The 2019–2020 Black Summer bushfires were an unprecedented climate disaster in Australia, severely affecting large parts of New South Wales over several months. Intensified by climate change, prolonged drought, and rising temperatures, the fires directly or indirectly affected nearly 80 percent of Australians through loss, displacement, and exposure to hazardous pollution. Thousands of homes and critical infrastructure were destroyed, livelihoods in agriculture and related sectors were disrupted, and lives were lost, leaving long-lasting social and economic scars on affected communities.
The bushfires also triggered significant public health consequences, particularly for children and young people. Dense smoke containing dangerous particulate matter and carcinogenic substances spread far beyond fire zones, pushing air pollution levels to more than ten times hazardous thresholds. Ash contaminated playgrounds, backyards, and water supplies, exposing children to unsafe environments at a critical stage of development and compounding physical health risks.
Alongside physical exposure, children experienced profound psychosocial impacts driven by overlapping stressors. Prolonged drought, displacement, economic insecurity, and subsequent COVID-19 isolation heightened vulnerability and contributed to anxiety, sleep disturbances, trauma, and suicidal ideation among young people directly affected by the fires. These impacts illustrate non-economic loss and damage linked to climate change, where emotional well-being, safety, and stability are deeply compromised.
Access to mental health support remains uneven, particularly for children and families in rural and remote areas most exposed to climate-related disasters. While these communities face greater climate risks, they often lack adequate services due to limited geographic coverage and social barriers such as stigma and reluctance to seek formal mental health care. This gap leaves many children without timely, appropriate support during and after disasters.
In response to these challenges, the Culture Dose for Kids project was implemented in New South Wales between 2021 and 2024 as a non-clinical, arts-based intervention for children aged 9 to 12 and their families. Delivered through regional art galleries, the programme aimed to provide accessible and non-stigmatizing psychosocial support in climate-affected communities. By focusing on creative exploration, social connection, and shared family participation, the intervention offered an alternative pathway to mental health support where traditional services were limited.
The programme engaged children and parents through structured creative sessions led by trained facilitators, encouraging expression, reflection, and connection in a safe environment. Its design emphasized positive reframing of difficult experiences, intergenerational participation, and continued engagement beyond formal sessions, helping families build coping strategies and emotional resilience over time.
Children and caregivers played an active role in shaping the programme, ensuring that activities reflected lived experiences of trauma, anxiety, and recovery. The arts-based approach created a supportive space for emotional expression, strengthened parent–child relationships, and fostered peer connections, particularly benefiting children experiencing mild anxiety or social isolation.
Results from the programme demonstrated measurable improvements in children’s anxiety levels and parental well-being, highlighting the arts as a powerful tool for addressing the psychosocial impacts of climate-related disasters. Participants reported feeling safe, included, and emotionally supported, underscoring the value of integrating arts-based approaches into disaster preparedness and recovery frameworks.
The experience from New South Wales shows that arts-based interventions can fill critical gaps left by conventional disaster responses, which often prioritize immediate physical needs while overlooking long-term psychosocial recovery. By embedding creative, community-based approaches within public health systems and disaster risk management, governments and institutions can strengthen resilience, reduce stigma, and better support children and families facing the ongoing impacts of climate change.
Sustaining and scaling such interventions requires stable funding, investment in community infrastructure, and recognition of non-traditional service providers within loss and damage financing mechanisms. Ensuring that child- and family-centered, arts-based supports are adequately resourced will be essential to addressing the hidden and long-term psychosocial costs of climate change on future generations.
