Climate anxiety fuels rise of 1990s nostalgia

The rise of ‘nostalgiacore’—a trend involving the revival of 1990s and early 2000s fashion, toys, and technology—is being identified by experts as a cultural coping mechanism for climate anxiety and global instability.

As sales of vinyl records, CDs, and disposable cameras increase, researchers suggest this yearning for the past serves as a form of self-care. Britt Wray, director of the CIRCLE initiative at Stanford Psychiatry, notes that nostalgia provides comfort in response to chronic insecurity caused by the climate crisis, political polarization, and economic inequality.

While the trend offers emotional soothing by evoking memories of perceived stability, experts question whether returning to eras characterized by high consumption provides a sustainable solution to modern polycrises.