Youth Actions for Climate Justice
The Our Fair Planet: Youth Actions for Climate Justice programme is supporting young people become change makers and advocates for a fairer and more just world.
The programme shifts the focus of climate action away from a purely environment issue, to look at the injustices and inequalities that arise from climate change. Through youth empowered actions the programme supports the voices of young people to be heard in developing new ways for local communities to transition to a greener world. It also ensures that young people are at the forefront of innovation and change with regard to climate justice in their local communities.
The programme is supported by the DCEDIY and is being delivered across 18 Youth Work Ireland Member Youth Services nationally.
READ MORE
The impacts of Climate Change are being felt across the planet, with extreme weather events and rising temperatures becoming commonplace. Over the next few decades some regions in the world will be even more adversely affected by Climate Change than others. This fact has led to a re-framing of the terms ‘Climate Change’ and ‘Climate Action’ to that of ‘Climate Justice’ which allows us to view the effects of Climate Change from a Human Rights and political perspective rather than purely an environmental issue. Changing the lens through which we look at Climate Change brings into focus how deeply inequitable it is for those who have contributed the least to carbon emissions – mostly the developing nations in the Global South – to suffer the most.
The challenge of Climate Change is a decisive one for the world and it is Young People who are at the fore in the fight for Climate Action. We have seen thousands of young people across the globe take part in school strikes and protests to urge decision makers to take the issue seriously and respond. Granted, these issues are difficult, but the evidence is clear – time is running out! The world is on track towards global temperature increases way above safe levels, despite the provisions of international agreements such as the Paris Agreement.
Another challenge associated with climate policies is how to support communities whose livelihood relies on climate-damaging industries such as fossil fuel extraction or certain types of farming – including in developed countries such as Ireland. The concept of Just Transitions looks at how to help those communities move into new areas of industry or business to support themselves so that they aren’t left behind as we move forward into more sustainable ways of living.
This programme aims at educating and empowering Young People around the issues of Climate Justice, Sustainable Development, Just Transitions, Human Rights and Equality through participation, innovation, learning, creativity and local Community Actions.