Dr. Thomas Doherty—a licensed psychologist in private practice—defines environmental psychology and discusses how to address anxiety related to climate change.
Dr. Thomas Doherty is a Registered Health Service Psychologist based in Portland, Oregon who has developed a specialty addressing people’s concerns about environmental issues and climate change. His multiple publications on nature and mental health include the groundbreaking paper “The Psychological Impacts of Global Climate Change,” co-authored by Susan Clayton, cited over 700 times. Thomas is a fellow of the American Psychological Association (APA), Past President of the Society for Environmental, Population and Conservation Psychology, and Founding Editor of the academic journal Ecopsychology. Thomas was a member of the APA’s first Task Force on Global Climate Change and founded one of the first environmentally-focused certificate programs for mental health counselors in the US at Lewis & Clark Graduate School. He also co-hosts the Climate Change and Happiness podcast. Thomas is originally from Buffalo, New York.