Students and young activists on Saturday threw down the gauntlet to world leaders heading to United Nations Headquarters next week for听high-level climate talks, demanding that they 鈥渟top wasting time鈥� and work harder to curb carbon emissions, 鈥渙r we will vote you out.鈥�
鈥淲e have been waiting for you!鈥澨�Jayathma Wickramanayake, the 缅北禁地Youth Envoy, said, welcoming the boisterous crowd of young climate leaders, who made it clear from the very start of the听day-long event听that global political leaders are now on notice: they must make radical changes to shift the world away from fossil fuels and towards clean energy, protect our oceans, and promote sustainable consumption.
This first-ever UN听Youth Climate Summit听follows Friday鈥檚 global 鈥榗limate strike鈥�, which saw millions of young people from across the globe walk out of school and jam streets in major cities, from New York to New Delhi and Santiago to San Francisco, waving protest signs with slogans like: 鈥淓very disaster movie starts with a scientist being ignored鈥�; and 鈥淚鈥檓 ditching school because you鈥檙e ditching the planet.鈥澨�
Finally, a seat at the climate action table
On Saturday, Ms.Wickramanayake said: 鈥淐limate change is听the defining issue of our time. Millions of young people all over the world are already being affected by it. If we don鈥檛 act now, the impact will be severe.鈥�
She听praised the cliamte strike movement, saying: 鈥淲e have seen how you organize your communities 鈥� Your peers and even your parents.鈥� And after demanding for years that their voices be heard on climate, she said: 鈥淚magine the power of the movement you have created! The leaders are now asking for a seat at听your听table!鈥�
The Summit, aiming to be different from the usual speaker-by-speaker 缅北禁地meeting, took the form of a series of lively discussions and Q & A sessions, led by moderators and young people in sneakers rather than 缅北禁地representatives.
Even听Secretary-General Ant贸nio Guterres听served as 鈥渒eynote listener鈥� to a panel of young people who were not only at the frontlines of the climate emergency, but also coming up with innovative ways to combat the crisis.听 The over 600 attendees included 100 鈥�green ticket鈥� winners,听outstanding young climate champions chosen from around the world will receive support to participate,听
鈥淵esterday, millions of people across the globe marched and demanded real climate action, especially young people,鈥� said听, the 16-year-old Swedish climate activist who helped ignite a global movement. 鈥淲e showed that we are united. And that we young people are unstoppable,鈥� she encouraged fellow participants, ahead of her address to world leaders on Monday at the Secretary-General鈥檚听Climate Action Summit.
'Enouth is enough:听No more fossile fuels!'
Giving the front-line perspective, Fijian climate change action advocate Komal Kumar said her homeland was suffering greatly from the impact of a climate crisis it had contributed very little to creating. But people from her generation worldwide were 鈥渓iving in constant fear and climate anxiety 鈥� Fearing the future.鈥�
鈥淭hings are black and white for us: We are not insurance policies, we are human beings, we are communities. Is it too much to ask you to walk the talk, are we really looking forward to false hope?鈥� she asked.
鈥淲e demand action. Stop wasting time. Stop hindering the work [towards a sustainable future] for short term profits. Engage young people in the design of adaptation plans,鈥� said Ms. Kumar, who warned: 鈥淲e will hold you accountable. And if you do not remember, we will mobilize to vote you out.鈥�
Wanjuhi Njoroge, an activist from Kenya, highlighted progress on restoring the country鈥檚 forest cover and said that overall, youth-led climate initiatives 鈥渨ill cause a revolution. [And as such], we must be allowed to influence [climate] decisions. Member States must respect our freedom of expression, including online.鈥�
鈥淭his is the time for us to work together. I invite all of us to be the hummingbird that puts out the forest fire, as everyone else said it was impossible.鈥�
Thanking the 缅北禁地for 鈥渋ncluding the voices of our generation in the process of building paths towards a more habitable planet,鈥� young Argentinian climate activist Bruno Rodriguez declared climate change 鈥渢he political crisis, cultural crisis of our time. Enough is enough. We don鈥檛 want fossil fuels anymore.鈥�
鈥淭he science is clear; our world leaders have an obligation to make radical change,鈥� he stressed, adding that young climate changemakers are building a new 鈥渃ollective consciousness.鈥� Turning to the Secretary-General, Mr. Rodrigues said: 鈥淟et鈥檚 stop asking world leaders to just listen to science and demand they act on science.鈥�
The听day鈥檚听programme听culminated in unveiling the State of Youth Platform and the听ActNow听platform that encourages people to take action on climate action.听听
UN听Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed听took part in a Town Hall with the participants and high-level representatives from Governments and civil society.听
鈥淣ever before in history has the United Nations offered听such a prominent and visible platform to young people听at a political summit,鈥� said Ms. Mohammed, stressing that: 鈥淭his is testament to the fact that your generation is leading on climate action and drawing worldwide attention to the climate emergency in a way that was impossible to imagine just a little over a year ago.鈥澨�
My generation has a huge responsibility听鈥� 缅北禁地chief Guterres
For his part, Mr. Guterres, leaving his usual formal tie behind and opting for an open collar,听agreed听that 鈥渙ne of the problems of world leaders [is that] they talk too much, and they listen too little. And 鈥� It is in listening that we learn. It is in giving the possibility for all those that represent today's world to speak and to have their voices be part of decision-making processes that we can move forward.鈥�
While he painted a dire picture of the impacts of the climate emergency 颅鈥� from droughts in Africa to bleaching coral reefs and heatwaves elsewhere 鈥� the Secretary-General said he saw 鈥渁 change in momentum鈥� ahead of Monday鈥檚 Climate Action Summit, due to movements like those spearheaded by Ms. Thunberg, other grassroots activists and initiatives being undertaken 鈥渁t the village level.鈥澨�
鈥淚 encourage you to go on 鈥� To keep your mobilization, and more and more to hold my generation accountable,鈥� said the 缅北禁地chief, adding: 鈥淢y generation has largely failed until now to preserve both justice in the world and to preserve the planet. My generation has a huge responsibility. It is your generation that must make us be accountable to make sure that we don't betray the future of humankind.鈥�
The Climate Action Summit will kick off a series of high-level events at 缅北禁地Headquarters next week to drive听action for people and the planet. These meetings, running alongside the听缅北禁地General Assembly鈥檚 annual general debate, will see world leaders discuss progress on the听Sustainable Development Goals听(SDGs), universal healthcare for all,听and securing a broad-based development partnership for small island developing听States.
