How do health psychologists feel about climate change? The first EHPS Climate Café: an informal place for psychologists to listen and share climate change experiences at a scientific conference.

With a stronger focus on planetary health and sustainability, and a general broader awareness of the climate crisis, researchers increasingly deal personally or professionally with climate change issues and climate anxiety. Thus, this is a topic of interest for the scientific community and should get space at scientific conferences, for example with a climate cafe. During the EHPS 2025 conference in Groningen, the first ever Climate Café was organised. The roundtable, informal in nature, created a safe space for small groups of EHPS colleagues to share their thoughts, feelings and mutual support regarding themes related to climate change. The conversations revealed prominent themes of frustration, urgency, moral and intergenerational injustice, and the need for collective action. At the same time, participants reported feelings of connection, validation, and relief through sharing stories. The Climate Café highlights the value of low-threshold, emotion-focused spaces within academic communities to support psychological well-being and foster collective engagement with climate change. While there is a well-recognised need for action, sometimes it is also ok to just ‘be’.