24 Elizabeth Kanzeg – A Force of Nature: What Two Contemporary Novels Say About Child Activism, Children’s Literature, and Childhood Climate Anxiety
Elizabeth Kanzeg (she/her) is a Senior from Columbus, OH, majoring in English-Technical and Professional writing. She is a freelance writer and editor based in Columbus, Ohio. When she’s not poring over manuscripts and searching for misplaced commas, Elizabeth can be found reading in a cozy chair with her cats, performing onstage at her local community theatre, or antiquing with her husband. This work was prepared for Alisa Clapp-Itnyre’s English L390, who states, “Elizabeth wrote an amazing paper on ‘A Force of Nature: What Two Contemporary Novels Say About Child Activism, Children’s Literature, and Childhood Climate Anxiety.’ I got a bit teary-eyed reading this paper, both in the powerful argument that hit multiple climaxes at the end with her series of scholarly discussions about child-activism AND in pride as I read her own ability to take on higher scholarly arguments, understand the nuances and engaging them.”
A Force of Nature: What Two Contemporary Novels Say About Child Activism, Children’s Literature, and Childhood Climate Anxiety
Climate change permeates the everyday lives of modern children. They learn about animal species going extinct, experience firsthand the impact of floods and droughts, and grapple with the looming anxiety of inheriting a dying planet. Scientific research indicates this reality. In 2022, findings from Léger-Goodes et al. about climate anxiety in children were published in Frontiers in Psychology. The results state, “Evidence confirms that children experience affective responses and eco-anxiety in reaction to [the] awareness of climate change. Mental health outcomes include depression, anxiety, and extreme emotions like sadness, anger, and fear” (Léger-Goodes et al.). A growing number of children experience climate anxiety due to its unavoidable presence in the media, their lives, and their minds. Léger-Goodes et al. point to a study conducted by Tucci et. al that found that “In Australia, a survey of 600 children between 10 and 14 years old revealed that ‘44% of children are worried about the future impact of climate change’ and ‘one quarter of children worry that the world will end before they get older’” (Léger-Goodes et al.). Clearly, children understand and fear climate change. A sobering trend has arisen as children respond to climate change and process their climate anxiety—child climate activists. As adults fail to take action, children have bravely begun to advocate for positive change and fight practices that harm the planet. Unfortunately, literature has lagged in providing solid coverage of these issues and representation of climate-concerned children and child climate activists. Among children’s literature scholars, concern mounts about the dearth of children’s books dealing with these topics. As Sarah V. Benvento observes in “Communicating Climate Change Risk to Children: A Thematic Analysis of Children’s Literature,” “Explorations of children’s climate change literature is limited, despite the push from experts to involve children in climate change education and action” (Benvento 1). Only in the past few years have books for children finally begun to reflect the rise of child climate activists. Taking inspiration from figures like Greta Thunberg, novels and picture books written for young adults and children provide aspirational accounts of fictional child climate activists enacting tangible change. This essay will examine two recent examples of children’s chapter books about child climate activists, Haven Jacobs Saves the Planet (2022) by Barbara Dee and Burning Sunlight (2021) by Anthea Simmons, exploring how their portrayals of childhood climate anxiety and child climate activism can empower children.
Haven Jacobs Saves the Planet follows a 12-year-old with severe climate anxiety who rallies her friends and family to raise awareness about pollutants in a river that runs through her small town, Belmont. A first-person narrative, the novel explores how anxiety about the climate impacts Haven’s everyday life and details her rocky journey into climate activism. After her science teacher shows her class a video about penguins losing their habitat and dying due to melting ice caps, Haven Jacobs is changed forever (Dee 18). Anxiety about threats to the planet consumes her thoughts, leading to mental and physical symptoms. She explains, “I’d been thinking about the planet—all the scary stuff happening with climate change. And not just thinking about it: worrying” (Dee 17). To cope with her feelings of anxiety and dread, Haven bites her nails until they bleed (Dee 160). She also experiences gastrointestinal issues and has trouble sleeping due to racing thoughts (Dee 34, 46). These harmful responses to climate anxiety are not uncommon, according to Léger-Goodes et al. who, synthesizing the work of M. Ojala, explain, “Learning about climate change without acquiring the tools to cope with the emotions that accompany this knowledge may lead to hopelessness and denial” (Léger-Goodes et al.). Haven remains stuck in this hopelessness until, as part of a school-sanctioned science research project, she plays a part in uncovering an alarming truth about the level of pollutants in her town’s local waterway (Dee 89). All signs point to the culpability of a new glass manufacturing factory recently opened in town. Much to Haven’s concern, it’s Gemba, the factory where her father works (Dee 128). Regardless, with the help of her teachers, Haven organizes a festival to clean up trash, celebrate the river, and raise awareness about pollutants in the water (Dee 126). This event is much more successful than her second attempt at activism, in which she rallies a small group of students to protest on the river’s banks and try to collect evidence of Gemba dumping pollutants (Dee 215). Barbara Dee honestly portrays the challenges of organizing a grassroots movement and describes the embarrassment and frustration Haven feels when she makes mistakes or fails to get the results she’d hoped for. Haven confesses, “I’m really serious about this. And scared that nothing we do makes any difference” (Dee 213). As Haven continues her activism, she speaks with reporters, continues to build support and raise awareness, and slowly begins to feel hope about the future. Her conversations with a therapist also help her contextualize and re-direct her negative emotions and habits (Dee 144). Haven says, “[F]or the first time since I saw that scary penguin video, I felt the tiniest twinge of Hope,” (Dee 145). At the end of the book, the polluting chemicals in the river are traced to a different factory upstream from Haven’s town (Dee 245). Haven’s teacher invites her to speak to the mayor of Belmont about her concerns regarding the river’s pollution (Dee 220). Her testimony moves the mayor, who takes swift action to pursue justice (Dee 141). Dee ends the book on a hopeful note as Haven and her friends begin to notice wildlife returning to live in the restored, clean waters of the river (Dee 245).
Dee’s approach portrays the disturbing reality of climate anxiety in children, not avoiding depictions of the upsetting physical symptoms they experience and the mental turbulence they live with. Her characterization of Haven as a child activist shows someone compelled to act in response to the danger and injustice she perceives. Yet Haven pursues activism with excitement, eagerness, and passion. Bolstered by the adults around her, she makes a tangible, positive change in her community in a relatively short amount of time. Her example may empower children to pursue similar advocacy, looking to adults for help and support.
A similar chapter book written for children and young adults, Burning Sunlight recounts the experiences of a 12-year-old climate activist who mobilizes children and adults to fight climate change. The novel alternates between the first-person narration of Zaynab, a Somalian child climate activist, and Lucas, her friend and first ally in her fight against what she calls the “climate emergency.” Filled with bitterness towards her father, grief about the death of her mother, and anger about the devastating effects of climate change on her home country of Somaliland, Zaynab channels all her energy into fighting climate change at her new school in the United Kingdom. First, using her powerful charisma and public speaking skills, Zaynab rallies a small group of students at her school to participate in Greta Thunberg’s Fridays for the Future program (Simmons 63). Just as the small scale and seeming unimportance of her first efforts discouraged Haven, these same barriers frustrate Zaynab. She’s committed to making a bigger impact. She organizes a collective movement among the children at her school to attend a large climate rally in another city (Simmons 107). In contrast to the support Haven receives from parents and teachers, Zaynab’s efforts receive pushback from her school’s administration. But she stands up for her mission, asking them, “Why are you so negative?” and reminding them, “If people change what they do in even a small way, it helps. If they use their cars less, if they eat less meat, if they turn off lights, mend clothes… it all helps” (Simmons 109). Zaynab’s statement reinforces Simmons’ emphasis throughout the book on the importance of collective action. At the rally, Zaynab takes the stage and speaks to an audience of thousands, sharing her plights and the plight of her country (Simmons 166). She demands change and shames adults for their inaction. Here, Simmons’ and Dee’s novels diverge in terms of scale, with Zaynab reaching a much larger audience than Haven. Ultimately, Zaynab faces off with the executives of the fossil fuel company her father contracts for, uncovering their exploitative scheme to conduct drilling in Somaliland and convincing them to pursue only renewable sources of energy (Simmons 218, 260). Throughout her activism, Zaynab faces scrutiny and pushback from the adults in her life, including her principal, who scolds, “I will not have you disrupting people’s education. And I will not have scaremongering. You may wish to model yourself on Greta Thunberg, and run around telling everyone they should be panicking, but I won’t have it. You’re only here for six months, Zaynab. I think you should concentrate on your studies, rather than persuading children that their time is better spent on the streets of Exeter instead of in class, where they belong” (Simmons 110). The antagonism and discrimination Zayab faces only propel her towards her goals. She overcomes both the institutional and interpersonal challenges she faces. After Zaynab and her father reach an emotional breaking point, the two make an uneasy peace (Simmons 264). Her father expresses his pride over his daughter’s activism and his belief in her mission, saying, “That is your achievement, my daughter! …You have brought hope of real change” (Simmons 225).
Simmons’ compelling, emotional novel portrays a singular young activist in Zaynab. Her charisma, maturity, deep distress over the climate, and personal experiences with drought in Somaliland set her apart as uniquely equipped to advocate for change. Her activism progresses, leading her to direct contact with people in high positions of power. And, they listen to her. The fossil fuel company executives respond to Zaynab’s demands, saying, “You are right, again, Zaynab. We’ve been giving serious thought to how we can achieve what is a very ambitious goal. We’ll aim to be completely carbon neutral within five years. That’s going to be a very tough ask for us, but I think we can and must commit to that” (Simmons 260). This remarkable outcome demonstrates the large-scale, highly visible change Zaynab inspired through her climate activism.
In their article, “Reading the Word and World: of Activism in Children’s Literature,” Lauren Fletcher and Erica Holyoke explain that books about child activists fall into distinct categories that tend to play to either the “head,” the “heart,” or the “world.” “Head” books focus on the practical aspects of how to be an activist and carry out activism. Fletcher and Holyoke note, “Texts within the head theme instruct readers how to engage within the larger community to show disagreement or evoke change toward inequitable views, policies, and practices (Fletcher and Holyoke 716). Books in the “heart” category are story-based accounts of child activists who make a positive change. Finally, “world” books feature but do not center it. Fletcher and Holyoke note that often books in the “world” category portray child activism as part of the realistic, nuanced, and inter-connected fabric of a plot. While both books discussed in this essay likely fall into the “heart” category, Burning Sunlight especially highlights the nuanced web of interpersonal, religious, academic, and cultural strains of Zaynab’s life, meaning it could also be categorized as “world.” Simmons devotes a large portion of the novel to exploring Zaynab’s strained relationship with her father and the imperfect harmony they find by the end of the story (Simmons 264). This tactic lends an immersive and relatable quality to the book that forfends accusations of simplistic and unrealistic plot points.
While the protagonists of the two novels may differ in geographic location and life circumstances, they are both child climate activists. Authors increasingly portray fictional characters like Haven and Zaynab in response to real-world examples of child activists. In her pioneering article, “Modeling Environmental Heroes in Literature for Children: Stories of Youth Climate Activist Greta Thunberg,” Sinéad Moriarty explores how literature about child activists subverts and modernizes traditional hero narratives by celebrating heroes, specifically activists, from marginalized groups, including children. Moriarty explains, “This is particularly relevant in looking at texts about environmental heroes given the connection between climate change, environmental destruction, and the kinds of patriarchal, imperialist, and racist ideologies that Hourhihan critiques (Moriarty 193).” Writing about Swedish child activist Greta Thunberg, Sinéad Moriarty observes, “Thunberg’s status as a child is also positively portrayed in many of the texts. It is her position as a child that helps to captivate audiences. Greta is seen as exceptional and heroic based on her ability to have an impact on the adult world” (Moriarty 197). Both Haven and Zaynab are intersectional heroes and climate activists who impact the adult world as children, a reflection of the non-fictional children who fight for change around the world. They are the protagonists of the future—children who advocate for justice when adults fail to act.
Children respond to representations of child activists. Reading books about child activists might give children the confidence they need to take active steps to fight climate change. Engaging with literature that centers child activists promotes advocacy. As Fletcher and Holyoke note, “This lens cultivates critical thinkers, knowers, doers, and change agents” (Fletcher and Holyoke 1). Once empowered to pursue activism, children who experience climate anxiety gain access to a profitable outlet. Activism as an outlet is prescribed by Léger-Goodes et al.’s study. Speaking to parents, the study provides suggestions for combating climate anxiety and coming alongside children who fear for the planet’s future and who wish to enact change. Their recommendations include, “validate[ing] the child’s emotions and feelings, without minimizing them” and “providing students with the opportunity to find and discuss concrete ways to act to improve climate” (Léger-Goodes et al.). The authors also highlight the importance of emphasizing collective over individual action when discussing or participating in climate activism.
The exciting genre of child climate activism books holds the potential to empower children, provide diverse and meaningful representation, and lead to cathartic experiences for children who are anxious about the injustices around them. Books like Burning Sunlight and Haven Jacobs Saves the Planet portray aspirational role models who lead with courage and fight for their future with determination. Dee and Simmons approach writing about child climate activism differently. Dee takes a more upbeat tone and narrows the conflict to a smaller scale, while Simmons takes a more nuanced and dramatic approach and highlights the large-scale change her protagonist inspires. Yet, both these approaches are helpful and empowering to children. In their article, “Introduction: Children’s Literature and Climate Change,” Marek Oziewicz and Lara Saguisag ask the rhetorical question, “For is it not impossible—indeed, childish—to hope that stories for young people can make a difference in what has so far been a losing fight of the planet against the utterly dysfunctional social and political institutions of a petrocapitalist civilization?” (Oziewicz and Saguisag 7). They continue, “There is a childish disruptiveness in youth-led civil disobedience movements such as Fridays for Future and the Sunrise Movement. There is likewise a childish insistence shared by climate strikers, water protectors, land defenders, and crossover coalitions” (Oziewicz and Saguisag 7). Perhaps it is this exact childish determination and fearlessness that will shake people awake, inspiring them to take collective action and fight for the planet they share.
Works Cited
Benevento, Sarah V. “Communicating Climate Change Risk to Children: A Thematic Analysis of Children’s Literature.” Early Childhood Education Journal, vol. 51, 2023, pp. 201-210. Project Muse, doi.org/10.1007/s10643-021-01294-y.
Dee, Barbara. Haven Jacobs Saves the Planet. Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group, 2022.
Fletcher, Lauren and Erica Holyoke. “Reading the Word and World: Portrayals of Activism in Children’s Literature.” The Reading Teacher, vol. 76, no. 6, 2023, pp. 713–723. doi:10.1002/trtr.2191.
Léger-Goodes, Terra, et al. “Eco-anxiety in children: A scoping review of the mental health impacts of the awareness of climate change.” Frontiers in Psychology, vol. 13, 2022. doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.872544.
Moriarty, Sinéad. “Modeling Environmental Heroes in Literature for Children: Stories of Youth Climate Activist Greta Thunberg.” The Lion and the Unicorn, vol. 45, no. 2, 2021, pp. 192-210. doi.org/10.1353/uni.2021.0015.
Oziewicz, Marek and Lara Saguisag. “Introduction: Children’s Literature and Climate Change.” The Lion and the Unicorn, vol. 45, no. 2, 2021, pp. v-xiv. https://doi.org/10.1353/uni.2021.0011.
Simmons, Anthea. Burning Sunlight. Andersen Press, 2021.