The planetary crisis (climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution) is having a profound impact on the mental health of young Australians. The impact of climate disasters, constant barrage of stories of ecological collapse across social media and the reality of an uncertain climate future is resulting in increased rates of climate anxiety, eco-distress and burnout.
Young people's mental health is especially at risk because they’re most aware of the impacts of climate change, will face these effects the longest, and while considered the key to our planet's future, often lack the power to make change.
ECOMIND is Australia's leading youth climate mental org. We are an independent charity that exists to help young Australians process their climate emotions, not only to support their mental health and well-being but also to clear the path for effective climate action.
We are doing this by working with climate mental health practitioners and young people to develop evidence-based programs, tools, resources and support networks to help young people care for themselves, each other and the planet.
The climate crisis is having a profound impact on the mental health, wellbeing & agency of young Aussies.
We give young Aussies the tools to sustainably care for themselves,
each other & the planet.
We care for the next generation
of sustainable minds.
We are launching Australia's first climate mental health certificate in April 2026, co-designed with young people and next-gen experts.
We will develop a 'Train the Carer' to train youth carers, teachers & peers to care for climate curious young people.
We provide spaces for radical
connection & communities.
We work with Psychology for a Safe Climate to deliver youth climate cafes, creating spaces where feelings, not fixes, come first.
We aim to build a national community of care by helping young Aussies lead climate cafes across Australia.
We imagine the future we want & make it a reality through advocacy, storytelling & collaboration.
We are bringing together youth and expert voices to create a national Youth Climate Mental Health Policy Agenda.
We will create campaigns that tackle the root causes (not just the symptoms) of the climate & mental health crises.
We are a group of passionate individuals who believe that the key to a sustainable climate future is building climate emotional resilience in young Australians now.
Georgia is a sustainability lawyer and consultant at Sydney-based climate change advisory group Pollination. After herself struggling with the enormity of the climate challenge facing the world, she co-founded ecomind to help young people take control of their climate emotions by channelling them into climate actions. When she is not actively seeking meaningful ways to have a climate impact, she re-energises through yoga, beach swims and deleting (and re-downloading) her social media.
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Courtney is a mental health professional who specialises in youth engagement and primary prevention. After designing impactful programs at youth mental health charity, batyr, Courtney left with a desire to combine her passion for youth mental health with her love of the environment, which led her to co-founding ecomind. When she's not looking for new ways to tackle complex problems, Court can be found doing handstands (or trying to), cuddling her dog Bear and spending time with her loved ones.
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I'm a proud Yuin and Gamilaraay man studying law/arts (majoring in politics) at the University of Wollongong (Dharawal Country). I'm a dedicated and result-driven student who excels in high pressure environments and offers a strong foundation in criminal law, commerical law and statutory interpretation. Although I would be delighted to practise in any area of law, I'm particularly set on becoming a commercial law barrister.I advocate for young people's mental health on a local and state level, bringing lived experience and a youth perspective to conversations that have historically excluded young people. I also hope to advocate for cultural and structural reform to the legal profession, so that the mental wellbeing of legal professionals is more adequately addressed.As a member of the eSafety Youth Council, I provide advice to Government about issues that young people experience online. I'm particularly passionate about raising awareness of, and safeguarding young people from, tech-facilitated abuse. Beyond academics and advocacy, I'm interested in poetry, music, travelling and socialising with my friends.
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Hannah is an environmental management student in Brisbane with a particular interest in conservation. For the past two years she has been involved in engaging youth in conservation through her work with Co-Exist, running the Brisbane collective and campouts. She has experienced first hand the toll learning about the challenges the environment is facing has on mental health. When she is not studying and running community events, she enjoys spending time out in the bush, hiking and learning about Australia’s native animals and plants.
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Urvee is an ecology and policy student at the University of New South Wales. Urvee grew up with a deep connection to place and the natural world - a relationship that has become the foundation of her work across nature, climate, child and youth rights, and policy. She is the Founder and National Coordinator of GYBN Australia, Australia's first national youth nature network. In her dedicated fun time, you'll find Urvee tinkering away at arts and crafts projects or outside looking for critters and other non-human friends to say hello to.
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Sophie is a Law and Communications (Social and Political Sciences) student at UTS, and paralegal. Her care for the environment took root at school, where she led the Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation Environment Council, and has since grown into a strong interest in the intersection of climate policy, education and mental health, and how we can best prepare future generations for climate related issues. She is drawn to ECOMIND’s focus on keeping the climate activism movement sustainable through looking after the voices and actors that continue to seek positive change. When she's not studying, you'll find Sophie ocean swimming, playing gigs on the drums with her Sydney band Darling Street, or hiking in some of the most beautiful parts of the planet.
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Yehansa Dahanayake is a passionate climate advocate and Youth Researcher at the Young & Resilient Research Centre at Western Sydney University, with a special interest in child and youth engagement, human rights, and climate change policy. Her roots are in grassroots advocacy, having volunteered at the Australian Youth Climate Coalition for multiple years. In partnership with Environmental Justice Australia, she recently became one of the first Australian young people to file an official complaint to the UN Special Rapporteur on Climate Change. Yehansa also works as a public speaker, wishing to share her optimistic, solutions-based, and interdisciplinary view on climate adaptation and solution-making. When she's not doing climate work, she loves to paint, write songs, sing, and dance!
I'm a multimedia storyteller working at the intersection of climate action, social justice, and community-led change. Through visual storytelling, my passion is to amplify marginalised voices and create safer, more diverse spaces. I have a strong belief that social media can be reimagined to foster a healthier relationship with environmental issues and ease climate anxiety through stories that inspire hope and connection. Based on Wurundjeri Country, I'm guided by curiosity and deep respect for First Nations knowledge and Country, and I'm building a career in purpose-led media that helps shape a more equitable, regenerative, and inclusive future.
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Vida is an emerging singer/songwriter and performer and environmental advocate hailing from the northern region of the Illawarra. Now based in Sydney, she studies a Bachelor of Arts at the University of Sydney majoring in Music and Minoring in Digital Music. Vida hopes to promote navigating feelings of overwhelm or distress around the climate crisis through art, particularly in songwriting and storytelling. Vida has been an activist since high school where she helped to organize a school strike for climate alongside the Protect Our Water Alliance in Wollongong. She also attended the Clean Energy Summit at Blue Scope Steel in 2020 where she and her peer advocated for switches to renewable energy to local Labour member Paul Scully. She is so excited to be a part of the Youth Advisory Board and inspire positive change in how we approach mental health in relation to the climate crisis.
Emma is the Director of the Climate Cares Centre and Mental Health Lead at the Institute of Global Health Innovation. The Climate Cares Centre works internationally across research, policy, education and intervention design to understand and drive action on the interconnections between the health of the climate and our minds. Emma also leads the Wellcome-funded global initiative Connecting Climate Minds, which has involved around 1200 people across 130 countries to date. She also holds an AXA Climate and Health Fellowship on "Building Youth Resilience by Understanding and Intervening on the Mental Health Impacts of Climate Awareness", working with young people in Australia, Trinidad and the Philippines.
Dr Tim Sharp (aka Dr Happy) is the founder & CHO (Chief Happiness Officer) of The Happiness Institute, Australia’s first and now largest organisation devoted solely to enhancing happiness in individuals, families and organisations. He is an Adjunct Professor in Positive Psychology at UTS and RMIT University. His primary areas of interest include enhancing happiness at work as well as promoting healthy living via the application of positive psychology principles. He recently launched an exciting and radically new program, The Happiness Diet. Dr. Sharp is the bestselling author of among others The Happiness Handbook, 100 Ways to Happy Children: a guide for busy parents and most recently Live Happier Live Longer –a guide to positive ageing.
Dr Chloe Watfern is a maker and researcher with a longstanding interest in ecological emotions, climate distress, and human-nature connections. She is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Black Dog Institute, where she leads the Climate Lab, and a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Ecological Emotions Research Lab at the University of Sydney.
Christie Wilson is a Psychotherapist and Climate and Mental Health Manager at Psychology for a Safe Climate. She specialises in climate psychology, focusing on trauma-informed collaborative approaches to addressing climate-related emotions and wellbeing. As a faculty member of the Climate Emotional Resilience Network, she mentors climate-aware practitioners and leaders, supporting personal climate journeys toward just transitions and movement-wide regenerative development. Christie lives on Darkinjung Country, Central Coast, NSW, where she raised two children, and enjoys exploring wild spaces with her dingo, Skye.
Gus is a dynamic communicator, educator, and advocate, passionate about helping people transform complex emotions into practical actions. He is committed to making lived experience central to the climate conversation, and to ensuring people across Australia are equipped to identify, express, and respond to their climate-related emotions. When he’s not working as an advocate or engineer, you’ll likely find Gus on a rock climbing wall or camped out under the stars in his swag.
Ecomind benefits from the deep vibrant and experienced ecosystem of climate mental health professionals.
We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of all the lands upon which ECOMIND operates. We recognise that First Nations communities are at the physical and emotional frontline of the climate crisis and have been caring for land, waterways and community for millennia.
Sovereignty has never been ceded. It always was and always will be, Aboriginal land.
ecomind (ABN: 78673469853) is an Australian registered charity