Erin Gallay is a PhD candidate at the University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS) focusing on Behavior, Education and Communication (BEC), specifically environmental education and young people’s agency and engagement in environmental action. Gallay is the first author of the study, “Place-based civic science–collective environmental action and solidarity for eco-resilience,” which was published in the journal Child and Adolescent Mental Health in 2022. Gallay’s article recently was recognized as a Wiley Top Cited Article in 2022-2023 in Child and Adolescent Mental Health.

We asked Gallay five questions about the study, its goals and its conclusions to better understand the purpose of her research and why it's been so heavily cited. 

1) Why did you decide to focus on this research topic, and what question did you want to answer?

Studying eco-anxiety was not the original intent of the research, but it came about from issues around agency and efficacy that emerged from students’ work addressing environmental issues in their communities. Feelings of helplessness and those sorts of things didn’t come out at all even though the kids were learning about pretty heavy topics, but at the same time there was a growing conversation about eco-anxiety and how not just young people, but people of all ages, were feeling about dealing with this issue.

The research in this article emerged from analysis of what students were saying about their experience, and was primarily focused on determining what about civic science as a pedagogy might have implications for people in terms of eco-anxiety and becoming more resilient and able to deal with the effects of what they're seeing happening in their communities due to climate change. 

2) Why do you think your paper has been the top-cited article for 2022-2023? 

I think this is mostly because eco-anxiety and maybe even resilience as it relates to education are emerging concepts and haven’t been talked about in academia for very long. There’s not a lot of empirical research out there about how education can impact eco-anxiety. We’ve been lucky that we've been looking at this kind of work for a while and we have been able to connect it to ideas of eco-anxiety and resilience. 

Also, in climate change education, a lot of the material is more about information and understanding the scientific basis of climate change. There isn’t a lot out there, certainly not empirical work, that’s about the practice of adaptation and resilience in education. Young people have to learn how to deal with issues that are happening now but also issues that are going to be happening in the future. While anxiety is a natural response to this, especially compounded with other stressors in our lives, how to diminish unproductive anxiety is something climate change education should consider. 

Some of this accomplishment was just the right place at the right time to have this out there and to have content that people could point to and say, this is what people can learn and this is what student outcomes can be, especially in terms of social emotional learning in the context of learning about socio-ecological issues. 

3) Describe the major conclusions of your research.

This research expands on education about the scientific basis of climate change (the known understandings about greenhouse gasses and carbon emissions) and discusses the things that we can do about it that affect our social and emotional well-being that come from taking action and contributing to our communities.  

It can be really hard for young people to grow up in a world where they're facing these challenges and they're going to be continuing to face these challenges for the rest of their lives. Learning just about the negative impacts of climate change can put young people at risk for things like anxiety and depression. We can do things in education to avoid that distress and to not let it turn into something other than a natural reaction to the world around us. To do this, we have to include opportunities for young people in particular, to experience action collectively, so that it’s not just something that’s put on individuals. Collective action can also increase young people’s understanding of what's happening, develop a sense of agency, and learn how to work in teams. 

I think the biggest point that we’re making is that educational opportunities are needed for young people to practice those things, and when they are given those chances, they’re really capable of dealing with problems like climate change. If they can see themselves being affected by and practicing collective action and know that other people also are with them in it, they are able to see a better future. 

4) Why is this research important, and who does it impact the most?

Most of my work is done in partnership with educational practitioners. It's very intentional that the research should be about impacting practice and not just for the sake of research alone. There is also room in terms of environmental communications for this work to fit in, and many of the conclusions align with what SEAS Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Michaela Zint and SEAS Lecturer Jessica Ostrow Michel are doing in their courses on climate change leadership and turning anxiety into action. I’m not a mental health professional but the journal this was published in is primarily for mental health practitioners, so there is room for impact there as well. 

5) Why did you specialize in BEC at SEAS and how did this influence your research?

I got my undergraduate degree at U-M in environmental education, and then I got a teaching certificate and a master’s degree in ecojustice education at Eastern Michigan University. When I was applying to get my PhD, SEAS had a great reputation in environmental education circles and is a leader in environmental justice, which is fundamental to my educational philosophy. The program at SEAS seemed like a good path for me because my work hasn’t always been just in formal schooling, and the interdisciplinary nature of SEAS speaks to a broader educational context.

At the core of my work, education is not just a form of information transfer but is one key to addressing the environmental crises and working towards a more just and sustainable future. Part of PhD work is that I do get to see the benefit of using practice backed up by research, and that’s ultimately the niche I'd like to occupy. I never want to give up working with teachers and students, and hopefully I can bring some of what I learn through really listening to students back to educational practice.