An intervention to reduce eco-anxiety and increase climate engagement in transition year students
| ISRCTN | ISRCTN18655072 |
|---|---|
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN18655072 |
- Submission date
- 26/10/2024
- Registration date
- 29/10/2024
- Last edited
- 21/11/2024
- Recruitment status
- No longer recruiting
- Overall study status
- Ongoing
- Condition category
- Other
Plain English summary of protocol
Background and study aims
This study aims to explore how climate change affects teenagers and how we can reduce their anxiety about the climate crisis while encouraging climate action. The goal is to understand and improve teenagers' ability to cope with and respond to climate change.
Who can participate?
The study will recruit 90 Transition Year (TY) students from Ursuline Secondary School in Tipperary.
What does the study involve?
All participants will receive information on biodiversity and the climate crisis and attend a climate education workshop. The intervention group will also take part in a riparian planting process, which is part of a climate action journey. Participants will complete questionnaires at the start and end of the study to measure changes in their climate capability and eco-anxiety. Additionally, focus groups will be conducted to gather more detailed insights.
What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
Participants may benefit from increased knowledge about climate change and improved coping skills for dealing with eco-anxiety. There are minimal risks involved, mainly related to the time commitment required for attending workshops and completing questionnaires.
Where is the study run from?
The study is conducted by the University of Limerick (Ireland)
When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
October 2024 to November 2025
Who is funding the study?
The study is funded by the Health Research Institute, University of Limerick (Ireland)
Who is the main contact?
Prof. Liam Glynn (liam.glynn@ul.ie)
Contact information
Public, Scientific, Principal Investigator
School of Medicine
Faculty of Education & Health Sciences
University of Limerick
Limerick
V94 T9PX
Ireland
 ORCID ID |
0000-0002-6153-9363 |
|---|---|
| Phone | +353 (0) 61 202812 |
| liam.glynn@ul.ie |
Study information
| Study design | Open-label randomized controlled trial |
|---|---|
| Primary study design | Interventional |
| Secondary study design | Randomised controlled trial |
| Study setting(s) | School |
| Study type | Efficacy |
| Participant information sheet | Not available in web format, please use contact details to request a participant information sheet |
| Scientific title | An intervention to reduce eco-anxiety and increase climate engagement in TY students: the “No Environment No Well-being" randomised controlled trial |
| Study acronym | No Environment No Well-being |
| Study objectives | Our project, "No Environment, No Well-being," addresses eco-anxiety among young people by combining climate education with hands-on riparian planting. We anticipate this approach will empower participants, raising awareness and providing a direct way to combat feelings of helplessness. |
| Ethics approval(s) |
Approved 19/11/2024, Education and Health Sciences Research Ethics Committee, University of Limerick (Plassey, Limerick, V94 T9PX, Ireland; +353-61-213081; ehsresearchethics@ul.ie), ref: 2024_10_08_EHS |
| Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied | Climate engagement and Eco-anxiety |
| Intervention | The “No Environment No Well-being” randomised controlled trial (RCT) will be an open-label RCT recruiting transition year (TY) students over 15 years of age who will be recruited in a single school community in Ireland. After giving informed consent and receiving all the background information on the study, all participants (intervention and control) will be assigned a numerical code numbered between 001 and 120. Randomisation will occur using random permuted blocks, to ensure similar numbers of participants in the intervention and control groups. An independent investigator will be responsible for generating the allocation sequence using a computer software program (https://www.randomizer.org/). The same independent investigator will be responsible for assigning participants to the intervention and control groups after being called at a central site. Baseline data collection will then be conducted blinded using an online survey via Qualtrics XM online survey tool. Baseline data will measure climate capability using the Climate Capability Scale and eco-anxiety using the Hogg eco-anxiety scale. The intervention group will then over the following four weeks undertake a positive climate action riparian planting activity in the field and further climate education programme as part of the “No Environment No Well-being” programme. Four weeks after baseline data is collected, follow-up data will then be collected on all participants (intervention and control) measuring climate capability using the Climate Capability Scale and eco-anxiety using the Hogg eco-anxiety scale. As at baseline, this will be collected on all participants using an online survey via Qualtrics XM online survey tool. In addition, all participants (intervention and control) will be invited to take part in focus group interviews regarding their experience of the study and of those who agree, a random selection of 12 participants (six intervention and six control) will be selected for interview. |
| Intervention type | Behavioural |
| Primary outcome measure | Climate capability will be measured using the Climate Capability Scale (CCS) at baseline and 4 weeks |
| Secondary outcome measures | Eco-anxiety will be measured using the Hogg Eco-Anxiety Scale (HEAS-13) at baseline and 4 weeks |
| Overall study start date | 04/10/2024 |
| Completion date | 06/11/2025 |
Eligibility
| Participant type(s) | Learner/student |
|---|---|
| Age group | Child |
| Lower age limit | 15 Years |
| Upper age limit | 16 Years |
| Sex | Female |
| Target number of participants | 90 |
| Key inclusion criteria | TY student in Ursuline Secondary school, Thurles, Co Tipperaray, Ireland |
| Key exclusion criteria | Does not meet inclusion criteria |
| Date of first enrolment | 20/11/2024 |
| Date of final enrolment | 11/12/2024 |
Locations
Countries of recruitment
- Ireland
Study participating centre
Thurles
Co Tipperary
E41ET35
Ireland
Sponsor information
University/education
School of Medicine
Faculty of Education & Health Sciences
University of Limerick
Limerick
V94 T9PX
Ireland
| Phone | +353 (0) 61 202812 |
|---|---|
| vpresearch@ul.ie | |
| Website | https://www.ul.ie/ |
"ROR" |
https://ror.org/00a0n9e72 |
Funders
Funder type
University/education
No information available
Results and Publications
| Intention to publish date | 06/10/2025 |
|---|---|
| Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to share | Yes |
| IPD sharing plan summary | Available on request |
| Publication and dissemination plan | The project has been accepted for presentation at the BT Young Scientists Exhibition 2025 |
| IPD sharing plan | The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request, liam.glynn@ul.ie |
Editorial Notes
21/11/2024: Ethics approval details added. The recruitment start date was changed from 06/11/2024 to 20/11/2024.
29/10/2024: Faculty of Education & Health Sciences Ethics Committee, University of Limerick.
