Youth activists spearhead the fight for climate action
- Karen Grace Prince
- Nov 4, 2021
- 2 min read
As the years go by, civilisation inches closer and closer to the uncomfortable reality of an irreparable Earth, wrought by the effects of climate change and global warming.
COVID-19 has not deterred the upward streak of the climate crisis, with chances of crossing the global warming level of 1.5°C in the coming decades, according to the 2021 IPCC report.
The youth of today and tomorrow, whom climate change directly affects, face the difficulty of rerouting the world towards a more greener and sustainable lifestyle.
Some of these calls to action are seen through the recent Youth4Climate summit held in Milan last month.
The Youth4Climate was a three-day event with an attendance of over 400 youth delegates from 189 countries, to form a unified statement for climate action.
Through a series of panel sessions and talks, passionate youth activists discussed solutions to enact better climate action and policies that would help tackle the crisis today.
It also served as a prelude to the 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) to be held later this month in Glasgow.
The summit was opened by none other than environmental activist Greta Thunberg, who delivered a powerful speech on the lack of action and empty promises of world leaders.
“‘Thirty years of blah blah blah’ - this is all we hear from our so-called leaders,” said Greta.
So-called leaders have cherry picked young people to meetings like this to pretend they are listening to us, but they are not listening".
Greta’s sentiments were echoed by other youth delegates, including fellow Taylor’s University student Kayana Elmaadi.
Kayana, representing THIMUN Qatar Youth, was invited as a guest panellist to discuss how the youth could engage other youth communities on climate action.
“Bridging the gap and getting the youth to participate in hands-on services not only enforces reality, but it also holds them accountable and inspires them,” said Kayana, during her panel session.
Kayana also expressed frustration at the outcome of the conference, particularly at how attending leaders were unable to provide answers on their plans for education, inclusion and actions.
Yet, the results of the summit were not unconstructive.
John Leo Algo, a youth delegate representing the Philippines told LICAS News, that the youth embodied a sense of urgency through their show of passion, commitment, and energy during the 3-day span.
This was seen through negotiation of demands and directly calling upon attending ministers on their pledges and actions against the climate crisis.
While the outcome of the summit offers a grim reality for the generations to come, all hope is not lost.
The upcoming COP26 next week will assess the solutions proposed by the youth, and also propose more ambitious plans for all the 200 countries that signed the Paris Peace Agreement in 2015, according to Reuters.
As youth members who are concerned for our futures, the lack of action to match the words from our world leaders is frustrating.
Yet, the aftermath of the summit is a clear indication that young activists are more than willing to question and press their world leaders for more commitment on climate action plans.
As climate change and the imminent effects of global warming poses a threat to all civilisation, we need to take up the social responsibility to advocate and rally towards a greener tomorrow.
In the words of Greta Thunberg, “We want climate justice and we want it now”.
Comments