Youth Mental Health in Conflict Zones

The deep and lasting effects of armed conflict on the mental health and well-being of children and young people are clear, going beyond direct trauma to include the widespread stressors in impacted families and communities. The combined impact of these stressors clearly contributes to psychological suffering, resulting in poorer educational outcomes and weakened social connections. The experience of traumatic events, often worsened by insufficient mental health support, is probable to result in long-lasting effects, greatly influencing personal well-being and community stability. These impacts can vary across groups, with women and girls often facing additional psychological burdens linked to gender-based violence in the context of war. Considering the prevalence of armed conflict in areas with limited resources, this situation presents a serious risk to regional stability and development, requiring immediate and collaborative international focus.

In October 2024, youth delegates to the United Nations addressed the Security Council with a joint statement highlighting the devastating toll of armed conflict on young people and calling for greater accountability and action for peace. Young people worldwide are underlining that sustainable peace and conflict prevention are the most effective strategies to protect mental well-being in conflict-affected regions, particularly for young people. 

We recommend the global community and UN member states to:

• Prioritize the provision of targeted, evidence-based mental health and psychosocial support to children and youth affected by armed conflict. This includes developing and implementing culturally sensitive interventions that foster trust, destigmatize mental health discussions, and promote resilience. 
• Provide mental health and psychosocial support to parents and caregivers to help them manage their own distress related to conflict, ensuring that they have the knowledge, skills and capacity to support their children’s mental wellbeing. 
• Establish active mechanisms to support the maintenance of social relationships and academic pursuits in conflict situations in order to mitigate the disruption of social development and educational continuity. 
• Support youth-led initiatives in conflict zones by providing resources and mentorship to enable young people to actively participate in the delivery of support services, thereby fostering a sense of agency and community cohesion.
• Address the disproportionate mental health toll that armed conflicts inflict on women and girls, particularly due to gender-based violence and sexual abuse, by implementing specialized support services that are survivor-centered, trauma-informed, and culturally sensitive.
• Recognize that the most effective way to protect the mental health of children and youth is by preventing conflict itself and actively work towards conflict prevention, peaceful resolution of disputes, and the creation of environments that minimize the conditions for war, as integral strategies to safeguard youth mental health.

Climate Change and Mental Health

Climate-induced displacement uproots lives and fractures the emotional security of young people, who often lose not only their homes but their sense of identity and community. The resulting uncertainty, trauma, and disruption can significantly increase psychosocial stress, especially when support systems are lacking. In this context, youth in climate-vulnerable regions often face the greatest mental health risks while having the least access to care due to limited infrastructure.

Furthermore, climate change significantly fuels other mental health conditions such as climate anxiety, often marked by hopelessness and fear for the planet’s future. Consequently, young people are more vulnerable to stress, anxiety and depression, exacerbated by the gradual development of their cognitive and emotional capacities. This distress affects social relationships, educational outcomes, academic performance, and overall well-being. Exposure to negative climate change impacts through (social) media coverage, coupled with a perceived lack of governmental agency, and a sense of powerlessness over the situation, further intensifies these negative feelings.

We recommend the global community and UN member states to:

• Recognize climate anxiety as a natural response to a real crisis, and invest in training mental health professionals to address it early through supportive, stigma-free platforms for expression and care.
• Recognize and address the emotional and psychological impacts of climate-related displacement and environmental degradation.
• Ensure that climate-related mental health responses are equitable, adequately resourced, and tailored to the needs of youth in climate-vulnerable regions.
• Involve meaningfully young people in climate change decision making at all levels, not only as stakeholders but as key contributors to developing and implementing solutions, and provide them access to quality, evidence-based education on the topic.
• Support research on climate anxiety and its impacts to foster informed, evidence-based responses to this growing concern.
• Preserve and expand youth access to nature and green spaces, recognizing the strong role that connection with the natural environment plays in supporting mental health and resilience, especially in climate-change affected zones.