Dialogue on Climate Change
On 29 August 2009 Youth Forum 2009 participants gathered at the Villa Rigot for a meeting prior to the World Climate Conference-3 (WCC3) to discuss objectives of the conference, expectations, general views and ideas of each youth participant. The pre-meeting consisted of a youth representation 15 strong: six Youth Forum 2009 participants (Beatrice Mosello, Darren Willman, Tiago Pinto-Pereira, Rocìo Escobar, Gissela Giron and Pierre-François Szczech) five young British Council Global Changemakers, Francis Ward (London Intern at Initiatives of Change) and the Youth Forum team.
Meanwhile Dr David Rogers, President of the Health and Climate Foundation, Dr Pai-Yei Whung, Chief Scientist at the US Environmental Protection Agency, representatives from the WMO and Richardson Rogers & Associates LLC, along with Jay Wilson Project Manager of the GHF’s Weather Info for All initiative, represented the older generation.
This interesting mix of people, drawing on personal background and professional experience, touched on many ideas related to climate change. The meeting centered specifically on the youth’s concerns about the climate crisis, and in the end there was a meaningful dialogue between the younger and older generations.
The youth stressed their concerns about the need to communicate clearly and effectively the messages coming from different sources, including the scientific community. Lack of coherent policy and lines of communication, they felt, led to disparity in communities. Youth Forum participants stressed the need for youth to play more effective roles at international conferences, as they often felt intimidated by the complex technical terminologies used, or by the audience.
The entire group recognized that the moral obligation to make “greener” choices existed in each of them. The youth believed particularly that the power lay in every individual’s ability to change their everyday choices and practices towards a better future. The youth also felt that the challenges of climate change should no longer be weighed down by negative language and the effort to create feelings of hopelessness and guilt, but instead should be seen as opportunities for change, for entrepreneurship and business.
After a three-hour dialogue, the younger generation came away convinced that the blame game needs to stop, that distinctions between “I and you”, between “your generation and my generation” and between “developed and developing” need to be removed. Instead, we should aim towards an integrated, interconnected planet in order to have a better and brighter future.