Humanity&Planet

01/07/2026

❄️ In December, as part of an extended trip abroad, my family had the chance to visit Abisko, Sweden, pop. ~ 150, in the Arctic Circle, one of the best places in the world to see the northern lights. And our trip also happened to coincide with the Gemenids meteor shower. Just amazing.

🌌 Many, many thanks to our wonderful guide, professional photographer Jesús Garrido of , for finding and capturing the magic of the northern lights—and for stargazing, sharing great stories, and providing cookies and hot lingonberry tea. (Both photos here are his.) We had an extraordinary time communing with nature, trekking briefly through the woods in the dark, and watching the auroras while standing on a frozen lake. And Abisko was a place that allowed for really being with the natural world.

🌍 The Arctic is warming, which will have massive effects on all of us, everywhere, and those effects are already felt when you’re there—from frequent mentions of climate change, to less snow than usual, to warmer temps than usual, to effects on wild animals, and on and on. It isn’t right that this beautiful place, home to critical ecosystems and central to the well-being of all of us, is being destroyed because of fossil fuels. We need to change our ways and live in harmony with the Earth.

🌲 I deeply love experiencing the natural world and I believe strongly that travel is an important form of learning, but doing it responsibly is really critical. I don’t travel as much as I otherwise would. (And I don’t support billionaires and their private planes: In 2024 Oxfam noted that on average, 50 of the world’s richest billionaires each took 184 flights in a single year, spending 425 hours in the air—producing as much carbon as the average person would in 300 years.) And I’m not consumption-oriented but instead invest in experiences provided by local people, eating local foods, buying local goods, and honoring and respecting nature. It matters to do what we can.

01/05/2026

I’ve been enjoying the view of the new year with this beautiful 2026 calendar that I worked on with the University of Michigan’s Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nichols Arboretum . Filled with ecopsychological reflections and inspiration for monthly well-being activities, and paired with quotes and peaceful nature scenes from Matthaei and the Arb, it guides you in nurturing your well-being through reciprocal relationship with the natural world throughout the year. You can find it at the Matthaei Gift Shop.

From the intro to the calendar:

“When we help our world, it helps us right back. Stewardship of our natural environment helps sustain healthy communities and honors cultural connections.
At Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nichols Arboretum, we promote stewardship and position humans as active participants with our natural world; we draw on reciprocal relationships with nature - we experience what nature gives and teaches us, and in turn, we care for and protect our Earth. // The connection between nature and well-being is an easy and well-documented one; when we experience this connection, we tend to be more grounded, more relaxed, and more healthy. Through this calendar, we invite you to experience this relationship throughout the year and to aid in your well-being - each month has a theme, and has suggested activities in which to engage. We also invite you to use the Botanical Gardens and the Arboretum as places for nurturing your own well-being in a way that brings you meaning and joy!”

12/28/2025

12/25/2025

After being in Europe recently for family reasons, we tacked on a trip to both Swedish Lapland, in the Arctic Circle, and Estonia, a former Soviet republic. More to come later, but for today, I’m sticking with reindeer photos. 🙂

Here are some reindeer hanging out after crossing the road in front of us during polar “sunrise,” which, during the ~3 months of polar night in the Arctic Circle in winter is not actually sunrise because the sun doesn’t come above the horizon. It’s instead reflected light, which lasted about 6 hours a day while we were there.

The second photo is a small reindeer from a Sami museum we visited; the Sami are Indigenous peoples who farm reindeer and greatly rely on them. Check out their amazing split hooves.

Reindeer populations are declining due to climate change: https://www.cnn.com/2025/12/25/climate/holidays-animals-climate-change-christmas-hanukkah?cid=ios_app

12/12/2025

So much power emanates from love, care, compassion, empathy, and altruism when we recognize and act on them. What do you love about other people and about the everyday things of the natural world—our world? And what positive actions might come from that love?

11/13/2025

If you’re a mental health or health professional, it’s increasingly critical to learn about climate change and its connection to psychology and mental health. Please join Gale Sinatra, Susan Clayton, , Scott Barstow, and me as we explore this topic in this CE offering from the American Psychological Association . It’ll be live with Q&A on Nov. 19 and will be available later if you can’t make it then.

1.5 CE credits: $45 for APA members; $60 non-members; free for no CE credit. Register here or at link in bio: https://apa.content.online/catalog/product.xhtml?eid=69913

11/13/2025

We are so lucky to live on this planet.

11/11/2025

Today and every day I stand united with women worldwide as we call for bold climate action. The energy transition is unstoppable. Women are leading the way and are building solutions to protect what we love.

For children the world over, we need a just transition that cares for everyone. It is time for a world where we are not always anticipating or suffering the effects of the next climate disaster.

96% of business leaders support moving from fossil fuels to renewables. In 2024 half of companies maintained their climate targets, while nearly 40% increased their ambition.

A fair, green, amazing future is within our grasp. The future we want is one where communities around the world thrive, where businesses innovate, and where women are leading the way. The power is in the people. Let’s do this for each other and for future generations who are counting on us today.

10/30/2025

📣 Final Notice: Only a few more days to register! If you haven’t signed up yet, you can do so here: https://lnkd.in/eWmfkm73 or at link in bio.

🌎 If you’re an environmental organization or agency, a climate journalist, or a scientist in the U.S. or elsewhere who wants to integrate mental health support into your work and workplace culture, and I would love to have you join us for a *free* 45-minute group consultation online on November 10 at noon EST. (Please note that this event is not for climate psychologists or similar professionals.) Come with your questions, challenges, or ideas: We’ll be there to help you explore practical, emotionally informed strategies that strengthen resilience, engagement, and effectiveness in the face of the climate crisis. You can look forward to an interactive space that begins with a brief 10-minute overview of key climate psychology insights, followed by an open “Ask Us Anything” conversation.

👩‍💻 This event will NOT be recorded, so be sure to be there!

🔆 REGISTER AT https://lnkd.in/eWmfkm73

❓Questions? Or can’t make it to this event, but would like to be notified about future offerings from Laura and Leslie? Please send an email to hello@sarahjs.org.

🗓️ If you want to attend but this time isn’t available for you, we’d be interested to hear your scheduling preference for our future offerings.

➡️ This is not a private therapy session, nor a talk, workshop, or climate café. It’s also not for climate psychologists; it’s specifically for environmental professionals, organizations, and agencies; scientists; and climate journalists.

🌀We hope to see you there!

10/29/2025

The changing seasons are often an opportunity to tune into our connection with the rhythms of nature. Stopping to notice a squirrel gathering nuts with purpose and a plan, to listen to the sound of ducks or geese, to soak in the vibrant colors of the leaves lets us feel how we are part of something bigger than ourselves.

10/13/2025

On this Indigenous Peoples’ Day, I’d like to bring attention to Line 5, the degraded, dangerous oil pipeline that is a threat to the Great Lakes and to the land and waters of Native American tribes. Last year, Deb Haaland, who was Interior Secretary at the time, spoke at the University of Michigan- School for Environment and Sustainability, and I wrote this piece about climate emotions and climate action afterwards, prompted by the Line 5 protester who spoke up repeatedly at Haaland’s talk. I didn’t do anything with my piece then but decided to update it for today. I hope you’ll give it a read, because Line 5 is important to everyone everywhere, not just to Michiganders, and environmental justice is central to the fight to shut down Line 5. And I think that Deb Haaland and the protester probably had some feelings in common.

Link in bio or here: https://open.substack.com/pub/humanityandplanet/p/native-american-leader-deb-haaland?r=fai1b&utm_medium=ios (My Substack is free, and you also don’t have to subscribe to read it.)

10/07/2025

If you’re an environmental organization or agency, a climate journalist, or a scientist in the U.S. or elsewhere who wants to integrate mental health support into your work and workplace culture, @(tag the other person) and I would love to have you join us for a free 45-minute group consultation online on November 10 at noon EST. Come with your questions, challenges, or ideas: We’ll be there to help you explore practical, emotionally informed strategies that strengthen resilience, engagement, and effectiveness in the face of the climate crisis. You can look forward to an interactive space that begins with a brief 10-minute overview of key climate psychology insights, followed by an open “Ask Us Anything” conversation.

👩‍💻 This event will NOT be recorded, so be sure to be there!

🔆 REGISTER AT http://bit.ly/askleslieandlaura or see link in bio

❓Questions? Or if you can’t make it to this event, but would like to be notified about future offerings from Laura and Leslie, please send an email to hello@sarahjs.org.

➡️ This is not a private therapy session, nor a talk, workshop, or climate café.

🌀We hope to see you there!