Values clarification — identifying what matters most to you at the deepest level — is a cornerstone of ACT therapy for climate anxiety and provides direction when climate anxiety removes other navigational tools.
Why Values Matter for Climate Anxiety
Climate Anxiety often disconnects us from our values through avoidance, withdrawal, and reduced capacity. Reconnecting with values provides:
- Direction when climate anxiety has eliminated other motivation
- Meaning that persists even through difficult climate anxiety periods
- A basis for action independent of how climate anxiety makes you feel
Clarifying Your Values with Climate Anxiety
Ask yourself: 'If my climate anxiety were less present, what would I be doing more of? What kind of person would I be?'
Values are not goals (achievable and done) but ongoing directions: being a present parent, creating beauty, contributing to others.
Values-Based Action in Climate Anxiety
ACT therapy teaches: act according to values even when climate anxiety is present. Small values-aligned actions, despite climate anxiety, are more sustainable than waiting for climate anxiety to lift first.