Climate as a Neurological Threat Multiplier

Climate change isn’t just an environmental issue; it’s a direct assault on brain health. Rising temperatures, air pollution, and extreme weather events exacerbate neurological conditions and create new vulnerabilities. aren’t just harming our planet, they’re directly damaging our brains and mental well-being. The most vulnerable among us are paying the highest price.

How Climate Change Harms the Brain and Mind

A growing body of evidence links climate hazards to a wide range of neurological and psychological outcomes:

Factor	Impact
Heat	Leads to increased risk of stroke, migraine, seizures, and hospitalizations for people with MS, dementia, and epilepsy.
Wildfire Smoke	PM2.5 particles cross the blood-brain barrier, linked to higher rates of stroke, dementia, anxiety, and cognitive decline.
Infectious Diseases	Expanding tick and mosquito habitats increase exposure to Lyme disease and West Nile virus, which can cause severe neurological complications.

The Rising Tide of Climate Anxiety & Trauma

Beyond the physical impacts, the climate crisis is a profound psychological stressor.

Climate Anxiety (& Eco-Anxiety): Many people, especially youth, experience chronic fear, grief, and distress about the future of our planet.
Post-Traumatic Stress: Survivors of climate-fueled disasters like wildfires and floods can experience lasting psychological trauma.
Solastalgia: A sense of emotional distress caused by environmental change close to your home, leading to a feeling of loss for a once-familiar landscape.

This mental health burden is real and growing. Our work, informed by experts like trauma therapist Dr. Christine Gibson, focuses on building resilience, developing screening tools for clinicians, and creating pathways to care for those experiencing climate-related psychological distress.

The Equity Imperative

This crisis is not felt equally. Systemic injustices mean that equity-denied communities bear the greatest burden:

Outdoor workers cannot escape heat and smoke.
Low-income households and seniors often lack air conditioning or air filtration.
Indigenous communities are on the front lines of land and resource changes and face disproportionate impacts from wildfires and displacement.
People with disabilities or pre-existing neurological conditions are more susceptible to climate threats.

Canada has no national strategy to address this intersection. That’s where we come in.

Canada is Lagging Behind

While countries like the UK and Australia are integrating brain health into their climate policies, Canada is falling behind. The Brain Climate Equity Collaborative was founded to fill this critical gap: generating evidence, raising awareness, and driving action to protect every brain in a changing climate.

The time to act is now.