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Symposium

Behavioral and Social Sciences

Climate Change and Aging: From Vulnerability to Action

Thursday, November 9, 2023
8:00 AM – 9:30 AM ET
Location: Room 305

Older people are particularly susceptible to extreme climate change events. This is attributable to physiological susceptibility, but also to factors such as social isolation, digital exclusion, ageism, and living arrangement. Unfortunately, older people are often not considered in mitigation and adaptation climate change policies contributing to their heightened susceptibility in the face of extreme climate events. Compounding this challenge, it is younger people who are seen as the face of the climate change movement, at times, blaming older people for their (in)action, which has contributed to the current climate situation. Nevertheless, research has shown that older people engage in pro-environmental behaviors and can highly benefit from taking part in climate change activism. The present symposium aims to tackle this topic by discussing the challenges pertaining to older populations occasioned by climate change, and how older populations can engage in being part of mitigation solutions.. The first presentation by Carr and colleagues addresses global population aging and heat exposure with a particular focus on implications for wellbeing and social policy. Delving into the country level, Cherry and colleagues discuss findings concerning long term mental health effects of exposure to a single versus two extreme weather events. Moving to possibly mitigation and adaptation measures, Nikitin and Rupprecht address opportunities associated with exposure to nature, whereas Kohon and colleagues discuss the role that aging and old age capture in climate change policies. The symposium concludes with a theoretical conceptualization by Diehl which reframes aging in the context of climate change.

This is a Climate Change and Aging Interest Group Sponsored Symposium.

Learning Objectives:

  • After attending this session, participants will become familiar with the new interest group on climate change and aging
  • After attending this session, participants will be able to describe the foundational basis of current research and theory in the field of climate change and aging.

Presentations:

  • 8:00 AM – 9:30 AM ET
    Getting Older Adults Involved in Climate Change Initiatives: Reframing Aging as a Potential Approach

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Manfred Diehl, PhD, FGSA (he/him/his) – Colorado State University

  • 8:00 AM – 9:30 AM ET
    Global Population Aging and Heat Exposure in the 21st Century: Implications for Late-Life Well-Being and Policy

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Deborah Carr, PhD, FGSA (she/her/hers) – Boston University

  • 8:00 AM – 9:30 AM ET
    Exposure to Nature Is Related to Generativity, Especially Among Adults With Limited Future Time Perspective

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Jana Nikitin, PhD (she/her/hers) – University of Vienna

  • 8:00 AM – 9:30 AM ET
    Multiple Severe Weather Events: Are Older Adults More Vulnerable?

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Katie E. Cherry, PhD – Louisiana State University

  • 8:00 AM – 9:30 AM ET
    Climate Change Policies and Older Adults: An Analysis of States' Climate Adaptation Plans

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Jacklyn N. Kohon, PhD (she/her/hers) – Portland State University