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  • CAREER COLUMN

I’m a climate scientist. Here’s how I’m handling climate grief

Researchers must find personal ways to cope with impending losses — one way is by taking small solutions-oriented actions, says Kimberley R. Miner.
By
  1. Kimberley R. Miner

    1. Kimberley R. Miner is an Earth scientist at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena and a research professor at the University of Maine in Orono and Virginia Tech in Blacksburg.

Last September, before the rains came, my field team learnt that it was probably too late for half the blue oaks affected by California’s drought in the region in which we were working. Because of years of ongoing drought, many of the trees would not recover from the long-term water loss and would die. The next morning, I sat outside our science team meeting and cried.

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doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-02619-0

This is an article from the Nature Careers Community, a place for Nature readers to share their professional experiences and advice. Guest posts are encouraged.

Competing Interests

The author declares no competing interests.

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