Climate-related events such as droughts, extreme heat, and flooding intensify pressures on psychological well-being, particularly in vulnerable, low-resource, and conflict-affected settings.

Iraq ranks as the world’s fifth most climate-vulnerable country, and the Kurdistan Region has been increasingly affected by frequent and intense extreme weather events that threaten livelihoods and community stability.

Despite rising exposure, the mental health impacts of climate change in the Kurdistan Region remain largely understudied.

This study investigates the effects of climate change–related stressors and extreme weather events on mental health through robust analytical methods, yielding the first rigorous empirical evidence from the region.