As part of a forthcoming environmental leadership handbook, Susanne Moser examines the challenges that future environmental leaders will encounter and how these individuals can serve as models to the public.

Key takeaways from the study:

• Future environmental leaders will require strong psychological, social and political skills to deal with the human crises that will come with the more difficult environmental challenges to come.

• Mature leaders will face the whole truth of climate change’s impacts and accept that “better tomorrows” may not come.

• Grieving about environmental losses together, rather than individually, can be more healing and motivating.

• Framing the transition to the future environmental reality will help provide a roadmap for people and will carry forward persistence, hope and a commitment to moral action.

• Leaders will have to help those who are in crisis cope in order to avoid people falling back into resistance, defensiveness and placing blame. Drawing on faith may be a useful strategy.

• Numerous paradoxes exist among climate issues, but leaders can harness the tension between them in order to deal with them effectively.

• Future leaders need to demand accountability for everyone’s role in previous unsustainability, as well as accord amnesty to those having difficulty living with their role.

• Peaceful conflict resolution and promoting non-violence will become increasingly important – and difficult – as frustrations and fears rise.