questions regarding mental health concerns.

Participants attended from a diverse range of organizations including the University of Alberta, the University of Victoria, the University of Waterloo, the University of Sheffield (UK), the University of Technology Sydney (Australia), Health Canada, the Public Health Agency of Canada, Métis Nation of Alberta, local high school interns, and others.

Dr. Richmond will continue to provide updates on the next days of the Workshop Conference through the PIF’s blog and social media channels.