In November 2025, when Monmouthshire was overwhelmed with floods, the water flowed past at 18 times its regular level. When interviewed, residents were shocked at how rare it felt. However, experience, stories and even the eye-test from the last few months can bring that sinking feeling of knowing that it is part of a trend that is becoming much more common thanks to climate change.
It is easy to worry. Some parts of South Wales experienced rainfall topping 150% of what would be expected for January at the beginning of the year. Some areas were washed every day of February. Last summer was the hottest on record for the UK and the hottest for Wales since 1884. The Welsh climate is under pressure and our old norms are changing before our eyes.
Marches by schoolchildren, the activities of Extinction Rebellion and a sense of urgency around COP summits feel like something from a previous world. There is a sense that climate change is underreported, with net zero as a concept, in particular, increasingly considered a term non grata in political discourse (see our recent blog on this topic). It is understandable, then, that climate anxiety has become more and more of an issue.
Anxiety about climate change is a difficult worry to resolve, as it is one rooted in scientific fact, regardless of how much that fact is listened to by governments and politicians. For example, one in seven homes in Wales are at risk of flooding. Natural Resources Wales estimates this will increase by 28% over the next century.
There are two key things that we can tie some hope to: campaigning for change and managing the present. There needs to be hope. There are, indeed, things to be hopeful for. The Senedd election in May is a real opportunity for climate change to be taken seriously. Left-leaning parties such as the Greens and Plaid Cymru have already drawn attention, to differing extents, to the value of preserving Wales’s wonderful landscape and pushing for much more to be done.
In May, there will be 96 Members of the Senedd. There will be many new faces from across the country, probably from across the political spectrum. Rising from 60 to 96 MSs, enables more discussion, greater scrutiny on committees, more questions asked to Ministers and more space for the reflection on this issue it deserves.
Plenty will change in the Senedd from May 8th, but, as we all know, legislation and delivery can take a long time to come. Managing worries about the climate is vital for the here and now to ensure that we can keep the energy to continue to fight for change. There are likely different emotions involved for many people. This could be anger at a lack of change; frustration; anxiety about the future of the planet or your local area; grief at environmental loss; or guilt about our collective impact on the planet. You might also find it worsens worries you already have. It is a complicated issue that requires complex answers beyond just what legislation or a question on the floor of the Senedd can achieve.
A few things that could help you manage worries about the climate could be:
Managing how you engage with social media. We know that social media can make even the smallest conversation overwhelming. Managing what you see and avoiding the vortex of worry it can bring about can break the cycle of doomscrolling.
Giving time and energy to community projects, from tree planting, to volunteering for environmental charities and more. There’s so much you can do in Wales if you take the time to look for it (you could even think about supporting Sustainable Wales!).
Talk. You aren’t alone in experiencing this worry. It’s shared by people the world over. Having positive conversations focusing on campaigning for change. Finding ways to demand a better world can really boost you.
This is not to say that focusing on personal wellbeing demands a retreat from facing the issues head-on. In the pandemic, it was well-observed that isolation and individualism grew as the breakdown of the collective grew more endemic, thanks in part to mismanagement from those with the power to alleviate challenges and save lives. You need the energy to keep going. We all do. So much of the news feels out of our control. It feels overpowering and exhausting. Finding strength beneath that to keep going is so important, now more than ever.
George Watkins