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Published VersionCC BY V4.0, Open Access
Journal article
“Io, keimami leqataka vakalevu na vei gauna mai muri” (“We are worried about the future generation”): Experiences of eco-grief in rural indigenous Fijians
Global Environmental Psychology, Vol.1, pp.1-28
2023
Abstract
The impacts of climate change are particularly strong in Pacific Small Island Developing States. However, empirical data on mental health and well-being in the context of climate change and climate anxiety in the region remains limited. The aim of this research was to understand the emotional experiences of climate change and its impact on well-being in rural Fiji. Seventy-one Indigenous and traditional Fijian adults from seven rural villages were interviewed. Data were analyzed using an inductive latent thematic analysis. Evident was the experience of ecological grief among Indigenous and traditional Fijians. In particular, grief experiences were related to losses of species and resources, which impacted ways of life and led to the loss of culture, traditions, and customs. Anticipatory grief was also evident, relating to the loss of lifestyle for future generations, and the loss of traditional and ancestral homes through potential migration. Results provide new data from the Global South and contribute to the limited exploration of mental health in relation to climate change in the Pacific region. The results highlight the experience of ecological grief among Pacific Islanders, and underscore the significance of culture loss due to climate change and anticipatory grief.
Background Investigations into the psychological experiences of climate change and environmental degradation have been ongoing for nearly 20 years, beginning with the concept of “solastalgia” and more recently conceptualized as ecological grief, or “eco-grief.” Both of these ideas have been developed as a way to describe the sadness and grief people can experience as a result of witnessing places that are important to them for personal and/or cultural reasons deteriorating. Why was this study done? Cunsolo and colleagues have published a number of papers investigating eco-grief and similar experiences in Indigenous groups living in the Circumpolar North, with findings suggesting significant feelings of grief and sadness associated with loss of access to culturally meaningful places and practices. However, less is known about the possible experiences of eco-grief in Indigenous peoples of the Global South, including in the Pacific Small Island Developing States (PSIDS), despite recognition that this region is especially vulnerable to the effects of climate change. We conducted this study to explore whether rural Indigenous Fijians had observed changes in their environment and, if so, how they were feeling about these changes. What did the researchers do and find? We interviewed 71 rural Indigenous and other traditional Fijians living in one of seven coastal, coastal hinterland, and river delta villages on the islands of Viti Levu and Ovalau. Interviews were conducted in the local language via an interpreter. The interviews were translated and transcribed in English, and were then analyzed using a common analytic technique that identifies patterns across the interview data. All interviewees reported having observed significant changes in weather patterns and their local environments (e.g., sea level rise), which they considered unusual and concerning. These changes, which included losses of species and resources, reduced their ability to rely on subsistence farming and contributed to significant concern about their ability to continue performing traditional cultural practices. Furthermore, worry about anticipated future losses was evident, with specific concerns related to the well-being and quality of life of future generations and potential loss of traditional lands if needing to relocate. Though migration was discussed in all villages, it was clearly an undesirable outcome, and would likely cause feelings of considerable loss and sadness. What do these findings mean? To our knowledge, this is the first in-depth assessment of experiences of eco-grief in Indigenous peoples of the Global South, providing another unique perspective to the growing body of literature supporting the challenges Indigenous peoples are facing around the world with respect to climate change. Though ecological grief is not a clinical diagnosis, its experience may contribute to the development of mental ill-health in PSIDS populations, particularly as losses continue to accumulate with advancing climate change. Clinical interventions and support that are delivered in a culturally responsive and acceptable manner are urgently needed.
Highlights Significant changes in the environment have been observed by all rural Fijians irrespective of whether they lived in coastal, coastal hinterland, or river delta regions. These changes contributed to both immediate worries related to loss of species, ways of life and, consequently, meaningful cultural practices, as well as feelings of anticipatory loss related to concern for future generations and potential migration. In a number of ways, the experiences of eco-grief in rural Indigenous Fijians are similar to those found in the Circumpolar North, providing a new perspective from the Global South and underscoring the critical importance of culture loss in the experience of eco-grief.
Details
- Title
- “Io, keimami leqataka vakalevu na vei gauna mai muri” (“We are worried about the future generation”): Experiences of eco-grief in rural indigenous Fijians
- Authors
- Amy D. Lykins (Author) - University of New EnglandSuzanne Cosh (Author) - University of New EnglandPatrick D. Nunn (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Law and SocietyRoselyn Kumar (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Law and SocietyCassandra Sundaraja (Author) - University of New England
- Publication details
- Global Environmental Psychology, Vol.1, pp.1-28
- Publisher
- Leibniz Institute for Psychology
- Date published
- 2023
- DOI
- 10.5964/gep.11447
- ISSN
- 2750-6630
- Copyright note
- This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, CC BY 4.0, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction, provided the original work is properly cited.
- Data Availability
- Data was not made publicly available in order to preserve the confidentiality of the participants.
- Grant note
- The authors received a small internal grant from the University of New England to support this project.
- Organisation Unit
- Indigenous and Transcultural Research Centre; Australian Centre for Pacific Islands Research; School of Education and Tertiary Access; School of Law and Society; Sustainability Research Cluster
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99979098702621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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