Climate-Induced Geological Changes and Mental Health: The Rise of Eco-Anxiety in Pakistan's Hazard-Prone Regions

Abstract

Over the last few years, Pakistan is experiencing rising instances of climate driven geological waves of unrest, glacial lake outburst, landslides, and droughts causing severe losses not just to the physical environment but to the mental health of its citizens as well. The most critically affected are those youth settled in danger areas who experience increased psychological distress, especially eco-anxiety, a chronic fear of ecological crisis. As global warming is speeding up, knowledge of its psychological effects has become an urgent issue for public health. The purpose of this research is to examine the link between climate elicited geological alteration and eco-anxiety in Pakistani youth with a specific focus on two goals, framed with two questions of research, and investigated with two hypotheses. The research design used is quantitative survey research with an aim to sample 300 Pakistani youth from several hazard prone areas. A structured survey questionnaire is used to collect data and descriptive statistics along with pie chart visualization are used to analyze the data and illustrate response patterns in an understandable manner. The findings showed that a large percentage of the youth population suffers symptoms of eco-anxiety, including chronic worry, helplessness, and fear about the future, particularly those with high levels of media reporting exposure and direct personal experience of environmental catastrophes. Location and gender also proved to be contributing factors towards psychological susceptibility. The research concluded that climate related geological changes are directly related to increasing eco-anxiety levels among young people in at risk areas. In light of these observations, it is suggested that mental health support services mainstreamed into climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction strategies. In addition, climate education and psychological resilience building interventions are implemented at schools, universities, and community centers in order to counteract long term mental health implications of environmental uncertainty.