Let’s face it: the term ‘inner work’ doesn’t resonate with everybody. It’s a broad term, variously associated with psychotherapy, mindfulness, meditation and much else besides. At ICRA, as we build the first UK-wide community of practice around inner climate response, we find it useful - and we hold it loosely. It’s one name for something that different people call different things. This piece, then, is an exploration rather than a set of definitions.
The depth and scale of the climate and ecological crises facing us can feel overwhelming. Opening ourselves to the emotional toll can feel frightening, especially when we fear we may not be able to cope. Yet when we don’t tend to what is arising within us, this shapes how we care for ourselves and those around us, and our capacity to effect change.
Those of us in activist and change-making spaces may be familiar with the burnout, overwhelm, despair, conflict and relational ruptures that can arise. And those of us not working in these spaces might also resonate with feelings of hopelessness, paralysis, denial, anger, or something else entirely. It can be easier to push away these uncomfortable feelings - leading to that collective paralysis we’re all too familiar with: “there’s nothing I can do about this” - or looking away - “it’s too depressing to talk about”.
It’s not ‘just’ climate and nature losses we’re dealing with. The crises we face are behavioural and cultural too, shaped by a dominant narrative that tells us we are not enough, that we don’t belong, and that we are separate — from our bodies, each other, and the rest of nature.
We’re all shaped by histories of colonisation, extraction and disconnection in different ways. These beliefs become internalised, meaning that we often recreate the same harmful structures and patterns we are trying to change, despite our best intentions. As we try to find our way through the crises of today, inner work can support us to look at these old patterns, with accountability and compassion.
We see ‘inner work’ as the practices that help us navigate all this. Inner work helps us to be in healthier relationship with ourselves, each other and our communities, and the rest of nature. It helps us build emotional, relational and civic resilience: our capacity to collaborate, navigate different perspectives, make sense of what is happening together, and make collective decisions in times of uncertainty and disruption.
Inner work helps us build the capacity to feel it all - the fear, anger, grief and vulnerability - yet not be defined and consumed by this. We can learn to stay connected to ourselves and others even through conflict, disagreement and relational rupture. In doing so, we become more able to collaborate, respond with care, and act in ways that are healthy and generative for ourselves, each other, and the wider living world.
As Starter Culture - a collective supporting inner-led change - says, through inner work we can “co-create the healthy, relational and just cultures our hearts long for — and which our current social and ecological collapse demands.”
The form that inner work takes reaches far beyond psychotherapy, mindfulness or meditation. While these are important, we see inner work as a much wider spectrum of individual and collective practices. It might be nature connection, grief tending, Work That Reconnects, somatic practice, climate café listening circles, arts-based approaches, spiritual inquiry, group dynamics, relational skills or collective imagining.
The ways in which we attune to and resource ourselves feel different for each of us. For some, sharing our feelings with others is helpful, for others it’s movement, time spent outdoors, making things with our hands, or sharing food together that nourishes us and helps us to process our feelings.
ICRA is particularly interested in the many ways that these practices are woven into community action and collective care - perhaps through faith practice, shared meals, singing together, collective decision-making, or other forms - because it is through relational and collective approaches that we are able to build true community and create the meaningful change we need.
By Harriet Ayliffe, ICRA Community Lead
What do you think? What does inner work mean to you?
And if inner work, action, activism and/or resilience-building is happening in your community, we’d love to hear about it and share your stories in a future newsletter.
If it’s not happening yet, and you’re interested in inner work in response to the climate crisis, join our emerging network and come along to one of our upcoming online Community Calls (more on those below).
Read on for news and resources from ICRA and the wider community…
We are delighted to welcome Tony Li as the new Partnership lead for ICRA. Tony brings with him a wealth of leadership experience from his time at Mind, as well as brilliant energy, warmth and wisdom. Exciting times for ICRA.
A few words from Tony below.
“I am excited to work with the fabulous ICRA partners and communities across the UK to develop strategies to help build the emotional and psychological resilience of everyone working for a better climate and environment.
I have spent most of the last 14 years at the national mental health charity Mind. Much of that time has been spent stewarding large programmes aimed at supporting people to be more active and get outside into nature to feel good. I also co-chaired Mind’s internal climate emergency group and have sat on the steering group for the Climate Minds Coalition.
I am committed to working towards a more inclusive society and empowering the voices of marginalised communities and those with lived experience of dealing with climate-related thoughts and emotions to be the driving force of ICRA.”
The ICRA community of practice will come into shape through participatory design, emerging according to the community’s wants and needs, so if you…
are holding space for people facing the climate crisis, and/or
would like to be better equipped to foster inner resilience in your community or work environment, and/or
want to link inner work with local climate action and adaptation efforts
…we’d love to hear a little more from you. Please take a few minutes to complete our short ICRA Community form - your input will then help collectively shape the community of practice.
We’re also collecting information for the ICRA map which will be a tool to facilitate connections with community groups and inner work practitioners.
We’re looking for ‘Community Connectors’ to work with - people who are well-connected across different communities or contexts, and who may be able to help build bridges and harvest insights to shape a radically inclusive Community of Practice.
Do you, or someone you know, have strong, trusted relationships within communities that are often underserved, underrepresented, or excluded—whether in wider society and/or within mainstream climate action or activism spaces?
This might include (but isn’t limited to) communities shaped by different socio-economic backgrounds, race or ethnicity, faith, geography, or political perspectives, and those involved in community-led work such as mutual aid, food growing, migrant and refugee support, work addressing poverty and economic inequality, racial justice initiatives, or other social and environmental action.
If you’d like to put yourself or someone else forward, please add details to the form (via the button above).
Join our monthly online gatherings for anyone interested in inner work, climate resilience and community adaptation in any combination 🙂
Come along to:
- meet the ICRA team and each other
- explore together what this new community of practice could look like
- share how you may be integrating inner work in a diversity of ways, and its significance in responding to the climate crisis and broader polycrisis.
Find out more and book your free place
Climate psychology workshops for the People’s Emergency Briefing - update
Since 27 March, there have been 31 Climate Psychology for People’s Emergency Briefing Facilitators workshops, with a total of 220 participants.
This workshop is run in partnership with the National Emergency Briefing for those hosting People’s Emergency Briefing screenings, and covers the psychological context, a practical facilitation framework, and tools for handling difficult group moments.
To register for the workshop, first sign up to host a screening with the NEB, then book your place
These workshops are designed by Linda Aspey of the Climate Psychology Alliance (CPA) and delivered by trained CPA members. CPA is a partner of ICRA (the Inner Climate Response Alliance) which is part-funding these workshops.
Events, workshops and other offerings - some from people already in the ICRA network, others from outside that we think you might be interested in. If you have something you’d like us to share with the community in next month’s newsletter, drop us a line at hello@innerclimateresponse.org.
People, Planet, Pop-Ups
The Resilience Project is hosting a free pop-up event every Saturday throughout May for young changemakers in London aged 18-28. These drop-in events have been designed for joy-loving, community-spirited young people who feel sad, tired, angry, or burned out about the state of the world.
Sat 16th May — Resilience Rucksack Workshop
Sat 23rd May — Hopeful Climate Book Club
Sat 30th May — Zine Making Workshop
London | Find out more
Council of all Beings: An Exploration of EcoAwakening
Join a Council of all Beings to speak on behalf of the beings who have called out to us from the wider web of life. “The Council of All Beings is a communal ritual in which participants step aside from their human identity and speak on behalf of another life-form. A simple structure for spontaneous expression, it aims to heighten awareness of our interdependence in the living body of Earth, and to strengthen our commitment to defend it.” – Joanna Macy. Facilitated by Frieda Nixdorf. Online, 17 May | Find out more.
Difficult questions call: climate vs polycrisis?
How should climate action evolve in a world increasingly understood as a polycrisis — and what might be gained or lost by shifting focus from climate breakdown alone to the wider set of interconnected challenges shaping people’s lives? A structured dialogue event from The Climate Majority Project, facilitated to be pragmatic and grounded, with the aim of reaching statements that have meaning and integrity and appeal to a broad, concerned audience. Online, 19 May | Find out more.
Rob Hopkins: Time Travel for Unlocking Collective Imagination
Join Rob Hopkins, author of 'From What Is to What If' and ‘How to Fall in Love with the Future’, in conversation about why & how to spark collective imagination in times of injustice and collapse. Rob will also be sharing his time travel practice with us, so get ready for a trip to the future! Online 19 May | Find out more.
The Spiral Calls – Stepping Into Your Facilitation Path
A free 90-minute introductory session about the Work That Reconnects Spiral Journey Facilitator Development Program, titled “The Spiral Calls“. We will be exploring the structure, rhythms, and spirit of the program — including mentorship, practice facilitation, and the inner work that supports wise and grounded leadership. Online, 23 May | Find out more.
Learning to Reconnect - Expanded ‘Work That Reconnects’ Spiral Series
An online, six-week exploration of the Work That Reconnects. An invitation to reconnect with our deepest selves, each other, and the Earth. Online, from 28 May | Find out more.
Togetherness: Show & Tell Session from Lifehouse and Fabric
A series of online community ‘Show and Tell’ gatherings to hear and discuss what groups and organisations across the UK will share about building togetherness in the face of growing crises, societal and systems breakdown, environmental and social problems. Online, 7 June | Find out more
Spiritual Ecology Festival at St Ethelburga’s
A three-day festival interweaving storytelling, peacebuilding and ecology. With talks, live music, storytelling, workshops, panel discussions, contemplative spaces and an overnight planting pilgrimage. London, Sat 13 Jun 2026 - Sun 14 Jun 2026 | Find out more.
Becoming Trauma-Attuned
A four-day immersion from the Starter Culture collective for space-holders, facilitators and guides to cultivate the embodied relational capacities needed for radically inclusive groups and communities. Devon, 24th - 28th July 2026 | Find out more.
Political Generation gathering
Today’s young people are among the most politically disillusioned generations in living memory. In a world shaped by crisis, fragmentation, and institutional failure, many of us struggle to have faith in meaningful collective change.
The Raft, incubated by the Climate Majority Project, is hosting a gathering on September 3-8, for 18-35 year-olds who haven’t given up, to explore these questions with depth, honesty and connection. Alongside holding dialogues about what it means to be political today and learning from a regenerative land project, we will explore practices like ecstatic dance, tai chi, and community living. Embedded in the beautiful Furnace Brook (2 hours south of London), join us to share your questions and stories and build our political agency in the deepest sense of the word: the art of living well together. Early bird price £270. Near Hailsham, September 3-8 Read more and sign up.
Natural objects as a prism for feelings- a reflection on Climate Cafe Listening Circles
Have you ever taken part in a Climate Cafe Listening Circle? If not, this beautiful poem from Matt Sowerby of The Resilience Project will give you a flavour.
A Local National Emergency
A podcast episode from Carbon Copy connecting which tells the story of one local screening of the People’s Emergency Briefing documentary and shows how the groundswell of awareness around the climate crisis can be channeled into community action.
Life is Woo
Article shared by community member & facilitator Samantha Gibbons who says: “I often feel like communicating the inner work is dismissed as ‘woo’ - often a projection and fear of judgement. I appreciate how this article challenges that fear and celebrates the value of ‘woo’!”
Grants for Good
Funding from the Matthew Good Foundation for local charities, voluntary groups or social enterprises that are making a big impact on communities, people or the environment. (To be eligible, you must be a UK-based local community group, charity, voluntary group or social enterprise, have an annual income of less than £50,000 and have a bank account in the organisation’s name.) The next funding round closes on 15 June 2026. More info.
In those years by Adrienne Rich
To close this month’s missive, we share Adrienne Rich’s poem In those years, which speaks so strongly of the shift from ‘I’ to ‘we’ that we are all working with.
A reflection on the loss of collective community that is hitting us hard right now, and a reminder that it is in these years now that we can remember and reconnect with the ‘we’ that is our natural state of being and the path towards a different future.
Warm wishes, The ICRA team
The Inner Climate Response Alliance is a partnership between the Mindfulness Initiative, the Climate Psychology Alliance and the Climate Majority Project, funded by the National Lottery Climate Action Fund. We’re not here to deliver practices ourselves, but to create space for people to work together - connecting inner work practitioners with grassroots and community climate efforts, supporting groups to experiment with practical approaches, and raising public awareness of why inner and relational resilience matter.
No posts
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.