CLIMATE ANXIETY ECO REPORT


As the Climate Psychology Alliance’s Linda


Aspey, who is also a Member and Fellow of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP), explains: “Climate anxiety has its emotional roots in loss and uncertainty: about what’s happening now and in the future, how we and our loved ones will be impacted, what or who we can trust, losing power or being helpless.”


But there are indications that it can also trigger climate action.


An October 2022 study, also by the University of Bath, found that higher climate anxiety was found to be predictive of a higher frequency of some pro-environmental behaviours, such as encouraging others to save energy, buying second-hand items, borrowing or renting items and repurposing items.


CLIMATE MESSAGING PITFALLS For companies and brands – beauty or otherwise – who need the public to be part of their sustainability journey (ie, complying with


‘


T oo much negativity can evoke fear and anxiety


refill/recycling instructions), or wish to communicate their efforts to the world at large, striking the right tone is essential to avoiding negative emotional responses. “People don’t respond well to extremes in climate messaging – too much negativity can evoke fear and anxiety, which can also show


Using ‘both-and’ language to acknowledge the problem but highlight solutions that you are bringing to the table is an effective way of communicating eco issues to the public without engendering fear or denial


up as denial, whilst too much positivity can lead to cynicism and distrust,” says Aspey. “Too much information can be overwhelming, too little can cause confusion or minimise a problem.” Additionally: “Our confirmation bias – looking for evidence that what we already believe is true – can skew the picture.” However, she adds that “all consumer goods companies – beauty included – can avoid exacerbating anxiety by opting for messaging that engages, rather than lectures or doom mongers”.


GALVANISE, DON’T TERRIFY


Depending on our messaging, brands can cause consumers to “deny, disengage, despair or engage”, says Aspey. “Honesty, clarity and transparency are key,” she explains. “What’s the problem? What are you doing about it? And how can people support, without deflecting all the responsibility onto them.” When it comes to responsibility, Jo-Anne Chidley, founder of the brand Beauty Kitchen and packaging as a service provider Re, says brands must back up their climate messaging with the tools for people to engage in pro-environmental behaviours.


“Consumers need accessibility, convenience, choice and the right value price for the products,” she observes.


One useful strategy for talking to people about the climate crisis in a way that is open but not


cosmeticsbusiness.com April 2023 27 WE ASK THE EXPERT


Jo-Anne Chidley, founder, Re & Beauty Kitchen How does Beauty Kitchen get the balance correct between urgency


when discussing the climate crisis and avoiding creating a sense of doom? It is easy to forget that everyone has a different ‘timeline’ for the climate crisis. As you gain more understanding and information, the more involved you become – and your timeline shifts considerably. My own journey with Beauty Kitchen personally


started from things not adding up. We have finite resources, and if we keep taking and not replacing, where does this end? The way we communicate this to our customers


is like we would around our bank balance or fitness goals: if you don’t put sufficient funds in your bank balance and keep paying bills and spending, you end up in an overdraft, either authorised or not, and this isn’t healthy. If you want to get fit and don’t do any exercise, this doesn’t add up to getting fit. The way we communicate this through our


supply chain is, ‘how can we help towards your net zero targets, collaboration and open source on solutions?’ This turned into a new business opportunity for


us in the creation of Re (rereworld.com) where we have packaging as a service, which is now used by big brands and retailers (Unilever and M&S, for example). This collaborative approach targets cost reduction and carbon reduction. All of these keep us out of the ‘doom loop’


as they are positive and action-orientated, but truthful and straight to the point.


alarmist, is ‘both-and’ language, Aspey adds. “For example: ‘Yes, things are serious and urgent and our team is working hard on it’, or: ‘Flooding is destroying our suppliers’ livelihoods and we’re supporting them with XYZ’.”


She extols sharing stories, rather than data, and advises brands to: “Make it relevant and check your own emotional state before you send the final message out”


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