Talk to your Children About Climate Change

Talking to your children about climate change can be a bit daunting, but it’s a topic that they must learn. Awareness about the environment will inform them about the world and set them on a path towards more eco-friendly living.
We must teach the new generation about climate change right now so that, when they grow up, they can take up the mantle to reverse the climate change effects on our world.
So, how do you do it? In this article, we will show you an easy way to talk to your children about climate change without scaring them or confusing them.

Breakdown the science
To explain climate change, start with explaining the atmosphere and its science. Tell them the atmosphere surrounds our planet like a bubble, protecting us from the harmful rays of the sun. Here, metaphors work best to make it more relatable.
Maybe, the atmosphere is like a candy wrapper that keeps their favourite candy fresh for them.
Next, teach them that the atmosphere contains some greenhouse gases that keep the world at the perfect temperature, and how in the last 150 years, the levels of greenhouse gases have increased.
How? Tell them that the technologies we use—cars, lights, planes, refrigerators, etc.—release a lot of greenhouse gases, which increases the world’s temperature, which is not suitable for the environment.

Explain the problem
To talk to your children about climate change, start with relating them to the seasons of the region you live in. Cold in February, raining in March, etc. And explain to them the climate’s importance to the world—animals depend on it to find mates or food, or farmers rely on it to grow crops.
Then, tell them how drastically changing the atmosphere would affect everyone and everything, from their favourite birds to farmers. Plus, with a warmer climate, there would be more storms, wildfires, and flooding.
Of course, there’s no need to scare them, but highlighting the importance of a good climate is essential.

Introduce the solution
Your child might get worried but talking to your children about climate change will empower your kid so they feel like they can make a difference.
Now, start by introducing solutions to them and emphasise the importance of an eco-friendly lifestyle. Start with small lifestyle habits like not using bottled water or turning the light off when not in use, and then introduce larger changes like recycling, saving paper, growing trees, or finding alternatives to wood and plastic.
We recommend reading up on the Glasgow Climate Change Conference, where world leaders come together to discuss strategies towards climate change and how the effects can be reversed. This will help you understand the issue in more depth, allowing you to explain the same to your kids in your own way.
Talking to your children about climate change is going to be daunting, but don’t worry. This is a conversation that needs to happen, and in future, your children will thank you for doing so.
Stay tuned to the ActiKid Blog to learn more about how you can set your children on a path to a healthy lifestyle—whether it’s about using the right nutritional supplements or talking about other important things.

ActiKid – Nourishing the next generation.
This article contains general information regarding health and well-being. This information is not intended as advice and should not be treated as such. You must not rely on the information on this website as an alternative to advice from medical or educational professionals.